Information, Resources, and On-Line Trapping Forum

 

Rewind Archives

Rewind Arc. 1 Rewind Arc. 2 Rewind Arc. 3 Rewind Arc. 4 Rewind Arc. 5 Rewind Arc. 6 Rewind Arc. 7 Rewind Arc. 8 Rewind Arc. 9 Rewind Arc. 10 Rewing Arc. 11 Rewind Arc. 12
 
 
Rewind Arc. 9

Return To Rewind

   

(Posted for May - June, 2009)

The High Water Gang Sets
by Hal Sullivan

(This article was first published in The Buckeye Trapper Jan/Feb 1993)

There are any number of reasons for making gang sets, but primary among them is the fact that they help to produce more critters from a trapline in a given period of time. They also give the trapper an opportunity to score a double or even a triple which would be all but impossible if you have only one trap set in a given area. This is a pleasant reward in gang setting, but it is not the major goal.
Today, I use gang sets at a majority of locations I select for traps. This has not always been so. When I was first starting out, and had a limited number of traps, I usually tried to make do with one set and one trap in each location. I would like to tell you that experience has prompted me to use more gang sets, and in fact it has. Gang sets have simply proven themselves to be more productive. However, there is another major factor involved.
Over the years, I have amassed an ungodly number of traps. Experience had definitely revealed to me that traps hanging in the fur shed, or laying in the back of the truck, do not produce a great deal of fur. I may as well set the traps, two or three at a time if necessary, and at least have them in a productive mode. It is generally the case that trappers who have a few years of experience under their packbasket, are more prone to make gang sets. I can't necessarily say that this comes any more from an increase in wisdom than it does from the quantity of traps a person tends to collect as they go along.
There are two main advantage in constructing gang sets. A gang set can give you two or more chances to catch a critter as it passes through an area. Should an animal miss or avoid one set, there will be another waiting nearby. The other advantage in gang setting is the aspect of having at least one set or trap in active condition should one of the other traps be put out of commission.
I find this second feature to be very helpful especially when I'm on my home trapline. Much of my water trapping is done along the rivers and creeks that flow into the Ohio River. As I have explained in some previous stories, the Ohio is a major route for barge traffic. The river is an endless series of locks and dams that are used to maintain the depth of the river for navigation and flood control purposes. The locks are opened or closed to raise or lower the water level in the pools between the dams.
Like any other trapper who works on a free flowing stream, I can expect the water level on the upper reaches of my traplines to rise with a rainfall and drop with dry weather. But as I near the "Big" river, the rules change dramatically. Here, I am not so much subject to the whims of mother nature as I am to the whims of the Army Corps of Engineers. They decide when the locks should be opened, and when they should be closed, and how much the river level will rise or fall accordingly -- rain or shine!
A two or three foot rise or fall in the water level in a twenty-four-hour period is not at all unusual. The worst I have ever experienced is an eight-foot rise overnight. Needless to say, this makes trapping in this environment a real challenge. That's where gang sets come in.
In this situation, I put in at least two sets, or at least two traps, to guard against fluctuating water. I make sure that the traps are set on two different levels. Generally, I base my construction around some type of pocket set. A set I favor is one illustrated by Charles Dobbins a few years ago. It consists of a pocket with at trail leading down the bank to it. Placing one trap at the mouth of the pocket, and one trap above the pocket on the trail, I have precluded a rise in the water level by some amount. Sometimes I will construct a ordinary pocket set in a location that offers a natural blind set nearby. Again, I make sure the traps are set on two different levels.
The elbow set, as described by Bob Noonan, is another set I use to help account for fluctuating water. This set is constructed by digging a regular pocket then tunneling into it from above. Generally, I place a foothold trap at the lower level, and a #110 bodygrip across the upper hole. The lower trap will take just about any critter than comes along. The #110 is used for insurance in case a mink should wander by when the lower trap is submerged.
Whenever possible, I like to rig my water sets to produce a drowning catch. If I select the proper locations, where the bank is fairly steep, I can construct a drowning set that will still function with a two or three foot change in the water level. Generally, I employ a slide wire and use a long stake to reach deep water. By first fastening the wire near the bottom of the stake I can then reach out and shove the stake into deep water without getting a bath. With this arrangement, the drowner will still function if the water level drops -- most of the time.
The problems really start when the water level changes three or four feet overnight. When this happens, the only thing to do is construct new sets. That is the scenario I went through this season at one spot which was fairly close to the backwaters of the Ohio.
When I scouted the location, I had half-dug a pocket at the waterline in a steep bank. When I returned to set traps, that pocket was high and dry by 18 inches so. I moved over a few feet and dug an elbow set nearby. This remained operational a couple of days and produced a coon, but on a subsequent visit the lower end of the elbow was completely submerged. The rising water had created a force about 20 feet downstream where a small ledge on the bank now offered a dry walkway for the critters passing through. I hid a #1 coilspring on that ledge and fastened it out in the deepening water.
The next day the water was almost over the top of the elbow, had covered the trail set, and was up to the level of the original pocket I had started on my scouting trip. I finished digging out that pocket and put a trap in front of it. At this point, I anticipated that the water might continue to rise, but I also knew it could fall just as fast as it came up. Accordingly, I considered the fact that I could no longer rely on my drowning systems, and the set might actually go high and dry overnight. With this in mind, I employed an #1 trap at the set.
The water didn't go down. It went up another three feet that night. The water was now about six feet higher that when I had made the original elbow set. I moved with the water, higher up on the bank and put in a new pocket with a drowner slide three feet deep. Then just as fast as the water it came, it left. The next day the new set, including the drowning slide, was high and dry. I pulled the set and went down the bank. Pocket number two had reemerged, and I added a fresh shot of lure.
Finally, I saw some action. A coon got into the pocket set and went straight down the slide wire. Straight down to the mud flat that had been exposed by another three foot drop in the water. It had done its natural coon thing which was trash out everything in sight and turn the mud flat into a regular hog wallow. Eventually, it had wrapped the trap around the stake, which was supposed to be under three feet of water. Being well greased with river slit, it then managed to power out of the #1 trap.
It was long gone by the time I got there. Well, it wasn't actually long gone. It was in fact, about ten feet away in the blind set I had made along the narrow ledge when the water had first started to rise. You might say that coon had bad luck, but by the same token, I had planned for whatever critter walked along that ledge to have bad luck. Although this was an extreme case, tenacity and gang setting had paid off in a critter that would have otherwise not got to ride in the back of my truck.
Interestingly enough, on that very same day I had another coon utilize two traps at a gang set. This was a combination pocket with trail set, and when I peered over the bank, I saw one very drowned coon. It was considerably closer to the bank than I thought it should be. These traps were each on a six-foot slide wire, and the wires were angled away from each other to prevent any captured animal from fouling the other trap. But the best laid plans of mice and men, and trappers, often go astray. I had hind-legged the coon in the trail set, and it had managed to reach out and stick a front foot in the trap at the pocket. The traps did not get very far down the slide wires, but they created some serious problems for the coon that was stretched between them.
These are just two examples of how gang sets can pay off. The first coon would have been long gone if there had not been a back up set directly in its path. Although this is not necessarily the design of a gang set, it still illustrates the point of having an alternate set or trap nearby in case one becomes non-functional. But generally the trap is put out service by a captured critter, not an escaped one. The second coon? You might say I just ganged up on that one.

