I kept just five shots in the magazine, and started out in the back woods. I didn't see or hear any squirrels, so fairly quickly moved on. I skipped the side woods today, and headed directly to the woods around the pond.
I heard TONS of rustling around in the brush, but every time I got close enough to see what was making all the noise in the dried leaves, it was a bird. I practiced looking and stalking (to the best of my ability in the dry leaves) until I reached my hunting chair. Then I took a break from the stalking, and waited in ambush in comfort.
UNTIL THE SEAT BROKE UNDER ME. That made a big racket. It was an old folding chair, the kind which has the plastic tubing woven as the seat. The plastic tubes just cracked in a line along the edge of the frame. No big deal, I had gotten the chair at the end of the season for $5 a few years ago, I've gotten my money's worth out of it. The frame still seems fine, I may just weave a new seat for it.
So then I sat on the ground for a while. I was wearing black pants and a camo top, so I probably blended in just fine right in the path. Nevertheless, all I heard nearby were birds, so I moved farther down towards where I thought I heard squirrels chirping. From that new location, I was able to sit in upholstered comfort, since my woodland cocktail area has clear shots across the stream to the wooded embankment where I've seen squirrels on the other side. However, I did not see a single squirrel today.
I went in after I had been out hunting just one hour (target practice was earlier). I'm just not feeling it today, all those birds rustling around was very distracting.
