Pennsylvania Game News - June 2022 - 17

to simply wait them out, getting comfortable
atop a small folding stool.
If I bumped a young chuck, it often
paid to sit and wait, as they usually came
back out within 10 minutes. The older,
wiser chucks disappeared for a half-hour
or longer and sometimes didn't reappear
at all. In any case, when spooking a chuck,
it's important to move right or left rather
than stay in the same spot, since that's
just where the chuck would be looking
for you.
One afternoon, for example, the farmer
saw me set up near a tree line and stopped
to tell me he was seeing many fewer
chucks and burrows. They were still
plentiful closer to his farm, though, so he
invited me to hunt there.
I often harvested woodchucks while
walking to the area he suggested. Two of
my more memorable harvests came by
sitting, though.
On one occasion, it was late in the day
when I got started. I bumped a big chuck
on the way in and, after an hour, hunting
hours ended without a sighting.
I returned - an hour earlier - a few
days later and sat closer to the woods line,
waiting out the big woodchuck. I dropped
it when it emerged from its burrow 50
yards away.
There was one other woodchuck in
the area, one that had been giving me fits.
The main problem was that it was always
facing me when it appeared. It would then
immediately return to its burrow.
I returned after it on a hot afternoon
several days later. With only 10 minutes
of hunting time remaining, it popped up,
this time facing away from me. I raised
my inline, found him in the scope, and
got him with a single shot. It was without
a doubt my largest that year, and possibly
one of my biggest ever.
I hunted the farmer's place one more
JUNE 2022
time after that, hoping to remove two
younger chucks spied while waiting for
that big one, then called it a year.
CHASING CHUCKS
I learned many things about groundhogs
that spring and summer. First and
foremost is that they're worthy game.
Miss one and it would invariably spot
me if I approached from the same direction
later. I'd have to wait days, then come
at it in a roundabout manner, to have a
chance at harvesting it.
Then there's all that goes with woodchuck
hunting: information on areas deer
and turkey are using, sightings of other
wildlife and beautiful sunsets.
There's solitude, too. Most years I
harvested close to 30 woodchucks without
seeing another hunter.
And, when you want it, there's companionship.
For many years, if not hunting,
I was at the shooting range testing
new loads and practicing with my 50-caliber
Thompson/Center inline. My wife,
Karen, practiced, too, with her 45-caliber
CVA. I shoot 100 grains of loose powder;
she shoots two 50-grain pellets. We both
use 209 magnum primers. Both our rigs
are effective.
That was proven when, after an
absence of some time, we returned to the
farm where I had so many fun hunts. The
farmer was glad to see me back, as there
were more woodchucks than ever.
Karen and I picked up right where I
left off. She promptly dropped a chuck
at 30 yards and five minutes later I took
another. She had her proper introduction
to the thrill of hunting woodchucks with
a muzzleloader.
I was happy to share that experience.
Woodchucks might not get the attention
or love big game species do, but don't
underestimate them either.
17
Jacob Dingel
Pennsylvania Game News - June 2022

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