###

For more trapping information visit our Books & Videos department.


(Posted for March - April, 2009)

TRAPPERS, GUNS, AND AMMO
by Hal Sullivan

(This article was first published in The Trapper and Predator Caller, April 1993)

I recently read an article in a shooting magazine in which the author touted the merits of a certain small frame, light weight .22 Magnum revolver. "This would be an ideal gun for trappers," he stated. Obviously, the man didn't know very many trappers.
Many trappers do carry a gun on their trapline, but usually this is in conjunction with dispatching animals caught in traps. On occasion, trappers may carry a gun for other purposes. For example, you might carry a center fire rifle, or a slug filled shotgun if trapping overlaps deer season. Wilderness trappers may also be in the habit of carrying a fairly powerful gun if they are taking large game for subsistence.
But the average trapper, on the average trapline, needs no more power than that supplied by the standard .22 rimfire ammunition. And most of the time, a trapper will find it advantageous to use the less powerful loads in this line.
My first trapline gun was a small .22 caliber "boy's rifle" from the earlier part of the 20th century. It was a standard hardware store model, with a flat one piece stock, a 20" barrel, and a sloppy rolling block action. It probably sold for less that three bucks when it was brand new. It wasn't very pretty, and it was just barely serviceable, but it was a very good trapline gun.
It was very light in weight and not much over 30 inches long. I fashioned a sling out of a piece of rope and could easily carry the gun on my back. This is important to the man who has to check his traps with a bicycle. It is a shame that no one makes this type of small, cheap, lightweight rifle anymore. They would still be good trapline guns for young folks--or adults.

Fast Forward -- Some of these short light weight .22 rifles have reemerged as "youth" model guns.

I've used a number of other .22 caliber rifles on the trapline. They preformed well, but they all had one major drawback. A rifle is just not very portable on the trapline. You can carry it over your shoulder with a sling, but it still seems to get in the way or flop around on your back when you try to bend over. If you are carrying a packbasket, you have no other option than to carry the rifle in one hand.
That's why many trappers, myself included, prefer to carry a handgun on the trapline. A .22 caliber handgun is the best choice for trapline work. Preference is for revolvers because they can be carried safely, and are easily loaded and unloaded. Most modern revolvers can be carried safely with a live round under the hammer. However, older single-action revolvers may require that you carry the gun with the hammer resting on an empty chamber. To be completely safe, semi-automatic handguns should be carried with an empty chamber.
Handguns can be carried in a holster which leaves both hands, and your shoulders, free for trapline work. However, you must be careful to abide by the law governing concealed weapons. In most places, you can wear a gun on your hip as long as it is obvious. Wearing a long coat that covers up your gun is taboo. You might also find yourself in trouble if you pull on a pair of chest waders over your handgun. There are other laws that govern transporting weapons in your vehicle, and you should also familiarize yourself with these regulations.

Fast Forward -- Many state are issuing concealed carry permits to law abiding citizens these days.

Western style revolvers have gained popularity over the last couple of decades and many of them see trapline use. Other trappers prefer a more compact light weight gun. Harrington and Richardson made a line of these guns for a number of years that were, and still are, popular among trappers.
I have a H&R 922 that dates from the early fifties. It has a four inch barrel and weighs exactly a pound-and-a-half, fully loaded. It has a drop out cylinder that holds 9 shots. I never considered this cylinder to be a significant advantage over a regular six-shooter, and the only thing I ever shot nine times was a rattlesnake--I wanted to make sure it was extra dead.
I should give partial credit to the author who said his light weight, compact .22 Magnum would make a an ideal trapline gun. Light weight, and compact are good features, but the .22 Magnum chambering is significantly more than the average trapper wants or needs.
Trappers need to be concerned about pelt damage when they shoot an animal in a trap. In the overall scheme of things, a .22 Magnum is a low powered round compared, for example, to a .38 Special. Still the .22 Mag generates enough energy at close range to shoot completely through an animal, and leave a gaping exit wound. Shooting trapped animals with a .22 Mag, or other high powered cartridge, requires that the trapper shoot the animal from the side to confine the wound to the head area.
The plain old .22 long rifle cartridge generates more than enough power to kill trapped animals. In the course of doing butchering chores, I have killed 600 pound hogs, and 1500 pound Holstein cows with this round. Of course this was done using brain shots, but almost all trapped animals are killed with brain shots too. Many trappers use the long rifle cartridge. For one thing, it is readily available and often can be obtained at discount prices. But like its bigger brother, the .22 long rifle cartridge can have too much power, and shoot completely through an animal.
But exit wounds are not the only problems created in shooting trapped animals with a cartridge that is too powerful. Blood loss is also increased with a more powerful cartridge. This blood can get in the animal's fur and contaminate the set, leaving you with a mess to clean up. A lower powered cartridge, especially one the does not exit, causes a minimal amount of bleeding.
Fortunately, there are lower power .22 loads available, although you may have to search to find them. For a number of years, I used .22 shorts exclusively. These have about half the power of the long rifle but still have more than enough energy to kill a trapped animal at close range. Most any store that carried ammunition had a box or two of shorts tucked away, but in time it became increasingly difficult to find shorts.
Strangely, as shorts became scarcer an old and nearly forgotten round began to generate some renewed interest. While looking for box of shorts to stuff in my trapline gun, I came across one manufacturer's new line of CB ammunition. The CB was a popular plinking round before World War Two but nearly died out through the fifty's and sixty's.
The CB is a very low power round and is not actually intended for hunting purpose, although it can be good pest control round on rats and starlings. However, shooting animals in traps is not hunting, and the CB fired at close range has sufficient energy to penetrate the skull of all but the largest trapped animals. The bullet uses up most of its energy doing this, and a CB usually does not exit the animal.
I will admit I have seen cases where individual shots did not penetrate an animal's skull. This usually happens when the angle of impact is low, and the bullet tends to glance off the skull. A subsequent shot, more carefully placed usually remedies the situation. I will also admit that I hesitate to shoot coyotes straight in the forehead with a CB. But a CB will kill a coyote stone, cold dead with a well placed shot through the ear canal.

