My 2021-2022 Trapping Season

YanceyGreenhorn

Still Not a Moderator
that’s what I’m waiting on in most areas

got called back by a landowner for more beaver action in a dog safe area though,,, likely will set that place tomorrow
I’ve got beaver back straps on my mind. Your trout pics got me thinking of going and scouting a few places that I’ve caught both
 

QuietButDeadly

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Just one beaver this morning, 47 lbs and a catch I can not explain. Foot hold on drown set with perfect condition for back foot catch. Remake of perfect back foot catch from yesterday. Creek bank is straight down with a notch worn in it about 10" wide and 15" deep. Water level is slightly over the creek bank. The notch makes a perfect ledge to bed the trap on and when the beavers front feet hit the top of the creek bank, the back feet drop down to the ledge to push up onto the bank. Ideal situation for back foot set and it worked perfectly at two places yesterday.

But somehow, the beaver today managed to get caught by a front foot. Makes no sense to me but I am glad the trouble maker figured out how to do it. Trapping is a lot like medicine....never say always and never say never and every day on the line is just more practice. When you think you have them figured out, they will throw you a curve.
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QuietButDeadly

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
The creek bottom just keeps on giving. 50 lb female this morning. I do not normally find two family groups sharing a fairly small territory but I am thinking that is what I have here. I have caught two big females and two big males and a couple of 2 year olds so far. Suspect there may be some more young ones. And they appear to have been living in harmony. Tails not notched up and not the first sign of a bite mark on any of them. I have seen such before but not often.

Here is todays catch and a couple of pics of the area I am dealing with.

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The main dam that has the creek channel completely blocked and has rerouted the flow.
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And a wider view showing what I refer to as wing dams to control the overflow from the main channel. The main channel dam is middle center behind the tree and the flow in the lower right is where I let some water out last night to see if it got repaired. It did get repaired. Not sure if it was done by the one I caught or if there are still more there. The sets are ready just in case.
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buckman84

Eight Pointer
The creek bottom just keeps on giving. 50 lb female this morning. I do not normally find two family groups sharing a fairly small territory but I am thinking that is what I have here. I have caught two big females and two big males and a couple of 2 year olds so far. Suspect there may be some more young ones. And they appear to have been living in harmony. Tails not notched up and not the first sign of a bite mark on any of them. I have seen such before but not often.

Here is todays catch and a couple of pics of the area I am dealing with.

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The main dam that has the creek channel completely blocked and has rerouted the flow.
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And a wider view showing what I refer to as wing dams to control the overflow from the main channel. The main channel dam is middle center behind the tree and the flow in the lower right is where I let some water out last night to see if it got repaired. It did get repaired. Not sure if it was done by the one I caught or if there are still more there. The sets are ready just in case.
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Looks like a nice place!
 

QuietButDeadly

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Land owner wants the water flow back to pre beaver days. You will not see any water it that last pic if normal flow is restored. A fella could float his hat in the creek channel above the main dam now.
 

QuietButDeadly

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Gonna have to breach the main dam enough by hand to stop the overflow so it can dry enough to get a back hoe or excavator over to the main channel. Could probably get to it on the far side now but even though he owns the land on the far side where the dam is, he does not have any way to access it with equipment. It is too close to his house to blow he has a connection to some equipment. I am just getting rid of the beaver.
 

QuietButDeadly

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Nothing yesterday but the dam was repaired so I knew I was not done. Relured a couple of sets really dropped the water level, let out around a foot of water and adjusted sets accordingly. I suspected I was dealing with a young of the year leftover and they can be aggravating because they do not always react the way I expect an adult to behave. But this was already a strange situation as I had caught two big females, 45 lbs and 50 lbs so I was not sure what to expect.

And it got even stranger this morning when I pulled the drowning rod up with a 56 lb female. And the dam breach was mudded back up some. Don't know if she did that before she got caught or if there is another one left. At any rate, she is #8 out of this spot.

