Bust out the good old sling shot and marbles. If that is ileagle, inpraticle, or you want to have some more fun wrap your legs around the tree and haul your ass up there.
Slingshot is the best. It is leagle in most places. Also the best ammo I have found are marbles. They have enough power to let the squirrels know its time to move and are very accurate. I have even killed a few squirrels by shooting them in the head with them. Marbles are also cheap. I can pick up a bag at crafts stores for $1.
Why indanger your bird by using slingshots? What does you state laws say about slingshots, does it list them as legal small game weapon, mine says nothing about them in the section about what you can use for small game so they are illegal. When you get checked by a Game officer are you practicing falconry or hunting with a illlegal weapon and disturbing wildlife by shooting into a nest? I have a friend whoes bird is blind in one eye because of a marble, he no longer shoots and have seen a few more birds hit by marbles. When my bird goes up I let NO ONE shoot and the slingshots get left at the trucks. Shooting slingshots is one of the stupidest things you an do when a bird is flying.
Why indanger my bird? Because the small risk is worth be benefits. The risk of hawking squirrels in general is more risky then using a slingshot. Just the fact that they bite back. I have been squirrel hawking for over 6 years (four years with my birds) and have yet to see a bird hit. One must practice with a slingshot before hawking and use good judgment when shooting at a nest. If you have seen a few birds hit you might want to check the blood alcohol level of the shooters or get them off the reefer as they must have been one toke over the line.
The ones I have seen hit were from the marble hitting the tree and bouncing off to hit the bird. And I know that marbles hurt when they hit somebody. Yes squirrel hawking is dangerous but some of the danger can be taken away by not putting a projectial bouncing through the trees. Also if sombody does use marbles it is my belife the only the falconer flying the bird should shoot, so when the bird gets hit you don't have a person wanting to fight another just a falconer that feels like crap for hitting their bird.
Well as I usally hawk alone thats not a problem. Also when I do hawk in a group, we had 20 at one of the meets with me, Only one person has the slingshot and shoots when I tell them to. But one must use common sence. You must know whats behind the nest and must also have a clean shot at it. If you have a clean shot you should not be missing a squirrel nest.
Then there are the situations a sling shot just wont work because you can not get a clean shot at a nest. In this case I climb the tree. With both these meathods by the end of the first season with a bird it should be crashing nest once you start banging on the base of the tree it is in.