Fast Forward -- I don't advocate CBs for coyote dispatch anymore. It is just too hard for most people to get that perfect shot down the ear canal, myself included.

CB's are offered by several different manufacturers, but the CCI brand by Omark Industries comes in two styles--CB short (or just plain CB) and CB long. These two rounds are identical as far power goes. The only difference is in the length of the casing. The CB long utilizes the standard .22 long rifle case, and the CB short uses the .22 short casing. There are a couple of features that may make the CB Long the more desirable of the two rounds.
First, the CB Long completely fills the chamber of all guns chambered for the .22 long rifle, and most are. The short case, on the other hand, only goes halfway up the chamber. Prolonged firing of short cases in a long rifle chamber can cause damage to the forward walls of the chamber that are not protected by the shell casing. In all honesty, you would have to fire quite a few rounds of short ammunition to do any damage, and shooting a few shorts for trapline purposes probably won't damage your gun. Still, given a choice, I would prefer to have the CB long.
The CB Long has another advantage in that it is easier to handle than the short. The long case makes the round easier to grasp, hold, and load than its short counterpart. Those using single-shot guns or working with gloved hands will like this feature.
I am sure there are arguments in favor of carrying various types of guns on the trapline, but a trapline gun sees it main use in dispatching animals that are caught in your traps. Since most shots will be taken at stationary animals at close range, extended power and accuracy are not critical factors. A small light weight rifle is alright for this job, but it can't match the portability and convenience of a handgun. Combine this with a low power .22 cartridge, like the CB, to minimize pelt damage and you will be ready to take care of your shooting chores on the trapline.

Fast Forward -- Most recently, I have been using segmented hollow point ammunition made by CCI in my trapline handgun. Sometimes this is advertised as "Quick Shock". This ammo fires at normal long rifle velocity, but the bullet breaks into three small pieces, which lose momentum rapidly. I have taken to using a heart shot to dispatch coyotes because it reduces blood loss. This ammo, because it separates into three pieces, gives me a much better chance of hitting the heart with at least one of those shards.

For more trapping information visit our Books & Videos department.

 


(Posted for January - February, 2009)

Logging Rats
By Hal Sullivan

(This article was first published in "The Buckeye Trapper" July-August 1992)

