Ohio’s squirrel season will open on Sept. 1, providing hunters with an opportunity to take as many as six squirrels each day, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife. The season begins Sept. 1 and runs through Jan. 31

A long-time tradition for many hunters, Ohio’s squirrel season will offer ample hunting opportunities for fox and gray squirrels across the state. It is a great time to get out in the woods and scout for the upcoming deer and fall wild turkey hunting seasons or take a youth hunting. Legal hunting hours are one-half hour before sunrise to sunset daily.

The season closes Jan. 31. Squirrel season will be closed during the one-week statewide deer gun season that begins Dec. 1 and runs through Dec. 7, deer gun weekend, Dec. 20 and 21, and on the following areas during the Early Muzzleloader Deer Season, Oct, 20-25: Salt Fork State Wildlife Area, Shawnee State Forest, and Wildcat Hollow.

The abundance of nut crops is a good indicator of squirrel numbers the following year. Squirrels have higher survival and reproduction after years with an ample supply of acorns and hickory nuts. Statewide nut production ratings for fall 2007 were again above average and the squirrel-hunting outlook for the 2008-09 season is good.

Hunters who wish to participate in the new squirrel hunting diary program, designed to track trends in nut crops and squirrel populations across the Buckeye State, should contact the Waterloo Wildlife Research Station 360 East State St., Athens OH 45701, for more information. (Portions reprinted by permission from the Ohio Division of Wildlife)

There’s more

This is the second part of a two-part column on tuning your bow and laying it out with the correct goodies to get it ready for the upcoming season. Admittedly, I may not do all of this when I purchase a new bow, but I can tell you that for the most part, I adhere to many of the procedures and they work.

Bare shaft test

For this test, you will need three fletched arrows and three bare shafts. Make sure to use field points for this test, as shooting bare shafts with broadheads can produce unpredictable, dangerous flight. Add some masking tape to the end of the bare shafts to compensate for weight lost by removing the fletching, 20 to 30 grains depending on the size and weight of your vanes. You want the bare shafts to weigh exactly the same as the fletched arrows.

Start close

Start at a 20-yard target. You can move to longer distances later. The goal is to have all six arrows grouped in the same spot.

If your bare shafts are impacting to the left of