There is rarely a dull moment when trying to match wits with the critters.
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QuietButDeadly

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Been mighty slow on the short line and the beaver job is done. The ground is also wet not and with the forecast low in the teens tonight, my sets will all freeze if I do not redo them with dry dirt. And no more traffic than I am seeing, I figured the best plan was to pull everything rather than redoing every set so that was my plan this morning. But as we all know, everything does not always work out as planned.

I rounded a corner where I could see my last sets and had a bouncer.
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Feisty little vixen had squared up the pan on a grab and pull set with a staked down deer leg bone in the edge of a pasture. I was actually glad to see another red as they have a hard time surviving in coyote country. Makes me think that thinning out the coyotes last year has taken a little pressure off of them. And for those who may not have been around fox much, it may be hard to appreciate the amount of odor associated with them. This one had stunk up the area good so I decided to remake the set. That scent should get the attention of a yote if one happens by.

When I released her, she trotted off a few yards, stopped and looked back at me three or for times before she finally disappeared into the woods. I always enjoy my interaction with fox, red or gray.
 

Triggernosis

Ten Pointer
Are reds as easy to release as greys? With greys I usually pick them up by the nape of their neck and they go immediately still like a rag doll - step on the trap ears to get their foot out and then go toss them on the ground. They are completely docile when held by the nape of their neck.
 

QuietButDeadly

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Been kinda slow and I have not been in a rush to get some of the properties set that I trap after woods goat season ends in view of the weather reports. It is a lot of work to get a property set and it is risky business to leave it set and have to check it every day if we get the worst case scenario weather wise. It is also a real pain to trip everything and then have to reset it after a big rain or snow melt considering the muddy conditions. And I try to be as kind to the landowners roads as possible with my side by side also.

So, for now, I only have the few sets at home. After the last round of rain, I had to redo all of them to keep them working through the freeze thaw cycles we are having. Otherwise, the traps would freeze up like a hockey puck and the critters could jump up and down on them and they would not fire.

I also decided to put a trail camera on one of my sets and it has been uneventful until the morning of the 13th.

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Within an hour, I had a yote and a red fox pass by a set within a few feet and it does not appear that either one of them paid any attention to it at all. This probably happens more than I would like to think it does. The trap is right at the end of the log closest to the critters. I have the camera programmed to take a 10 second video each time it is triggered in addition to the still but I have not pulled the card to check that yet. The camera is up high and I see no sign they even knew it was there. They both look like they had somewhere else that they wanted to be.

I try to make the best set I can at a good location and I am on location here but the critters were not interested in my offering. It is still there, maybe next time!
 

QuietButDeadly

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Anybody else use the winter weather to look for tracks today? I had mostly sleet with a crust from the freezing rain with just a dusting of snow on top but it was enough to leave some pretty good tracks. I hear the midwesterners and folks up north talking about snow being a real eye opener because it leaves clear evidence of what the target or non-target critter is around your set. Since we do not get snow often, I try to take advantage of it when I can to see what is moving and where.
 

perfectroadglide

Ten Pointer
I went out today and saw a lot of deer tracks, but noticed two trails tore up with yote tracks. Traps will be going in soon. I didn't see any coon tracks along the creek.
 

QuietButDeadly

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Things have been a little slow the last couple of weeks with the few sets I have out at home but I am still in the game. Put a trail cam on a set and it probably cost me a catch. I put the camera up high but it is directly behind the set so the critter should be coming in with the camera in front of it. Pretty obvious that the camera is spooking the coyote as it approaches the set.


I have moved the camera behind and to the side of the set now. Unfortunately, it is not a great view for detail but it should not be spooking the critter now.
 

QuietButDeadly

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Another female this morning in the snow. Should have good catch pic/video but the set was right on the edge of the camera trail camera view. When I get time, I will sort through what I have and see if any are worth posting. I do know the catch was made about 6:21 a.m. this morning. One ugly coyote for sure but one less set of teeth in the woods now.
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Scrub

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
Not ready to say things are turning around but the last couple of days have been eventful anyway. It is a start whether it keeps going or not.