The set was very easy to check. From the top of the bank, I could see the trap was gone from its bed. I slid down the bank and waded out into the creek. With my trusty hook-stick, I fished around until I caught the trap chain. A slight resistance told me I was pulling up more than an empty trap. I removed the catch and set the trap down on the old tree trunk that was lying in the water. I had logged another muskrat.
Anyone who is familiar with muskrats knows they have a propensity for crawling up on objects that are floating or partially submerged in the water. One reason for this is that these floating objects offer a quick escape for a muskrat that might be pursued by a predator. All the rat has to do is dive off into the water and submerge. Some trappers use manmade float sets with good success to take muskrats. I've used a few of these, but I prefer to use a more natural set when one is available.
Quite often, the aquatic habitat that muskrats require is accompanied by growth of brush and trees along the shoreline. As these trees succumb to natural forces, they topple, and many of them end up in the water. Some of them actually float, but most become waterlogged with some portion remaining above water. Others fall with roots or butt ends still attached to the bank with their top portions submerged in the water. In any case, muskrats will often use these trees as climb-out spots.
Freshly fallen trees often do not provide good opportunities for sets. If there are a lot of limbs and branches on the tree, they may create an entanglement situation that could allow a rat to foul up the trap and chain and escape. The most likely candidates for sets are the older weathered and rotten trees that have only the main trunk and maybe a few main limbs remaining. On the up side, it seems as if muskrats prefer these older logs too.
It is good to note that muskrats don't use just any or every log floating in the water. If you find one log, and it is the only above water object in a wide area, there is a good chance that the muskrats, if present, will be pulling out on the log. However, in an area where floating logs are commonplace, you will find that many, and probably most, of them are not being used by the rats. The only way to determine if rats are using a log as a climb-out is to check the sign.
The most obvious sign of muskrat activity on a log is a pile of droppings just above the waterline. The more droppings, the greater your chances of catching a muskrat. One or two old, weathered droppings are not good indicators that the log is in current use. Fresh droppings, even though they might not be numerous, indicate that the log is currently being used by the muskrats. Another sign to look for is the remains of chewed vegetation on which the muskrats have been feeding. Again, these are usually found above the waterline. Sometimes, you will find floating muskrat garbage right at the waterline on a log. In this case, try to determine that the log is actually in use. Sometimes, muskrat cuttings will drift in on the wind or current and merely get hung up against a log.
Once you have determined that a log shows potential as a muskrat set, placing a trap is the next consideration. Unlike setting a bodygrip in a run or plopping a foothold at the bottom of a slide, setting a muskrat trap on a log entails several variables. One of the biggest concerns is how you can, or will, bed the trap on the log.
The trap of choice for this application is the foothold trap. As with any set, you must stabilize the trap to the best of your ability. This isn't always easy when you are dealing with a round, hard object for a trap bed. As I said, there are many variables involved, so I will start with an ideal situation and detail the procedures for bedding a trap.
If the trapline gods are smiling on me, they will give me a log that is very rotten. Here, I can dig out a trap bed in the rotten wood almost as if I were working in dirt. One of my favorite trapping tools is a mason's hammer, sometimes called a brick hammer. It has a narrow flat blade opposite the hammer head, and this is what I use to dig my trap beds. On very punky logs, it is easy to chop out a bed for the trap. Even if the log is not completely rotten, the mason's hammer makes a pretty good wood chisel, and I can still get in a trap bed.
When I have my "druthers", I prefer to bed the trap above the waterline flush with the top of the log. There are a number of reasons for this. One, if I get a rise in the water level, the trap may go under, but it will still be shallow enough to make a catch. Also, it is much easier, and I stay much drier, chopping out a trap bed above the water level. Finally, I think it is easier to catch the rat when it is walking on the log. There is little or no opportunity to offset the trap at one of these sets. A muskrat swimming up to the log will still have its feet spread. However, when it climbs out , it will walk right down the center of the log, where the trap is placed.
When I have a bed carved out, I line it with some mud to help stabilize the trap and erase any "white" wood I may have exposed in the chiseling process. If I'm expecting freezing weather, I don't use much mud, just a smear to cover up the exposed wood. I break up the outline of the trap with a few pieces of naturally occurring debris like rotten, black leaves or some of the vegetation the muskrats have left on the log.
As you progress on up to logs that are fairly sound, it becomes nearly impossible to dig a full bed for the trap. Sometimes it is possible to simply cut a groove in the log to hold the trap frame and spring while the jaws rest on top of the log. I usually use longsprings traps for this application, but I also carry a few #1 jump traps.

Fast Forward -- The little #1 coilspring traps also work exceedingly well on logs.

I can bed one of these small traps on a log with a minimum of chiseling. However, when the trap lies above the surface of the log, the set looses some of its effectiveness because the rats have a tendency to step over the trap. Sometimes, if it's convenient, I will lay a guide stick about the diameter of my thumb in front of the trap. This forces the muskrat to climb onto the trap to get over the guide stick. But, I only do this when I can't get the trap bedded below or flush with the surface of the log.
In a worst case scenario, I may find a log that is as hard as iron, and impossible to chisel. Of course, stability is a terrible problem in this case. It's like trying to bed a trap on top of a stove pipe. Setting a trap above water is out of the question. It sticks out like a sore thumb, and more than likely, a muskrat will knock the trap off the log before it gets caught. Here, I try fasten a trap to the log about two inches underwater, and catch the muskrat as it swims in.
There are several methods for fastening a trap to a log in this situation, and there are several concerns. First, the trap must be stable enough to make a catch, yet not fastened down so solidly that a trapped rat cannot pull the trap off the log and drown. One way to stabilize these traps is with small headed finishing nails. Nails can be driven into the log (not an easy task underwater) and bent over to catch the frame of the trap. Some longspring traps have a hole in the front of the frame and this can be hooked over a nail driven in the log. Again, with this method keep in mind that the trap cannot be fastened permanently to the log. The trap must be loose enough to come off the nails when an animal is caught.
Another method is to use wire to fasten the trap to the log. To do this, I prefer to wrap a couple of wires around the log and twist them tight on the top of the log. I leave some long ends stick out where the wire is twisted. These long ends can be folded over the frame and over the bottom leaf of the spring to hold the trap temporarily in place. Another method I have used with some success employs a spring type clothes pin. I fasten the clothes pin to the log by driving a large headed roofing nail through the coil of the spring. I hold the trap in place by clipping the clothes pin to the frame of the trap.
Anchoring a trap at one of these sets is usually not a great problem, especially when the surrounding water is deep enough to drown the rat. My favorite method is to drive a fence staple into the log. I buy the longest staples I can find, preferably two-inch. It is quite often necessary to have a staple that long to reach solid wood. If I am uncertain about the staple, I give a couple of tugs on the trap chain to make sure it won't come loose. I don't staple the trap chain directly to the log, I drive the staple and then wire the trap to the staple. This makes it much easier to remove the trap when I am done with the set.
If the log is too rotten for a staple, I will often encircle the log with a wire and fasten the trap this way. At times, I simply stake the trap. Sometimes this is a necessity if the water near the log is not sufficiently deep to drown the rat. On occasion, I have run slide wires off the log to drown the rat.
These log sets need little further enhancement, especially if the log shows a great deal of activity. If the set is marginal, I may add a lure stick or some fresh vegetation to the log to attract the attention of the muskrats. Sometimes I add bait, like a slice of apple. I usually drive a finishing nail into the log, and spear the bait on it. One word of caution. If you bait these logs with apple, make sure your traps are fastened extremely well. I've turned up a number of coon on these apple baited logs. These sets will also nab an occasional wandering mink.
I can't say that floating logs comprise a majority of my muskrat sets. I still rely on dens, runs, and slides to produce a majority of my rats. Still, I rarely pass up a log that shows a lot of muskrat sign. Log sets can be especially useful in areas where dens and runs are hard to locate. Sometimes, it requires a little labor to construct one of these sets, but once they are in place catching rats can be as easy a falling off a log--pun intended. But they do add to my catch, and each season, I put a few extra entries in the catch column of my notebook as I log a few rats.

###

For more trapping information visit our Books & Videos department.


