"That's Rivermutt! He is treed!"
The words come from our dog handler, Ronnie O'Neal, and we all take off through the Alabama creek bottom like a herd of turkeys. Rivermutt is Ronnie's ace squirrel dog, and his frantic barking tells us to get there quickly. It's Feb. 21, we are at the Squirrel Master Classic near Montgomery, Ala., hunting squirrels with dogs and Gamo air rifles, and we are having a big time.
The event is the brain child of Jackie Bushman, the founder of Buckmasters deer hunting association, magazines and outdoor television programs. In 1986, at age 29, Bushman acted on an idea he'd been developing since he was a teenager. The Montgomery native had grown up exploring the great outdoors and hunting with his grandfather, and he wanted to take the camaraderie of the hunting camp to a national level. He envisioned an association that would encourage a feeling of community, sportsmanship and wildlife conservation while promoting a positive image of deer hunters everywhere.
Contributed photo / Larry CaseIn 2014, Bushman had another brain storm that led to the inception of the Squirrel Master Classic. The decline in hunter numbers the past several years is no secret. Bushman believed, like many of us, that one way to generate more interest in hunting with young people is to bring back an emphasis on small game.
There was a time when most of us started hunting by pursuing squirrels, rabbits and other small game. As deer and turkey populations increased, many young hunters skipped this stage and started on larger game instead. That may not be a bad thing, but learning on small game is where a hunter often picks up the basics such as gun safety, woodsmanship, tracking and finding food sources for game, as well as dressing and preparing game for the table. Being taught all of this on rabbits, squirrels and game birds is a good way to start.
Bushman's idea was to have a squirrel hunt in a fun, competitive atmosphere. Teams are made up of outdoor television personalities, outdoors writers and editors, a dog handler with a dog to find the squirrels for you and - most important of all - a young person who is a 4-H shooter. As I've written before, 4-H has an extensive shooting program. Young people can learn and compete in several different shooting sports categories - air rifle and pistol, .22 rifle and pistol, shotgun, recurve and compound archery, muzzle loader and hunting skills.
Gamo Air Rifles sponsored the event and supplied all hunters with a Gamo Swarm Maxxim pellet rifle. The Swarm Maxxim is the world's only 10-shot break-barrel air rifle, and the 10X Quick Shot magazine allows the shooter to load 10 pellets in the magazine, insert it into the rifle and fire 10 quick shots before reloading is required. Believe me, we needed those quick second and third shots on this hunt because these squirrels had their running shoes on. Once they started running in the treetops, sometimes with spectacular leaps from tree to tree, you had to be quick or you came up empty-handed.
The Gamo folks also gave us a peek at the new Swarm Magnum, a 10-shot .22 caliber air gun with much greater velocity than previously available. The Swarm Magnum is capable of 1,300-feet-per-second pellet speed due to its new IGT Mach 1 technology. In short, Gamo put a large inert gas cylinder on this air gun to deliver speed and power unheard of in a manually operated air rifle.
The event is held at the Southern Sportsman's Lodge, a hunter's haven in the famous Black Belt region of Alabama. I'm pretty sure if you look up Southern hospitality in Webster's, you will see a picture of this lodge, which has a rich 35-year history for hosting deer and turkey hunters and now squirrel chasers. Its walls are adorned with rows of pictures of hunters, outdoor personalities, writers, sports figures and entertainers who have stayed here. And the ladies in the kitchen make the best barbecue this side of Memphis.
So picture six teams of squirrel chasers running the Alabama hardwoods in two shifts, morning and afternoon, with a shooting competition in the middle. The 4-H shooting match was won by Shelby Moore of Waverly, Ala. The 4-H shooter on my team was Ethan Linna from Prattville, Ala., and he added points to our score in the shooting match.
The afternoon competition was fierce between team leaders, including "Bone Collector" hunting show team captains Nick Mundt, Travis "T-Bone" Turner and Michael Waddell, Buckmasters' Bushman and Ralph and Vickie Cianciarulo of "Archer's Choice Hunting Show."
We raced through the woods following Rivermutt's barking when he would tree a squirrel. (He was replaced by "T.C." in the afternoon to give him a break.) If the squirrel was spotted, a hail of pellet rifle fire would ensue. Usually the squirrel would light out for parts unknown, and a wild chase through the jungle began. Sometimes we collected the squirrel, but often he would make it to a den tree and we would start all over.
After sundown, we all met back at the lodge for the solemn weigh-in ceremony. As everyone watched, Bushman counted and weighed each team's bag of squirrels for the day and added any bonus points they may have gained from the shooting competition. I am sad to report your humble outdoors correspondent was not on the winning team, as I was last year. Bushman's Buckmasters team carried the day with the most points.
Though we may have lost the competition, like Rivermutt and the other squirrel dogs, we were tired but happy. We had enjoyed a day in the woodlands chasing squirrels with friends and feisty hunting dogs, mentoring young hunters in a great tradition and just enjoying the outdoors.
Does it get any better than that? Maybe, but I haven't found it yet.
Lord willing and the creek don't rise (and if they will have me), I will be back next year for another crack at the coveted Squirrel Master Classic title.
Don't get too comfortable with that trophy, Mr. Bushman. The Bone Collector boys and I are gunning for you with a Gamo air rifle.
"The Trail Less Traveled" is written by Larry Case, who lives in Fayette County, W.Va. You can write to him at larry ocase3@gmail.com.