Kamloops Snowshoe Hare?

WhelenFan said:
Great thread. Up until this past September, I had been living in Winnipeg, But am now out in Langley BC. I am missing the snow & cold weather (& sunshine). Not yet sure where I can get out for things like rabbits, coyotes & such within a reasonable daytrip travel distance. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

A friend had gotten me into snowshoe hare hunting as a winter activity last year. Managed to get out a few times hunting in the the fields to the south & southwest of Winnipeg and loved it. It is a great challenge.

My tip is to look for tips - specifically those little black tips on their ears might be the only thing that you initially see. Also, just because you might not initially see them it doesn't mean that they are not there. They burrow under the snow & pop back up as thought they appear out of thin air.

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Wow! That's a big one! Nice!

Thanks for "tips";)
 
Thanks ironsighter. They can get pretty big on the prairies. They can also go flat out for over a mile without stopping if really spooked. If you marinate them for a few days and slow cook them they can be quite tasty. There is a surprising amount of meat on a showshoe hare such as this one.

I realize that I should add some white camo tape to my binoculars & harness. I have since bleached the canvas anorak & snow pants to get them a little whiter. I have found that a light weight folding stool/chair such as the walkstool & some light weight folding caldwell shooting sticks to be invaluable. In the case of the shooting sticks it is better to get the standing height version, then reduce the height as needed to suit your seated shooting height. Their "seated height" version is too short for the walkstool. Also attach some zero stretch cord (or webbing) as a check-rein near the bottoms the legs. Tethering the legs together will make sure that these shooting sticks open to the same height each time and that they don't splay apart unexpectedly.

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WhelenFan,

The ear tips on your prairie hares look a lot darker than the ones we have here.

Yours must run far as your tree clumps are spaced a little farther apart than ours. LOL.

I find they generally run 50yds or less around here......lots of cover.
 
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WhelenFan said:
Great thread. Up until this past September, I had been living in Winnipeg, But am now out in Langley BC. I am missing the snow & cold weather (& sunshine). Not yet sure where I can get out for things like rabbits, coyotes & such within a reasonable daytrip travel distance. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

A friend had gotten me into snowshoe hare hunting as a winter activity last year. Managed to get out a few times hunting in the the fields to the south & southwest of Winnipeg and loved it. It is a great challenge.

My tip is to look for tips - specifically those little black tips on their ears might be the only thing that you initially see. Also, just because you might not initially see them it doesn't mean that they are not there. They burrow under the snow & pop back up as thought they appear out of thin air.

P1010657.jpg
Click to expand...
Nice picture Whelenfan, and not to burst your bubble, but the person in this photo is holding a whitetailed jackrabbit.
This is a different species than the snowshoehare up here in the boreal forest.
Jackrabbits were most often found in the more open areas, but in thick cover especially in little valleys and riverbanks, the smaller snowshoehares can be found on the prairie landscape also.
I know because I lived in South Saskatchewan for almost 11 years and hunted both species quite often.

Keep up the good hunting friend!

Cheers........
 
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Jackrabbits! The mostest funnest thing in the whole world, according to my hounds!

Used to run them out around Moose Jaw, with my sighthounds. Even caught some.

Yeah, to reiterate what Brutus said about where the bush bunnies live. Get into the places where you actually have to push your way through, and where you would never actually think of going, and you are probably gonna find yourself pretty much in their living space.

If you can trip, and actually fall all the way down, you are not in the thick stuff! :)

Most of bunnies I got this year have been under 20 yards, many under 10. Long ways away, when you are looking through bush like that.

The ones that were not moving when seen, were mainly sitting very still at the base of a tree with low branch cover, trying hard to be invisible.

Cheers
Trev
 
Brutus said:
Nice picture Whelenfan, and not to burst your bubble, but the person in this photo is holding a whitetailed jackrabbit.
This is a different species than the snowshoehare up here in the boreal forest.
Jackrabbits were most often found in the more open areas, but in thick cover especially in little valleys and riverbanks, the smaller snowshoehares can be found on the prairie landscape also.
I know because I living in South Saskatchewan for almost 11 years and hunted both species quite often.

Keep up the good hunting friend!