(Posted for November - December, 2008)

IN ANOTHER SENSE
by Hal Sullivan
(This article was first published the "The Trapper" November, 1992.)

In our quest to become better trappers, we focus a great deal of attention on baits and lures that will prove attractive to a critter's nose. Attend any trappers convention and you can find these odors to be so abundant that you would know where you were even with a blindfold on. There is no question that scent attractors play a vital role in the success of most traplines; however, animals rely on other senses to steer them through their environment. And primary among these is the sense of vision.
In the basic trap setting process, most of us do try to account for the animal's ability to see what it is getting into. In a canine set, we bury the trap carefully to keep it hid. For less wary critters, grass or leaves may be used to break up the outline of the trap and camouflage it from the eyes of the animal. It is important to hide your traps at a set so the animal doesn't see them, but it is equally important to consider what an animal does see at a set.
Rarely, very rarely, is a set constructed that does not play on the target animal's visual sense. A blind set made in a trail might be one example. However, the minute you add a stepping stick to this set, you have prevailed on the animal's sense of sight. Animals don't step over sticks by smelling them. On the other hand, some sets work on visual attraction alone. An artificial slide rubbed in the bank of a creek will catch muskrats without the addition of bait or lure. The only attraction for the animals is the sight of the slide itself.
Most other sets, excluding blind sets and trail sets, employ a combination of visual and scent attractors. By ganging up on the senses of an animal, we increase our odds of catching it. Although we usually think of the bait or lure as the key element of a set, it is obvious that this is not always true. Animals must be able to smell the odors for them to be attracted. Granted, an animal might smell a set long before they see it when the wind conditions are right, but if the air currents are wrong, an animal could pass within a few feet of a set and never smell it.
For this reason, it is usually considered good practice to place sets in locations that allow a great deal of visibility. Take, for example, a pocket set. This set could be placed just about anywhere along a creek bank and would have some chance of success at taking animals that travel the shoreline. But if the set is constructed on a fairly open bank, and is not camouflaged by brush or other shoreline growth, it can be more easily seen and will probably be more productive. Fox sets placed in open areas are supposed to function better because they seem safer to the shy fox. But it may be that they function better simply because they are easier to see.
Sometimes extreme measures are used to give a set more visual attraction for an animal. Flagging a set is the most blatant form of visual attraction. This is done by hanging a piece of fur, feathers, or some other light material from a limb or stick so that it blows in the breeze like a flag. This can attract critters over quite a distance. It is also appealing to critters, like cats, that are primarily sight hunters. Pocket sets, besides being placed on an open bank, can be made even more obvious by using a gloved hand to slick up the bank around the mouth of the pocket. This makes a pocket look like the bull's-eye in the center of a target.
Overall visibility will improve the long distance "calling" power of a set when the air currents are working against the bait and lure odors. But it can also be important even when an animal can clearly smell the scent attractors. Giving an animal a visual clue can help it to quickly home in on the odors it has detected. When the animal gets a whiff of and interesting odor, it will usually begin to search for the source of the odor. There are distinct advantages in making this search as easy as possible.
In the first place, the quicker an animal locates a set the less chance there will be for it to lose interest in the odors of the bait or lure. In the same vein, the faster the animal gets to the set, the less chance there will be for something to go wrong and scare off the critter.
Before we continue, it would probably be wise to point out the fact that sets which are highly visible to animals are in general highly visible to humans too. This can often be a consideration in set construction. The same visual factors that arouse curiosity in the target animal, may very well attract curious humans as well. In high traffic or theft prone areas, the advantages of a high visibility set may be offset by the potential for having the set disturbed or vandalized.
It is also important to consider what an animal sees as it approaches and starts to work a set. The rule of thumb is to keep sets natural looking. But within this general rule, trappers have a lot of latitude. Take for example, the pocket set where the mud bank outside the entrance has been slicked down. I believe you could search forever and not find a naturally occurring bank den with this feature. Still, these slicked-down pockets are very effective in taking furbearers.
When you are constructing a "natural" looking set, it is important to remember that animals, although they possess definite survival instincts, have no ability to reason. Yes, specific animals can learn to avoid certain set constructions, but this response is without fail generated through a previous bad experience with the set. There are any number of situations that you, as a human, might reason to be unnatural. The slicked down pocket set is just one example.
Frankly most sets, including my own, are unnatural; that is they appear to be constructed by none other than the human hand. However, when an animal visually analyzes a set, it only relates to the factors presently observable, and it does not try to reason out how or why the set got there. Look at the standard dirthole set. Rarely will you find anything in the wild that looks like a trapper constructed dirthole -- a nice round hole with the dirt scattered evenly in front. But this set accounts for thousands of fox every year, and these critters are notoriously wary. Critters have a much more fundamental definition of what is natural. The fox sees dirt, a hole, and probably smells some food or foxy odors. Never mind that the dirt has a clean even appearance and the round smooth hole shows trowel marks; these all register as natural occurrences to the fox.
Most of the time, the visual construction of a set helps to directly guide the animal into the trap. It is obvious at the dirthole set that an animal will have to approach from one direction to peek down the hole. The same factors prevail at a pocket set, but there is another visual aspect to consider here. Pocket sets usually work better if they are deep. This prevents the animal from seeing into the back and invites closer inspection.
There are times, however, when you want to keep visual stimuli at a set to a minimum. The trail set is a good example. These sets are usually made with minimum disturbance to the surrounding area. Such a set is not made to attract an animal but rather to ambush the critter as it passes through. Therefore, it is best to surprise the animal at the point of capture and not offer any visual stimulus. That is why these are commonly referred to as "blind" sets.
In a blind set, no visual objects are used to attract the animal to the set. In fact, a trapper can sometimes use a visual object to attract the animal's attention away from the trap. Charles Dobbins, in his book "Land Sets And Trapping Techniques" details one such method. Canines, with their super sensitive noses, can sometimes detect a freshly dug trap bed by its odor. The odor could give away the trap location at a blind set. By placing a small pile of freshly dug earth a few feet away, in full view, the critter may be deceived to register the odor as coming from the pile of dirt it can see and not the invisibly concealed trap.
Critters rely on all their senses to steer them through their environment, and a trapper must take this into account in order to be successful. There are some electronic devices that emit sounds a critter can hear, but primarily a trapper relies on the sense of smell and the sense of sight to outwit an animal. Both are important, but we tend to dwell on smell. What an animal does or doesn't see at a set is equally important, and we shouldn't lose sight of that fact.