Had another song dog bouncing this morning on another one of my pre-hooked drag sets. Young female with a flat coat that would not even make a decent wall hanger but it is another set of teeth out of commission and she will not be having any pups either. She was not very photogenic and I did not push it as she was toe caught. It was cold enough last night that the trap probably had a crust to bust through but it got the job done.
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And I might have underestimated the beaver job I set yesterday. I picked the prime spots and hung a couple of snares and a couple of foot holds set for back foot catches on drowning rods. All sets occupied this morning and I suspect there is another one or two left. Reset everything and got them all to the truck. Will see what tomorrow brings.
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Beaver trapping is a lot like work and it is always uphill to the truck. Makes an old man tired!

Could you post some pics of one of your snares. I’m going to set a couple and just like to see your set…thanks
 

QuietButDeadly

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Don't know if I have any pics of snare sets for the buck toofs but I will look. If not, I will try to remember to take some sometime I am working beaver again. And just to be clear for those who might not know, beaver is the only thing we can set snares for statewide. Very effective tool IMO in the right situation.
 

QuietButDeadly

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Time for another update....

Started setting a new to me property on Monday after the latest snow storm fizzled. Hard to find fresh tracks with the top layer crusty every day but I put sets where I could find sign and filled in at transition points with a lot of guessing travel patterns thrown in. Setting for everything but all on land now as no fresh sign of water critters.

The good news is no possums so far but I expect that to change with rain coming. And the warm up should have the raccoons out foraging too. Got a pretty red fox and a butt ugly female coyote and a half a dozen masked bandits for my efforts so far.
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QuietButDeadly

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Traps have to be checked daily rain or shine. Yesterday in the rain, I was surprised to not have a possum or two as they love to move in the rain. But all I caught was three wet raccoons. Most of my canine sets were in standing water even though it had not rained that much. Frost in the ground was keeping it from soaking in so it made for a muddy mess on the surface.

More showers overnight and early this morning and the possums did not disappoint today. And they could not be nice and get caught in the DP traps that are easy to reset. Two of them jumped up and down on perfectly good coyote sets. Also picked up a couple more raccoons.
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Tomorrow is a new day!
 

Scrub

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
Traps have to be checked daily rain or shine. Yesterday in the rain, I was surprised to not have a possum or two as they love to move in the rain. But all I caught was three wet raccoons. Most of my canine sets were in standing water even though it had not rained that much. Frost in the ground was keeping it from soaking in so it made for a muddy mess on the surface.

More showers overnight and early this morning and the possums did not disappoint today. And they could not be nice and get caught in the DP traps that are easy to reset. Two of them jumped up and down on perfectly good coyote sets. Also picked up a couple more raccoons.
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Tomorrow is a new day!

Clean it like a suckling pig, bake it with sweet potatoes?
 

QuietButDeadly

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Saturday was a nice day and the critters were moving the night before. Picked up 6 raccoons and a coyote. Hooked another coyote but it was able to pull my earth anchor and left with a new bracelet. First time I ever had an anchor pulled by a critter. I have had a chain link fail before but the anchor was gone this time.
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Was 21 degrees when I got out of the truck Sunday morning and kinda crusty on top. Was not really expecting much. Had one trap frost fired that I reset but I did end up with 3 raccoons in DPs set on low creek banks or sandbars.

Got up this morning to freezing rain but my Tactacam Reveal confirmed that I had caught a coyote in one of the 3 traps I still have out at home. Not great pics but I could tell it was a coyote that stepped on the sweet spot a little after 11:30 last night. It was in a set with a pre hooked drag and settled down pretty quick almost out of camera view but I could see it was still there. I geared up and took care of the male coyote and remade the set. That is number 3 for that location this season.
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Waited a while for it to warm up a couple degrees before I headed out to check my line. There was right much ice on the trees starting about 3 miles north of my house that continued until I was 3 or 4 miles from the property I am trapping. Checked and came up empty. Never saw a temp above 34 and the ice was heavier coming home mid afternoon that it was in the morning. Roads were fine though.

Tomorrow is another day.
 
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