The Firing Line Forums

Go Back   The Firing Line Forums > The Hide > The Hunt

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old April 8, 2014, 10:57 AM   #1
Longshot4
Senior Member
 
Join Date: February 22, 2014
Posts: 868
Want tips for Groundhogs

I have wanted to go shoot groundhogs for decades but never have. My 700 heavy varmint in 222 would be my tool. I live in the suburbs of Detroit so I would have to find some farm land to hunt. Are their any suggestions out there for me?
Longshot4 is offline  
Old April 10, 2014, 02:30 PM   #2
Husqvarna
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 7, 2012
Location: Sweden
Posts: 1,000
but will winter ever end if you shoot them?
Husqvarna is offline  
Old April 10, 2014, 06:41 PM   #3
Pahoo
Senior Member
 
Join Date: February 16, 2006
Location: IOWA
Posts: 8,783
Don't need to hunt them as they will find you !!

Groundhogs like to den up in a particular environment. That translates into; You will find them just about anywhere. In particular along the edge of wood lots. The momma will raise her young till they get too big and then she kicks them out, so they can make their own dens. They will eat just about anything like nuts and your garden produce. They like to dig dens under rock and woods piles. as well as sheds, garages and even your house. I average about four per year, in my neighborhood. ....

One interesting point that I learned just last year, is if they are spooked, they will climb trees and for some strange reason, they hang up there for a long time. I can only guess that they really don't like coming out of the tree. They also have a strange bark, if you want to call it that as it sounds more like a sharp whistle. .....

Good Luck and;
Be Safe !!!
__________________
'Fundamental truths' are easy to recognize because they are verified daily through simple observation and thus, require no testing.
Pahoo is offline  
Old April 10, 2014, 06:52 PM   #4
kilotanker22
Senior Member
 
Join Date: October 14, 2012
Location: North Central, PA
Posts: 2,117
+1 to the last statement also when you find an area with ground hogs set up on them and just wait them out. they are very keen to picking up movement.

that 222 will be a fine instrument of death as long as you do your part
kilotanker22 is offline  
Old April 10, 2014, 09:34 PM   #5
Jay24bal
Senior Member
 
Join Date: December 13, 2011
Location: Cleveland, OH
Posts: 735
Be very still and quite. It may seem odd advice since they are just groundhogs, but in my experience, they pick up movement and sound as well as a coyote.

Granted I am not an avid groundhog hunter, but I have done it a dozen or so times. The first two or three times out, I was amazed at how easily they spooked.
__________________
I like guns.

Once Fired Brass, Top quality, Fast shipping, Best prices.
http://300AacBrass.com/ -10% Coupon use code " Jay24bal "
Jay24bal is offline  
Old April 10, 2014, 09:47 PM   #6
psalm7
Senior Member
 
Join Date: March 7, 2014
Location: Middle TN
Posts: 543
I used to watch bean fields with a 25 06 Ruger M77 and shoot them long range . I learned that if they are down eating you can stalk towards them and then they will raise up on watch you freez , wait then they go back to eating and you move closer each time . I did this for about 10 miniutes one time till I got close enough and shot him with a .44 mag Black Hawk .
psalm7 is offline  
Old April 11, 2014, 03:50 AM   #7
Mainah
Senior Member
 
Join Date: July 9, 2007
Posts: 1,117
You want to find groundhogs? It's simple, just spend a lot of time and money on a vegetable garden.
Mainah is offline  
Old April 11, 2014, 07:18 AM   #8
2damnold4this
Senior Member
 
Join Date: August 12, 2009
Location: Athens, Georgia
Posts: 2,525
As a teenager, I once spent a day hunting groundhogs with a .22 at a nearby farm that had a problem with them. Having no luck, I walked back to my parents' farm where I discovered that our dog had cornered a groundhog in the garden and my mother had killed it with a tomato stake.
2damnold4this is offline  
Old April 11, 2014, 01:06 PM   #9
Picher
Senior Member
 
Join Date: December 14, 2004
Location: Maine
Posts: 3,694
Groundhogs (most people call them woodchucks these days) like well-drained soils that will hold up when they dig a den. They also love grass and clover and veggies, especially bean leaves, as we discovered in our garden.

