I've been hunting squirrels with my long bow and wood arrows that are not modern, but not primitive either. I am in the process of making real arrows. It is going to take me about 9 hours of work to make a good arrow. An arrow that could easily be lost or destroyed with 1 shot at a squirrel.
A good throwing stick can be made in an hour, and it may last years. I have one hickory stick that I hit a groundhog with, and I have had for about 5 years. Still almost as good as new.
Squirrels are so small that the hit probability with an arrow is not that much better than with a throwing stick.
It really just isn't a good use of resources and time to shoot arrows at arrows when a throwing stick is almost as good, and the killing power of a sharp arrow would be much better spent collecting a 100lb animal.
So, I will be hunting squirrel with throwing stick this year. And this year I will spend a lot more time hunting.
Oak sticks I am working on. Hickory is the best, but oak is fine.

I'd starve real fast doing that......

quote:

Originally posted by DTala:
I'd starve real fast doing that......

I'm starting to understand this stuff better. Choosing to go out hunting with a throwing stick for small game is a bad plan. Traps are the correct tool for small game. The throwing stick should be carried while running the trap line and while collecting vegetables. If you happen across a squirrel, bonk him.
Spending time hunting deer with a bow makes more sense. It's a lot of meat for the effort.

2 misses. I clearly need more range time with my sticks.

Make several squirrel poles with a half dozen snares on them and lean each against a good tree at a 45 degree angle. You'll have more squirrels then you will know what to with.

I only have limited trapping experience Grenadier, would you explain the squirrel pole set in detail please. It sounds like something I could use

It really does work well. It is not uncommon to find you have two or three snared on the same pole.

Hadn't heard of the squirrel pole before. Clever.
Frank, your throwing stick is probably about as accurate as my atlatl.

I worked with a sling for quite a bit. I used cement balls to a consistent weight and shape in order to get rid of issues due to ammo variation until I could get better. After months of practice I decided this was one of those skills I would have to grow up with as a kid to ever get good. I once threw a correct size rock at a junk kubota law tractor. Busted through the plastic hood into the battery compartment an busted the battery open. Lots of destructive power. But I was never accurate enough for the sling to be useful. That's the reason I never pursued the atlatl. I'm not patient or dedicated enough. I could kill a squirrel with a stick if I spent more time in the woods. But just a waste of time for me to try with a sling.

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Originally posted by Bill/Oregon:
Hadn't heard of the squirrel pole before. Clever.
Frank, your throwing stick is probably about as accurate as my atlatl.