This is the third, and final segment about hunting California Ground Squirrels with my Benjamin Marauder PCP Pistol.
I darned near didn't go. I was staying at a Motel near the ranch, and the wind woke me up a couple of times during the night. I got up about six, and when I looked out the window, things were not looking very good.
The wind was still blowing pretty good, and when I looked at the mountain, that I would be hunting on, clouds completely covered the top, and dropped down quite a ways onto the sides.
Hmm, decisions, decisions. Well, not many things are more boring than laying around a Motel room all day, so I got dressed, grabbed some breakfast, and headed out onto the ranch. I figured, a day on the ranch in lousy weather, is still better than a day laying around a Motel room in lousy weather.
I also remembered that up high, where I hunted the previous day, the rut was still in full swing. Nothing gets in the way of the rut, not even inclement weather.
California Ground Squirrels only get to chase squirrel tail once a year, and the boys do their level best to make the most of the opportunity. I pretty much knew there would be ample squirrel activity, even if the weather was going to be on the lousy side.
When I pulled into the spot that would be my jumping off point for the days hunt, it was 46 degrees, and overcast,. The wind was still blowing pretty good, but the good news was, as I was four wheeling into the area, I saw lots of ground squirrels, chasing ground squirrel tail.
I got geared up and headed out to hunt. I had only gone a short distance, when I spotted a squirrel at a lasered 50 yards. I set the Marauder Pistol up on my Stoney Point bipod, adjusted the scope's AO for a clear image, held over a bit for 50 yards, off a bit to allow for the wind, and sent a pellet on its way. At impact, the squirrel shut down like someone had just kicked his power cord out of the wall.
The hunt had started off great, and in spite of the windy cool weather, it turned out to be a fine day for hunting ground squirrels. By noon, the sun had started to peek through, and the hunt turned out to be very productive, and a lot of fun.
Below, are some video clips showing some of the shots, taken in realtime, during the hunt. If you watch closely, in many of the clips, you will see the pellet in flight as it streaks toward the target squirrel.
The video may take 20 to 30 seconds to load, and runs 4 minutes and 28 seconds.
What a fun several days hunting with my Marauder Pistol. The gun is accurate, more than powerful enough to blow a pellet clear through a ground squirrel at 50 yards, and the fun factor is just off the chart. I can hardly wait to get her out after ground squirrels again.
I hope you have enjoyed the videos. They give you an up close look at what this gun is capable of as a light weight, repeating, carbine sized hunter.
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