###

For scent attractors visit our Lure, Bait & Urine department.


(Posted for September - October, 2008)

DOWN AND AROUND ON THE FARM
by Hal Sullivan
(This article was first published in "The Trapper" December, 1992)

Although there are tracts of public land available for trapping in some areas, most of us trap on private land in the rural communities where we live. More often than not, this is agricultural land. Farms, including ranches, are primary targets for establishing a trapline. Once you have gained permission to trap on a farm you have opened the door to a new and potentially fruitful trapping area. How you conduct yourself as you travel on and about this farm can have a definite influence in opening other doors for you. However, if your host finds your actions irresponsible, you can have the door slammed in your face and your name blacklisted in the community.
When you are trapping on a farm, you are a guest. That phrase is often repeated - probably because it's too often ignored. Some trappers (hunters too) think that simple permission to be on the land gives them free run of the place. I won't charge them with any of the atrocities, like fence cutting, and vandalism because I think this is done mostly by trespassers. But there are other instances where you can run afoul of your host, and there are ways of making your presence a welcome one.
One of the stickiest problems in trapping a farm is where you can or can't, should or shouldn't, take your vehicle. Some farmers may tell you to go anywhere you want, while others may not even want you to drive continuously on their lanes when it is muddy. It is important to ask. You will find that most landowners are somewhere in between and ask only that you use discretion.
This usually means judging the ground cover and moisture content of the soil before you take your vehicle off any of the beaten paths. Driving across a dry sod field to check a fox set may be alright, but you won't score many points if you cut two brown ruts through that field in the rain. Sometimes, you will be allowed to travel on untilled cropland because the plow will erase your ruts, but if you get yourself stuck and have to ask for a tow, you've made a nuisance of yourself. And I'm assuming no one is so stupid as to drive over freshly planed crops or tilled soil, or dumb enough to ride down unharvested crops. These latter restrictions apply to walking as well as driving.
Frozen ground is usually a boon to the trapper in getting around a farm, especially on bare soil. But you can damage certain kinds of grass and hay by driving on them in freezing weather. If the ground is frozen solid things are okay, but if only the top layer of soil is frozen, driving across the grass breaks the soil into small pieces and severs the roots of the grass. More succulent plants, like alfalfa can be damaged anytime it is frozen. I saw this happen a few years ago when three teenagers spent their Thanksgiving vacation racing through an alfalfa field on their ATV's. By Christmas their playground was a four-acre brown spot.
You not only need to be considerate of where you take your vehicle, but also where you leave it. If you park in the middle of a bridge and run off to check an hour's worth of traps, you may return to find a farmer that you have put fifty-five minutes behind schedule. If the middle of the lane is the most logical place to park, do so in an area that will offer a detour. If necessary, leave the keys in your vehicle. I can see the paranoids wringing their hands, but statistics show that your vehicle has little chance of being stolen on the back-forty. But I am sensible enough not to do this when I am parked right next to the road.
If you trap on farms where there is livestock, you are likely to encounter gates and fences. Closing gates is one of the first rules you learn about trapping or hunting on someone's farm. Actually the rule is to leave the gate as you found it. Always close gates that you find closed, but don't try to be helpful by closing all the gates you find. Sometimes farmers open gates to move animals to a different pasture, and sometimes they leave gates open for easy access when there are no animals on that tract. If you are in doubt, or an open gate appears to be an obvious mistake, opt for closing the gate and report your actions to the landowner. Volunteer to go back and open the gate if you have done wrong.
A gate is the best way to get through a fence, but they are not always handy for the trapper. Most farmers won't mind if you climb over or through a fence as long as you don't damage it. To do this, you must climb a fence near a post where the wire is well supported. When I climb a fence, I grasp the top of a post, put my feet on both sides of the post, climb up, swing my leg over the post, and climb down the other side. Climbing a fence between the posts stretches the wire and causes the fence to sag.
A fence that is old and brittle will be hard to climb. If an old fence has definitely been abandoned, and you have express permission, you may be allowed to cut a hole for a crossing, but NEVER cut a fence on your own initiative. Usually old fences suffer from gaps and sags in the wire, and you may find a natural hole in the fence that you can slip through. If there is livestock present, remember that these gaps can also provide an escape route for the animals. They may generally ignore these spots but may suddenly be attracted by your scent. Yes, cows and sheep can smell too. Be prepared to make a temporary repair where you cross. When you are finished trapping, you may want to make a permanent repair as a favor to the farmer, or at least report the problem to him.
This is another aspect of your travels around a farm. By reporting problems such as open gates and broken fences, you may be saving trouble rather than making trouble for the farmer. Trapping may carry you into places where the farmer rarely ventures, or you may discover something in your daily travels that the farmer might not see for a week.
Sometimes quick action is called for to remedy a situation. For example, if you find livestock escaping through a broken fence you may be able to herd them back in, or at least make a quick repair so that no more escape while you go for help. Sometimes the situation can be critical. Last season I pulled out of a farm at dusk, and found a holstein cow standing in the middle of the road. It was nip and tuck as the farmhand and I chased the cow up and down this busy highway. I wasn't sure what would happen if a car came head on with a full grown holstein, but I envisioned hamburger either way.
It is also good to find out who else you might be encountering on a farm. Some farms may be open to anyone, and on others you may have sole permission. You should note the activities of others around the farm, and alert the farmer if other people are making mistakes that you could be blamed for. If you question whether or not they have permission to be there, alert the farmer that he may be the victim of trespassers.
If you are trapping on a farm, you need be concerned with where and how you travel, and also when you are going to be there. If you are on a farm during "normal business hours" you are not likely to create much disturbance. Fortunately, farmers and trappers usually keep the same general hours--early in the morning 'til late at night. However, if you must run your traps during non-daylight hours make sure you have the blessing of the farmer.
Most farmers feel obliged to investigate any intrusions that occur after dark and before daylight. There is justification for this because it is during the night hours that they experience most of their losses to thieves and vandals. And like trappers and hunters, farmers are firm believers in our second amendment, which gives citizens the right to bear firearms in defense of themselves, and their property. Go on a farm unannounced in the middle of the night, and you may find yourself looking down the barrel of a gun.
But this does not mean that you can't check traps in the dark, as long as the farmer knows you are doing it and you maintain some respect for trouble you will be causing. If you can stay away from the houses, and not wake anyone up, you probably won't cause much bother. Still, the landowner should know that you are doing this, in case you are reported by neighbors or passers-by.
Sometimes the only entrance to a farm is right past the house. You should give serious consideration before you rumble through somebody's yard in the middle of the night. You will almost surely wake someone in the house, and this may wear out your welcome. If this is your only alternative, agree to keep the same hours each day until you are finished trapping. This way, a farmer can look at his clock, and know that it is you passing through and not someone he needs to investigate.
These are general rules of behavior for traveling on and about a farm, but please bear in mind that there is no universal code. Each farm may have unique prohibitions or restrictions. These may be spelled out to you when get permission, and if you are in doubt at that time, or any time in the future, ask before you act.
Even if you are acting in a permissible manner, you should be prepared make reparations if you cause incidental damages. If you damage a fence by crossing it, make sure you restore it to its original condition before you leave, and tell the landowner what you have done. Last season I had to apologize for cutting ruts up a grassy hill when I misjudged the amount of rain fall. At the end of the season, I smoothed out the ruts, and sprinkled a little grass seed on top. This was the same farm where, two years before, I had been unable to get stopped on an icy grade, and slid through one of their gates. That was a little harder to fix, but they were satisfied with my repairs, and they joke that gate works better now than it did before. They invite me back every year, and I think they secretly hope I crash into a few more of the less substantial gates.
Getting around on farms is second nature to me, probably because I was raised in this environment, and I have done a little farming of my own. I always follow the dictates of the farmer, and combined with my own better judgment, I rarely make my presence on a farm inconvenient or damaging. If I can be useful in reporting or correcting a problem, this will almost certainly extend my welcome. I have the reputation of being a good guest on the farms that I trap, and this helps me to get on other farms--some of which have closed their gates to less considerate trappers.

