Hare-raising experiences a rite of March Options vary for rabbit hunters

When that signup sheet for folks who are weary of winter is passed around, my name will be right at the top of the page. Don’t get me wrong, I make the best of cold weather by taking advantage of ice fishing, predator hunting, snowshoeing and rabbit gunning, but enough is enough. I depend on fly tying, reloading, rod building and a whole lot of reading to pass the evenings and stormy days. As the strengthening sunshine and rising temperatures of March melt away the snow cover and daylight hours extend, I actually spend more time afield.

My favorite sport this month is wandering the woods in pursuit of snowshoe hare, and most years I hunt more in March than during the rest of the winter months combined. Besides the warmer weather and easier walking due to less snow, March is mating month for rabbits and they are out and about in full force, all day, every day. Outdoorsmen can enjoy a scenic hike, get some exercise, and often see a variety of birds and wild game while enjoying some top-rate gunning for Maine’s most populous, widespread, small-game animal.

Many sportsmen combine hare hunting with looking for sheds. Cruising the forest in search of dropped antlers has become a popular pastime over the last 10 years, and a natural set of shed deer or moose antlers is a real find. If you choose not to decorate your own den with the antlers, a long line of buyers will be glad to purchase your find for a top price. Last, but certainly not least, the rewards of a successful rabbit outing include some top-rate, tasty table fare. Fried, fricasseed, in a stew or prepared through a dozen other recipes, snowshoe hare offers satisfaction and pleasure in the field and on a dinner plate.

Going to the dogs

Day in and day out, hunting hare with hounds is the most productive and, visually and audibly, the most exciting style of rabbit gunning. For most sportsmen, the trailing work of baying hounds on a hot scent in heavy cover is more intriguing and interesting than the game pursued. Of course, that perspective changes in a heartbeat when the fast, erratic moving quarry streaks into shotgun range. Outdoorsmen who have never had the pleasure of rabbit hunting with dogs need to ferret out a family member or friend who hound hunts and finagle an invitation. It’s even worth booking a guided hunt to find out what all the ruckus is about. It’s unlikely your first venture with crooning, keen-nosed beagles will be your last.

Varying hare, so called because they vary their color from summer brown to winter white for the best seasonal camouflage, are regionally known as snowshoe rabbits. Maine’s most widely distributed small game loves poplar, apple, raspberry bushes and all hardwood sapling tips. Find these food sources and brushy fir and softwood covers and rabbit hunting will be prime. In spite of predation by a goodly number of fox, coyote and bobcat, rabbits are survivors and populations remain elevated and gunning is consistent throughout the generous six-month season.

Find a set of fresh tracks in an evergreen thicket, unleash one or two good beagles, and a hunter can almost stand back, find a good shooting lane and wait for the hounds to run the rabbit in a circle back by your spot. Almost. Theory is that each rabbit has a home territory that it’s loath to leave, and a hare will always circle back to its home cover. I’ve waited so long for some rabbits, I’m sure their circle included southern Maine and part of New Hampshire, and they either got lost or found a new home.

Most snowshoe hare really will run a circle or two when the chase is young, and then will bound in ever-widening circles eventually so distant you won’t even hear the dogs. Listen to the baying canine voices and move to intercept the parade early in the chase for the best shot. Reflexes, marksmanship and a good deal of luck play a big part of every run, hit, miss or total circus act. I try desperately to follow the sound of each chase and be prepared for any possible shot opportunity, but with rabbits and hounds there’s never a set game plan. I’ve heard the dogs in one direction and had a hare cross from the opposite direction. To this day I’m not sure it was even the one being chased. One rabbit came from behind me, passed within 5 feet and veered into the brush before I could blink. When the dogs arrived in hot pursuit seconds later, I swear they gave me dirty looks.

The frosting on the cake was the episode in heavy fir cover when a rabbit actually ran across my snowshoes and the trio of beagles sent me sprawling as I hunkered down to see where the March hare went. Embarrassing? Nope, just part of going to the dogs and the exhilarating sounds and sensations of every unpredictable hare and hound outing.

