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LITTLE ROCK — It’s almost time to go nuts, or acorns, for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s annual statewide squirrel hunting competition, The Umarex Big Squirrel Challenge. Now in its fifth year, this celebration of the bountiful bushytail has become a favorite January event for families across The Natural State.
The concept is simple: Grab a hunting partner, hit the woods and spend the afternoon and following morning searching the treetops for the fattest three acorn-fueled acrobats you can find Jan. 9-10.
“You’re welcome to harvest your full limit of 12 squirrels per day during the event, but we’re only weighing the biggest three,” Eric Maynard, AGFC assistant chief of the Education Division, said. “We have divisions for fox squirrels, gray squirrels and mixed bags. Hunters are welcome to enter multiple categories if they have enough squirrels to enter, but each squirrel can only count toward one entry.”
You can hunt solo, but squirrel hunting, like squirrel and dumplings, is so much better when it’s shared. There are specific age divisions for Adult Teams and Youth Teams (two hunters under 16, or a youth with an adult mentor).
There’s no need to register beforehand or pay an entry fee. Just start hunting at noon on Friday, Jan. 9, and show up to one of the 13 weigh-in stations by noon Saturday, Jan. 10, ready to weigh in. Squirrels must be field-dressed with their skin on before weighing.
“We’ll hand out medals for first and second place in each category at each weigh-in location,” Maynard said. “The top teams in the state for each category also will win high-powered Umarex air rifles.”
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