###

For your trapping supplies visit the Supply Line side of our site.


(Posted for July - August, 2008)

DRY DIRT
by Hal Sullivan
(This was first published in "The Trapper" May, 1993 as a two part series.)

It is generally held that trapping on dry land is a little more difficult than trapping in the water. It can be even more of a challenge when the water gets in the dry land. Most land trappers pray for clear skies, but sooner or later the heavens are bound to cough up some rain on the dirt trapper. This can transform dirtholes into mud holes. Covering up a trap with rain-soaked dirt is an often messy and sometimes impossible task.
A light rain on dry soil may not cause a problem for the dirt trapper. As long as the dampened earth will run through your dirt sifter, it will probably be suitable for covering traps. However, as the water content increases, the dirt begins to cling together, in muddy clumps, and will no longer fall through the holes in a sifter. Almost all trappers, at one time or another, have tried to force wet dirt through a sifter. About the best you can hope for under these conditions is a bunch of little mud marbles which may or may not cover the trap. Usually, you end up with long mud noodles running out the bottom of your dirt sifter.
It is a challenge to maintain a land set during wet weather. If the ground becomes completely saturated, or puddles in a flat or low area, it may be impossible to make or maintain a set. But usually, a trapper can dig out a bed for a trap, or even a dirthole, when the ground is wet. The problem comes in covering the trap. Ordinarily, you use the dirt dug up from the set, but during periods of wet weather the land trapper often needs another source of dry dirt for covering his traps.
Many trappers prepare themselves ahead of time by storing up dry dirt for use during wet weather. Others may neglect to gather any dry dirt, or may run out as the result of a prolonged rainy spell. In this case, you will have to seek out some alternate sources for dry dirt.
The most direct approach to solving this problem is to get dry (or dryer) dirt from some other source on the trapline, possibly within the vicinity of the set. This isn't always an easy task because the rains that have soaked a set area have done their best to dampen everything else in sight.
The best place to look for usable dirt is in a sheltered spot that has some type of slope or drainage. A good example of this would occur where a tree or log leans out over a bank. The soil at the base of the tree or underneath the log will be protected from the direct rainfall, although it will soak up water from the surrounding ground. Often you can find usable dirt between the roots on the downhill side of a creek-bank tree.
Very steep or undercut banks are also good places to look for dry dirt during wet weather. These drain rapidly and do not soak up as much water. In the case of an overhanging bank, the upper rim may protect the dirt below from rainfall. If you can find a bank that has a fairly good slope but the dirt appears to be too muddy to use, you can try digging into the bank a few inches. While the surface may be saturated, the subsoil may not be as wet. Many times on a sod bank, usable dirt is available just below the sod line.
Bulldozer piles and uprooted trees are also good locations to seek out dry dirt. By searching around a bulldozer pile, you will probably find a sheltered pocket that will have dry dirt. If not, try digging back into the pile where the rain has not soaked in. Uprooted trees usually have a lot of earth clinging to their roots. Some of this dirt, on the bottom of the root wad back up under the roots, may be protected from the rain.
While the consistency of any type of dirt will be changed with the addition of water, sand is the least effected and the quickest to return to normal. You may be able to get usable trap covering from a sand bank just the day after a rainfall. Sand does not absorb water, and the liquid just seeps on through. By carefully scraping up the surface of the sand, you will be collecting the part that the water has already passed through.
Wet weather can be a real pain when you are trapping farmland, but I found you can get dry dirt in the middle of a plowed field. I look for a place where the plow has thrown up a miniature mountain of clods that will tend to shed the water. Sometimes, removing the muddy clods on the top of the pile will reveal some relatively dry chunks of earth in the center of the pile. Another method I use is to find a very large clod that sits up off the surrounding ground. Often, I can cut away the muddy outside, and use the dirt from the center of the clod.

