by Bill Graves
The old adage that March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb certainly seems to be true so far this year.
For outdoorsmen, the first week of March featured single-digit nights and windy days leading to chill factors that precluded most sporting ventures. Personally, I look forward to the Ides of March with more daylight hours, warmer sun and milder weather conditions conducive to the most enjoyable ice fishing and rabbit hunting of the entire winter.
For hare hunters who don’t own hounds, March offers the best results and easiest travel conditions, followed by the action of late-November or early-December during most years. Along with reduced snow cover and decent weather, March is mating season for snowshoe hare and they become far more active and visible during the day. Travel over the snow mass still requires a set of snowshoes, but generally the snow has firmed and shrunk enough that a set of small, easy to maneuver bear paws will work.
Although a solitary shooter can walk up rabbits, two or three hunters utilizing stop and go tactics through sparse brush and thin tree cover really helps scare up bunnies. The game plan is to separate by 15- to 20-yards between each shooter, always keeping in sight of reach other so nobody gets too far ahead and perhaps into another’s shooting lane. Fluorescent orange hats and vests greatly help hunters to move forward evenly and at the same pace as the bright clothing shows up well even in the dense sections of forest.
It’s pretty simple to establish a rhythm of movement since slogging through the woods on snowshoes isn’t a quick method of travel to start with. Truly successful rabbit stalkers spend twice as much time looking as they do walking, while it’s true that some snowshoe hare will make a run for it when they hear the men approaching, many prefer to depend on their white winter camouflage to blend in, and these rabbits hunker down and wait for danger to pass.
Spotting a white game animal surrounded by snow is no simple task, that’s why it’s truly crucial to walk 10 to 15 steps, then stop and scan. Spend at least two minutes perusing every nook and cranny that seems a likely hiding place. But don’t try to envision an entire rabbit. Try to spot the dark eyes or the slight movement as the nose twitches or the ears move to keep track of the hunter. Having multiple shooters increases the chance that a hare might slightly alter position to better keep track of one sportsman, giving another sport a better chance of spotting the quarry.
Another result of slow, stop-and-spot hare hunting is that after a minute or two of no motion, a rabbit sometimes thinks it’s been spotted and makes a run for it. Often the shooter has no idea a rabbit is even nearby until the anxious bunny makes a break. Patience is a must for walk-up hare tactics and sharp eyes also prove to be a great asset.
As for the guns of choice for rabbit hunting, most hunters already own a suitable firearm that’s being used for other small game. Partridge hunters, which encompass the bulk of Aroostook outdoorsmen, have a shotgun that can serve dual duty, and most County gun cabinets hold a .22 for plinking and target practice. A .22 with open sights or a low power scope ruins less meat than a scattergun and is great for stationary rabbits. Fast hopping hare require a wider pattern and more pellets to assure consistent success, so a three-inch 20-gauge or 2-3/4 inch-12-gauge better fit the bill.
I solve the debate by cheating a bit. My favorite long gun for rabbits is an old over and under Stevens. With the quick flip of a lever, I can select either the .22 LR top barrel or the bottom 20-gauge tube. It’s a win-win combo. Once in a while when I’m feeling really sporty, I lug my Thompson Contender single shot .410 handgun for shots 25 yards or closer. I have a couple of friends who truly elevate the challenge and hunt hare with bows and arrows. Now that’s an elite sport.
Most rural Crown of Maine residents have hare covers within five minutes of their house and even urban-edge homes have rabbit haunts 10 minutes away. In addition to the excitement of the hunt, rabbit stew and fried rabbit offer tasty tablefare. On top of that, after being house bound for much of the winter, it’s a real treat to get outside on a mild March morning and enjoy a walk in the woods. Rabbit season ends this month, so check the local weather forecast and find a suitable day for a snowshoe hike in search of snowshoe hare.