Cheers........
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Thanks for the heads up Brutus !
 
Well persistance paid off today. At our nearby rabbit hunting spot, one sweep, nothing, two sweeps nothing! The third sweep in the noisy snow paid off finally. Gave it a go hunting alone today. Hence I was #####-crossing in the woods quite a bit more than I normally would do if I had a hunting partner or two.
Unlucky rabbit number 13 was taken today on the 13th. He was just springing away when a few #6 pellets rudely interuppted his late afternoon escape attempt.
Lots off outdoor exercise to get this one fella. But he's in the freezer now & I have to clean the forest off of my 20 gauge.
Sorry no pics.......

Cheers!
 
Brutus said:
Well persistance paid off today. At our nearby rabbit hunting spot, one sweep, nothing, two sweeps nothing! The third sweep in the noisy snow paid off finally. Gave it a go hunting alone today. Hence I was #####-crossing in the woods quite a bit more than I normally would do if I had a hunting partner or two.
Unlucky rabbit number 13 was taken today on the 13th. He was just springing away when a few #6 pellets rudely interuppted his late afternoon escape attempt.
Lots off outdoor exercise to get this one fella. But he's in the freezer now & I have to clean the forest off of my 20 gauge.
Sorry no pics.......

Cheers!
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Congrats! I have to admit I am jealous. My squirrel sandwich :eek: today was tasty, but I'd rather be treating my family to hasenpfeffer!
 
ironsighter said:
So the two of them are soaking in salt water over night and I will read through a bunch of recipes tomorrow...
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I'm impressed that you ate the red squirrels - of course, if you shot them, you should do something with them. But most of the squirrel hunting in North America is for Gray and Fox Squirrels...mostly found farther south and often associated with nut-bearing trees. And they are 2-3 times bigger than our little Red Squirrels. So how were they? If not so good, don't give up on squirrels...just find a place where you can hunt the big ones. Lower mainland has lots.

and yes, those white-tailed jack rabbits are HUGE! I remember bagging my first one in Alberta....had to slow cook that thing for days....
 
Arctic Hare:
On average arctic hares measure 55–70 cm (22–28 in) long, and weigh about 4–5.5 kg (9–12 lb).

Holy Jeebus thats a big bunny!!!

Snowshoe Hare:
Size: 16 to 20 in (41.3 to 51.8 cm), Weight: 2 to 4 lbs (0.9 to 1.8 kg)

Avg about 3 around here I would guess. Haven't actually weighed one.
 
Hares

We get 2 good meals from one hare. My dogs will chase them but whet the hare turns on the after burners the dogs just stop and watch them go.

stay safe
pounder

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Great picture Pounder. Again, look for those little black specks (eyes & ear tips) flickering against an all white background snow.
 
ironsighter said:
She's such a cool kid! Totally eager to get into hunting, fishing, hiking, geocaching, etc. Her letter to Santa this year; pocket knife, first aid kit, compass, and "any survival gear". And an iPod touch, of course... The other day she asked me if it is possible to just go off and live in the woods, build a cabin, and provide for yourself. A chip off the old block. I've wanted to do that since I was a kid, too.
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She loves her dad... and her dad loves the outdoors... so she loves the outdoors.

Most of our hares (snowshoe) are taken incidentally while hunting grouse... there are times when we do target them... namely late November/December, when we have been blessed with no snow... the bunnies are white and the leaves are brown... they almost glow they stand out so much.

As for snaring, here in Ontario you do not need a trapping licence to snare hares... but you DO NEED a trapping licence to shoot red squirrels... the squirrel season includes black, grey and fox squirrels... red squirrels are considered fur bearers... because "way back when" they were used for fly-tying and there was a market for them, and because their diminutive size did not make them an ideal game animal (for subsistence). Better check your regulations there in BC... maybe the same law is in the books???

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'Way back when' nothing. The trappers still set for red squirrels. Worth a couple bucks each, in a good year, apparently.

That, from a local trapper, who told me that he hated that the flying squirrels would get in his sets, as they were essentially worthless.

Dunno what the market is for the Reds. At one time they got used a lot for glove linings and trim. Probably still a far few used for trout flies too.

Cheers
Trev
 
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