Due to the number of folks hunting them with varmint rifles, and the prevalence of coyotes, foxes, and flying predators, woodchucks have made their homes inside of woodlines, along controlled-access highways, parks, and other places where we can't hunt/shoot.

Here in Maine, we used to hunt them in rolling terrain, using hunting rifles, for practice if we ever got to shoot at a scarce whitetail (back in the early sixties). I used a Savage 110, 30-06 with a 2.5x scope and managed to score out to 500 yards once, but averaged over 200 yards with that rig. It was a sporter and that's what we liked to carry on the several miles we walked per day.

Shooting woodchucks here isn't like prairie dogs out west. They're few and far between, since dedicated varmint rifles made it so easy to shoot them. The best way to find out where chucks may be a problem is to talk with game wardens and farmers in the area...mostly farmers.
Picher is offline  
Old April 12, 2014, 09:35 PM   #10
alex0535
Senior Member
 
Join Date: November 4, 2012
Location: Georgia
Posts: 908
I know a farmer that saw one in his field. All he had on him at the time was a claw hammer. He threw the hammer at the woodchuck, hit it in the head and killed it.

Doesn't take a lot to kill a groundhog a hammer or a .222 will do the job, just find where they are and wait patiently with that .222.
alex0535 is offline  
Old April 12, 2014, 09:52 PM   #11
kilimanjaro
Senior Member
 
Join Date: November 23, 2009
Posts: 3,963
Dress them out, wrap in foil with salt, pepper, garlic, and onions, roast in Dutch oven under hot coals for 40 minutes, or 350 degree oven for 60 minutes.
kilimanjaro is offline  
Old April 13, 2014, 11:10 AM   #12
Pahoo
Senior Member
 
Join Date: February 16, 2006
Location: IOWA
Posts: 8,783
It's all protien !!!

Quote:
Dress them out, wrap in foil with salt, pepper, garlic, and onions, roast in Dutch oven under hot coals for 40 minutes, or 350 degree oven for 60 minutes
That sounds great and was wondering if we would see a reply like this. I have eaten Beaver and Muskrat and don't see why you couldn't eat a Groundhog seeing that they are mostly herbivores. Problem is that I'd have to cook it as my wife wouldn't have anything to do with it ....

Be Safe !!! protein
__________________
'Fundamental truths' are easy to recognize because they are verified daily through simple observation and thus, require no testing.
Pahoo is offline  
Old April 13, 2014, 10:08 PM   #13
Longshot4
Senior Member
 
Join Date: February 22, 2014
Posts: 868
Thanks for the tips. So far I have gone looking twice. Seen them on the highway and in the burbs. I will have to check out some of the hilly farm areas. I have the triple Duce tuned for 250 Yds. Mid range trajectory. I have heard that the young hogs are the ones for the pot. That's kind of like porcupine roast. Thanks again.
Longshot4 is offline  
Old April 13, 2014, 10:36 PM   #14
ammo.crafter
Senior Member
 
Join Date: June 25, 2006
Location: The Keystone State
Posts: 1,967
222

If you reload, try IMR 4198 @ 19.0 grains under a 52 grain bullet with a small rifle mag primer. Good luck.
__________________
"Peace is that brief glorious moment in history when everybody stands around reloading".
--Thomas Jefferson
ammo.crafter is offline  
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 01:28 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
This site and contents, including all posts, Copyright © 1998-2021 S.W.A.T. Magazine
Copyright Complaints: Please direct DMCA Takedown Notices to the registered agent: thefiringline.com
Page generated in 0.07074 seconds with 10 queries