Between their white coat and enormous hind feet, snowshoe hares are extremely well suited to their wintry environment. (Shutterstock photo)
March 25, 2025
By Bob Humphrey
The distant baying of a beagle signals a hot scent and time to go on alert. They’ve already passed by once before, providing at least a hint for a good intercept point. You find the tracks, look for an opening that will provide a clear shot and quickly scan this way and that for any sign of movement. There’s a flash of white on white as a hare bounds through the alders in a cloud of snow. The shotgun roars, a bit too late and behind as the hare vanishes into the brush. This round is his but there will be another.
Snowshoe hare hunting is a winter rite in the north woods of Maine. When the snow piles up and temperatures go down, practitioners of this ages-old tradition head afield with a pack of hounds and a pocketful of game loads to try and bag brush bunnies. These fleet-footed furbearers provide great sport for a winter expedition into the woods, and there’s no better place to chase them than Maine.
TACTICAL KNOW-HOW One attractive aspect of Maine hare hunting is the length of the season, which runs from late September through the end of March. Some hunters pursue them on bare ground, either intentionally or as targets of opportunity while pursuing other upland game throughout the fall. The preferred period is once the deep snow hits the ground and the hares make trails that reveal their lairs. The action really heats up in March when the breeding season prompts more activity, and well-worn trails in the snow reveal areas of concentration.
Hares prefer not to stray from their home ranges. When chased by hounds, they’ll make wide loops, allowing the hunter to identify intercept points. (Shutterstock photo) Snowshoe hares use a variety of habitat but they prefer young, regenerating softwood or mixed woods, fir thickets and alder swales. Like deer, they’re often found along the edges of cuts, where open areas provide food and denser woods provide cover.
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The traditional hunting method involves hounds, typically beagles or Bassets. Hunters will either head to prime cover (more on that in a bit) or travel remote logging roads until they find tracks, then release the hounds. Like any prey animal, the hares will flee from following hounds but their furry feet have an Achilles heel: They don’t like traveling outside of their familiar home range, so when they near the edge of their comfort zone, they circle back toward home. You may not get it right the first time, but by learning from each loop, hunters can home in on an intercept point and be ready the next time the chase draws near. Scatterguns with light field loads of No. 6, 7 1/2 or 8 shot are preferred for moving targets, sometimes in thick brush.
Snowshoe hares are well adapted to their northern environment. Still, sometimes nature plays a nasty trick on them. If the snow flies before they’ve made the transition, their brown pelage betrays them. Similarly, if it melts too early, a white coat stands out.
This offers an advantage to hunters without hounds, who can employ several methods. One is simply strolling along, much as you would when hunting grouse or pheasants, hoping for a flush. Sign like tracks, trails and pellets will tell you when you’re in the right area. It can be advantageous to have several hunters walking in a line, as hares may bound off to one side or the other.
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Another method is to employ the same still-hunting skills you would for deer. Slip along slowly and quietly through the fir thickets and alder runs, pausing frequently to scan ahead or to the sides for the telltale brown or white against a contrasting background. The hare’s fight-or-flight response often prompts them to hold tight when potential danger is nearby, fleeing only when it draws closer. Looking for white on white can be challenging, unless you catch their outline against an evergreen background. Experienced hunters develop a search image for the hare’s beady black eye.
Hunting snowshoes while on snowshoes is common once late winter rolls around in Maine. Still-hunting is a great tactic for dogless hunters. (Shutterstock photo) Here, you may opt for a .22 rimfire to take head shots. However, the hares don’t always hold tight, so the ideal hare gun is a hybrid over/under with barrels chambered in .22 Long Rifle and .410 bore or 20 gauge. That way you can be ready for stationary or moving targets.
LAND OF OPPORTUNITY Another big plus with Maine hare hunting is that you have plenty of options for where to go. Hares occur statewide, but their numbers—and hunting opportunities—increase as you go north.
The Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (IFW) manages more than 110,000 acres in 70 wildlife management areas under their jurisdiction. With a few specific exceptions, all are open to hunting. You’ll find larger, more remote parcels in Wildlife Management Districts C, D, E, F and G.
IFW has also implemented a new initiative to purchase and protect deer wintering areas, and literally thousands more acres allowing public hunting access are being added every year, particularly in Maine’s northernmost Aroostook County.
Meanwhile, the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry manages more than half a million acres of public lands ranging from 500 to 43,000 acres in size. Maine law requires that Public Reserved Lands exist in every unorganized township, so they shouldn’t be hard to find, though some may be difficult to access, at least without snow machines (where permitted). All of the above is just the tip of the iceberg.
Hares make for great sport and are excellent in a number of dishes, including the classic hasenpfeffer stew. (Shutterstock photo) Roughly 97 percent of Maine’s forested land is privately owned. Fortunately, most of that consists of large tracts of commercial forest that are accessible for free or a nominal access fee. Even better, commercial harvesting practices unintentionally create ideal hare habitat. Hares can be found at almost any elevation, but larger numbers are in lower areas, particularly bottomland softwoods.
DRESS THE PART Hare hunting can involve long walks through thick cover interspersed with long periods of immobility as you wait for the pack to circle back. Dress in layers made of moisture-wicking material so you can add when standing still and subtract when busting brush. Energy bars or other snacks and water are also a good idea, as you may spend several hours away from vehicles. Cell coverage can be spotty, so some form of satellite communication is also wise, particularly if someone gets injured. A GPS unit is handy, and of course, never go in the woods without a compass.
When most other hunting seasons are long past, the Super Bowl is a memory and the ice fishing has slowed down, hare season is just hitting its peak. Conditions may seem less than ideal for a walk in the woods, but just like the whitetail rut, the hare’s March breeding season puts bucks in a frenzy to find does.
MIND THE ROAD Tips for safe winter driving in the north woods. When driving roads through commercial timber lands, keep in mind that logging trucks always have the right of way. (Photo courtesy of © Maksym Maksymov/Dreamstime) All roads in Maine’s industrial timber lands are privately built and operated primarily for the purpose of managing and moving forest products. The private landowners are willing to share their roads with members of the public, provided visitors follow some general guidelines and considerations.
All logging trucks and other commercial vehicles have the right of way. Pull over when meeting these vehicles. Travel with extreme caution on all logging roads.
Travel at posted speeds but no more than 45 miles per hour.
Use a MURS radio to monitor and call out mile markers to on-coming truck traffic.
Keep to the right when approaching a corner or cresting a hill.
When approaching active equipment near the roadside, wait for acknowledgment from equipment operators before proceeding to pass. This article was featured in the March 2025 issue of Game & Fish magazine. Click to subscribe .
