Is it Worth Squirrel Hunting in the Rain or Wind?

Tell me if this sounds familiar if you are a squirrel hunter? You get up before first light and get all your gear ready. Have a quick cup of coffee with a light breakfast, and you’re ready to go. Then you open the door to head out, and it’s raining or super windy.

Squirrels don’t come out in the rain or wind. Or do they? Before you plan to scrap a squirrel hunt over rainy or windy weather, let’s dive deeper into the topic of squirrel hunting in the rain or wind.

I’ve found one of the best methods to observe squirrel behavior is when deer hunting. Let’s face it; deer hunters see tons of squirrels during a hunt, so those are excellent opportunities to observe squirrel behavior and see how they respond to different situations.

I’ve spent hours in deer stands and have had the chance to observe several species of squirrels across several states. I’ve also had a few situations where I was able to watch squirrel behavior when it rained and during windy conditions.

Before we get too deep into the topic, there are a few things to discuss that are related or potentially play a role in the conversation.

Defining The Various Levels of Rain

Rain is a general term to describe droplets of water that are impacted by gravity and fall to the Earth. Rain is an essential part of the Earth’s water cycle and is the largest source of fresh water on the planet.

When rain falls, the size of the droplets vary, the amount of rain falling can vary, and the speed or volume that falls can differ as well.

For the purposes of this article, I’ll break rainfall down into the following groups:

• Misting
• Light rain
• Moderate rain
• Heavy rain

Misting Rain

Misting rain is the lightest rainfall description I’ll use in the article and refers to tiny raindrops coming down in a light mist.

Light Rain

Light rain features rain droplets that are large than misting droplets, but the droplets don’t come down in any serious volume.

Moderate Rain

I classify moderate rain as raindrops that are larger than light rain and come down in a faster and heavier volume than light rain.

Heavy Rain

Heavy rain consists of large raindrops coming down at a high volume, which could result in standing water and potential flooding.

Defining Wind

The term wind refers to air and other natural gases as they move across the surface of our planet. wind can be as gentle as a light breeze all the way up to 100 miles per hour winds generated by a hurricane.

The severity of wind is typically measured by the miles per hour, so I’ll stick with that measurement.

For hunting purposes, I’m going to categorize wind into the following groups based on wind speeds:

• No to Light Wind – 0 to 10 miles per hour
• Light Wind to Moderate Wind – 11 to 20 miles per hour
• Heavy Wind – Any wind that is 21 or over miles per hour
• Gusty Wind – This wind only comes in gusts that can range from 10 miles per hour up to 50+ miles per hour.

So, let’s get to the meat and potatoes of this post and discuss the following topics:

• Squirrel hunting in the rain
• Squirrel hunting in the wind
• Squirrel hunting in the rain & wind

Squirrel Hunting in the Rain

From a hunting perspective, rainfall in the woods creates two things:

• Noise
• Movement

Noise

As the rain makes contact with the ground, trees, leaves, etc., it makes sounds in the woods. The volume of those sounds is somewhat determined by the strength and amount of rain falling.

If you have good eyes, then sight hunting doesn’t pose a problem. However, if you have less than optimal eyesight, sight hunting may put you at a slight disadvantage.

But, on the flip side of things, squirrels have to deal with the same background noise created by rain, so they can’t hear as well either.

Movement

As the rain falls, it impacts some items causing them to move. For example, objects such as leaves, small branches, and even large branches will move if enough water pools on the leaves.

This additional movement makes it more difficult for a hunter to catch a squirrel moving through the trees or along the ground.

My experience has been that squirrels are active in the rain, but the activity level depends on the amount and type of precipitation.

For example, I’ve seen squirrels being active in misting rain and light rain, and successfully squirrel hunted squirrels in both scenarios.

However, I see far less squirrel movement with moderate or heavy rain situations. I’ve been deer hunting in an elevated box blind and had several opportunities to watch how squirrels react to rain. While a few still seem to forage during moderate and heavy rain, the number is far less than what I’ve observed feeding in mist and light rain.

So, if you were thinking about hunting squirrels during the rain, I’d say the following:

• I’d keep hunting or plan to hunt when it’s misting or drizzling as neither really seem to impact the squirrel movement adversely.
• In moderate to heavy rain, I’d say that your odds of seeing squirrel movement is less, but there still may be a few squirrels out and about.
• If you like to hunt on the move or stalk, I’d definitely suggest hunting while it’s misting or in a light rain. The rain will make the forest floor wet, which helps quiet your movements as you hunt.

Personally, I have no concerns about hunting in a light rain, but I’m more hesitant to hit the woods squirrel hunting when the rain is moderate to heavy.

Squirrel Hunting in the Wind

The wind may be a squirrel hunters’ biggest nemesis as wind ruins squirrel hunts more than any other weather condition.

Despite what most hunters think, squirrels do come out in the wind, but the wind’s volume and severity also play a role in the level of squirrel activity. The wind also makes it very difficult to see squirrels in the woods, but I think that’s also one of the reasons that most hunters mistakenly believe that squirrels won’t come out if any wind is present.

Much like what I’ve experienced with rain, I’ve also sat in a deer stand during windy conditions and seen squirrels out and about. However, if the wind becomes severe enough, most squirrels will head in for cover.

Like rain, wind also creates noise and movement in the woods, making it extremely hard to locate squirrels when they are out foraging. The faster or harder the wind blows, the more noise and movement is created.

If you were asking yourself if it’s worth it to hunt squirrels in the wind, I’d say the following:

• In light wind, say 5-10 miles per hour, squirrels are still active and can most likely be hunted successfully.
• I’ve also had some success squirrel hunting in 11-15 miles per hour wind, but the amount of squirrel activity begins to decrease.
• If the wind is above 15 miles per hour or continually gusting at speeds reaching 15 miles per hour, I generally throw in the towel as it becomes nearly impossible to spot a squirrel under those conditions.

Squirrel Hunting in the Rain & Wind

When it comes to squirrel hunting, one of my least favorite weather forecasts to see is a forecast of wind and rain.

If the rain stays as mist or slight drizzle, and the wind stays down below 10 miles per hour, I’ll still hunt under those conditions.

If the rain level is moderate or heavy, or if the wind gets above 10 miles per hour as it’s raining, I’ll typically either stop hunting or pass on hunting under those weather conditions.

Although there probably are a few squirrels out in those conditions, it’s not worth the time and effort for me. However, that’s just my own opinion, and you may feel that any possible time in the woods hunting is time well spent, regardless of the weather.

FAQS

Here are some commonly asked questions that I see and hear being asked about squirrel hunting in bad weather:

Is it worth hunting squirrels after a heavy rain?

I’d say that it is, and here’s why: during heavy rain, the squirrels are most likely holed up until the rain stops or lessens up. When it stops, some squirrels will most likely be hungry and will immediately come out to hunt for food.

How much wind is too much for squirrel hunting?

When it comes to wind, squirrel hunters are a finicky bunch. Some won’t hunt if there’s any wind blowing, while others will hunt when the wind is gusting. Most squirrel hunters have their own personal standards regarding how much is too much for hunting. My limit is about 15 miles per hour. If the wind stays under 15 miles per hour, I’ll keep hunting.