Final advice for gophers needed

marlin60

marlin60

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Looks like it is a go for SW Alberta, early May.

I've been trying to put this together for 2 years. First time to AB.

I'd like to get a few different things in, so what is the best time to hunt Richardson Ground Squirrels.

If weather/conditions are right, is it an all day thing, or would 9-noon, and 4-7 be the peak time etc.?

That would leave the afternoon free for some sight seeing, but the purpose of the trip is gopher hunting, and I'd gladly spend daylight to dark in the fields if the shooting was good.

Thanks.
 
Hi any time before the grass gets tall the end of March to end of May is good. We can hunt these little devils till the fall its just easier to see them in the spring to me anyways. When i lived out on a 160 acre farm we hunted them all summer long right from the bedroom window LOL!! a real blast...
 
They 'seem' to be out out and running around a bit more in the early morning, after dawn. They are out all day long as long as it's light, just a bit more active first thing I find.
They really don't like the wind though, and on blustery afternoons will be seen less.
Rainy days will also keep them down, or less active at least.

It really seems they are weather activated at times, and are out and most active when it is the nicest out for both them and us and shooting.

Start early and go until it slows down in late afternoon and plan some other things for later in the day/evening unless it is a beautifull day. When the wind comes up in the afternoon, be sure to look for the areas out of the wind on hillsides/coulies for the continuing action.

http://people.uleth.ca/~michener/main.htm
 
My buds and I went on a 4 day safari to Swift Current....hunted a HUGE farm around the May long weekend. It was productive.
Heres one field of the many we were in....
Gopher4.jpg
 
Early May should be good but you can still get caught by bad weather at that time. Later in the summer the gophers will go down thier holes in the heat of the day but in May you should be good from 9:00 am till about 3:30 pm or so for peak shooting time.

I would leave sight seeing to later afternoon and evening, the long days will still leave plenty of time in daylight hours to see Frank Slide in the Crowsnest Pass, and other local sights worth seeing.

When I go out on weekends I arrive around 7:00 AM but usually don't get shooting till about an hour but I take that time to set out flags to mark yardage (poor mans range finder) and set up my table for my varmint rifle. By about 3:00 or 4:00 pm I begin packing up, there are still a few out but not as good as before. Of course if it is a colder or rainy day the gophers will come out and feed later as they have stayed down all day and get hungry later on, my best day was after it rained all day and then cleared off at about 3:00 and the sun came out, in 2 hours I run through a brick of shells and shot probably 300 gophers.

Hopefully you have more than a couple days because if you get bad weather it can ruin all your fun.
 
We've already started here. I've already got 4 and the snow isn't even off the ground yet. Here's my boy out with me yesterday with the first.

gopher09003.jpg


I've found that the little squeaks sleep in until about 1pm and then come out to play until about 6:30, then they all go to bed all of a sudden. Best time of year is the end of April through to the end of June when it seems all the babies are born. That sets you up for doubles and sometimes triples with a .223 or .22 even.
 
I usually get out early, just after first light. I'll spend all Morning roaming around and come home late in the Afternoon. You'll see them when the sun is out. Once it dips behind clouds they go down. The wind can play against you too. If you see them running around and they go down, sit down. If they can see you, they will stay down. If you 'disappear' they'll come back up. Good luck.
 
get out before the grass gets too long. Before may-june is best.

And yes, it sucks if its windy, they dont like wind.
 
marlin60 said:
Looks like it is a go for SW Alberta, early May.

I've been trying to put this together for 2 years. First time to AB.

I'd like to get a few different things in, so what is the best time to hunt Richardson Ground Squirrels.

If weather/conditions are right, is it an all day thing, or would 9-noon, and 4-7 be the peak time etc.?

That would leave the afternoon free for some sight seeing, but the purpose of the trip is gopher hunting, and I'd gladly spend daylight to dark in the fields if the shooting was good.

Thanks.
Click to expand...


lol i chuckled when i read the opening title. - its like point and shoot :p theres no real skill in ground hog hunting

The thing u might be disapointed with is you will most likley need to ask a farmer for permission.
 
Rick65Cat said:
My buds and I went on a 4 day safari to Swift Current....hunted a HUGE farm around the May long weekend. It was productive.
Heres one field of the many we were in....
Gopher4.jpg
Click to expand...

It was hard to see those little buggers in that field, but we drove the heck out of it and killed quite a few.
Won't be long now till I head back to slaughter some more, there will be a lot shorter grass on my next visit. FS
 
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