Team work

When you just have to spend a few hours chasing rabbits and there are just no dogs available to join the fray, two to four hunters can team up to work through a piece of woods thoroughly and produce some shooting. On hare hunts, just as on waterfowling junkets, a couple of buddies increase the odds of success and also serve as witnesses for some of the unbelievably outlandish events that seem to occur when wildlife is involved. Probably no one would believe a 6-foot-3, 250-pound guy, armed no less, could get run over by a kamikaze rabbit and three wild beagles if there had been no witnesses. In fact, I’m sure the event never would have been mentioned but for blabbermouth buddies.

Once a likely hare cover is selected, gunners form a skirmish line, keeping 15 to 25 yards between each man. Thickness of the brush and trees will determine the spread, but it’s very important to always be in view of shooters on either side. Orange vests and hats help maintain sight of each other and it’s important to keep in voice contact, too, as the line moves forward so no one shooter advances too far in front of the others.

As the line of gunners moves forward, the pace is kept very slow and stops are made every couple of minutes. During stops, each sport carefully surveys surrounding forest for holed-up rabbits. Frequently a nervous bunny gives itself away and makes a break for it thinking it has been spotted when the hunter stopped nearby, when it generally hadn’t been seen yet.

More often, a hiding hare streaks away as a gunner nears, and though spotted, doesn’t offer a good shot. Frequently the rabbit runs either right or left rather than straight away, slows down after the initial escape and offers an easy shot for one of the hunters down the line. Whenever a rabbit is spotted making a break for it, the sport speaks up and alerts everyone to stop and tells which direction the quarry is heading. If a shot doesn’t present itself within a minute the push starts again.

Pushing small wood lots up and back in segments is a fun and consistent way to bag bunnies. It’s not unlikely to have a couple on the move at the same time, especially during March mating season. I’ve even seen one race one direction and be missed, reverse and zigzag its course successfully, past two other shooters and never have a hair ruffled. Being buffaloed by such antics is more exciting than any easy shot, and worth more stories. Don’t bypass hedgerows and fence lines without checking them over. Send one man into the thick stuff to play dog and post a shooter on each side to intercept fleeing rabbits. Sometimes these narrow covers will hold several hares, and when they are pushed into an open field, boy, do they ever hurry.

Solo sorties

Don’t let the lack of four-legged or two-legged hunting partners keep you from enjoying an outing or two as rabbit season winds down this month. Although the approach is different, follow certain guidelines and you’ll seldom come home empty-handed from solo endeavors.

Step one is to scout around the edges of good cover with evident food sources until tracks, trails, droppings and evidence of feeding are noted. Then it’s just a matter of still-hunting with slow, quiet movement, using the eyes more than the feet. Too much noise and speed will spook rabbits before you ever get within range, but the slow and easy approach will keep hares hunkered down hoping you’ll pass by without noticing them.

Don’t try to spot whole rabbits. Look for unusual forms, an ear flick, a nose twitch, and most obvious of all, that glistening pink eye. Look sharp and don’t rush since white rabbits on white snow blend in extremely well, as it’s meant to be. Look under low fir trees, beneath blowdowns and around stump roots, and actually kick or work over brush piles to uproot burrowed-in bunnies. It’s amazing and very entertaining how many other game animals can be spotted while stalking snowshoe hare, and perhaps a new deer- or moose-hunting spot will be located. This style of hunting, more than others, also tends to uncover more shed antlers.

Regardless of which hunting style you favor, do take advantage of the comfortable March weather and abundant numbers of snowshoe hare before time runs out this month. Rabbit gunning is a sport of easy access, generous limits, and widespread opportunity for sportsmen of all ages. They may not be big game, but they are always big fun.

Outdoor feature writer Bill Graves can be reached via e-mail at bgravesoutdoors@ainop.com