Fast Forward  -- With the advent of no-till farming, this avenue for collecting dry dirt becomes less and less viable.

Old barns and outbuildings that have dirt floors are a popular standby as a source for dry dirt during wet weather. Even buildings that are partially collapsed may harbor a dry spot or two. Frankly, I am not overly enthusiastic about using this dirt on my canine lines. This dirt is usually contaminated with foreign odors. If the barn is in use, the dirt may harbor a petroleum, or a chemical smell. If the barn is abandoned, it is likely that all manner of critters - mice, groundhogs, skunks, coons, birds, and what-have-you have taken up refuge there and saturated the ground with their wastes and odors. Since I intend to use this dirt directly over my trap, I would prefer not to have these odors attracting the curiosity of the canine.
Another and possibly better source for dry dirt is the sheltered areas under bridges. Though there may be water rushing underneath, the high banks near the abutments may be totally sheltered from the rain. Newer bridges often have a rock or gravel covering under them, but you may find some usable dirt if you can move away this covering. If you do, make sure to replace the rocks or gravel when you are done.
If all else fails, you could consider buying some dirt to cover your traps. Peat moss and potting soil can both be used to cover traps in emergency situations. You can find these items at garden supply centers. The potting soil is a little expensive for a trap covering, but a bag of peat moss will actually go a long way. You should plan on sifting peat moss because it often contains sizable sticks.
A land trapline is certainly easier to run during fair weather. However, if you are more than a fair weather trapper, you will want to keep trapping during the wet seasons. Rain and mud are a harsh fact of life that the land trapper must address. You may get through these times by seeking out the alternate sources for dry dirt that have been mentioned here.
However, if you are contemplating any sizable land trapline, you should consider putting up and storing a supply of dry dirt.
During wet and rainy weather, one of the best sources that a land trapper has for dry dirt is his own cache of material gathered and stored prior to the season. When everything else has turned to mud, this supply of dry dirt can be a valuable time saver for the trapper, and during prolonged wet periods, it can be an absolute life saver for a dryland trapline. Putting up dry dirt is not an exceedingly difficult operation, but it does involve a little time and some advance planning.
The best time to gather dry dirt is towards the end of the long, hot summer. The ground is naturally drier at this time of year, and you can take advantage of the warm weather to complete the drying process for your dirt.
The first item of importance is to select a good type of dirt. Dirt is dirt - you might say, but there are some things to look for when selecting dirt to be dried out. Obviously, soils such as clay would dry to large hard chunks and would be unsuitable for a trap covering. It is better to select a loose, loamy type of dirt for drying. This soil will divide into small pieces as it dries. Very fine soil may actually dry out to be a powder, and this type of "dust" may not be very good for covering traps.
Personally, I don't like the fine dusty nature of plain old dry dirt. I use a special kind of dirt that technically may not actually be soil. When I am looking for dirt to dry, I seek out a very old and rotten log or stump somewhere in the woods. Underneath these, you can find a rich compost of decayed and decaying wood along with the rich black soil already generated.
When this material dries, it maintains its course texture because it is not totally disintegrated to a mineral state like regular dirt. Also, this material is considerably lighter than pure soil. This presents an advantage when you are packing around significant amounts of dirt.
This rotted-wood soil also presents an advantage if the set is again exposed to rain. Often, after a significant rain, plain dirt will settle and pack, exposing part of the trap. The wood-dirt, on the other hand, tends to swell as it soaks up water, and this offsets any settling that might be caused by the rain. It is a little harder to come up with this type of dirt, and you may have to find several well rotted logs or stumps to supply your needs.
If you are going to the trouble of drying dirt, you may as well sift it before you start. You will have to sift it sometime, and doing this before you dry it will cut down on the amount of dirt you have to dry by eliminating the large objects. To do this quickly, I made a couple of large, 20" x 20", dirt sifters with a hardware cloth bottom.
If you make one of these sifters, make sure you cut hand holds in the sides. When this sifter is full of dirt, it is very heavy and almost impossible to handle without the grips. To make the handholds, mark the center of one side and drill a one-inch diameter hole two inches on either side of this mark. Take a narrow bladed jig saw and cut a straight line across the tops and bottoms of the holes. Use a knife or rasp to smooth the edges of the handle.

This is one of the big sifters I use when sifting large quantities of dirt.

I have found it beneficial, especially when working with rotted wood, to have two sifters with different mesh sizes. If the dirt you are trying to sift has a lot of large particles in it, they tend to plug up a small size mesh and make sifting difficult. I found it was easier to first run the dirt through a one-half inch screen and quickly remove the largest particles. Then I finish sifting the dirt through the one-quarter inch mesh. I find this to be faster and more efficient than running everything through the smaller screen.
Another option is to take just the coarse sifter into the field and do the final sifting as the dirt is prepared for drying. The coarse sifter removes a good 85% of the junk that needs to be taken out. This dirt can be sifted into five gallon buckets for carrying. At home, you may be able to do your sifting over a large tub or right onto your drying surface. You can quickly resift the dirt and throw away the small amount of debris.
When I am sifting dirt in the field, I usually sift it into five gallon buckets because they are easy to carry. If you simply hold the sifter over the bucket and shake, you will lose a lot of sifted dirt on the ground. Instead, I set the sifter on top of the bucket, and use my trowel or a stick to stir the dirt toward in the center of the sifter so that it falls into the bucket.
The simplest way to finish drying the dirt is to pour it out on a sheet of plywood. If you have a protected area, such as a building, you can put the plywood down here and protect your dirt from the weather. If your dirt is to be dried outdoors, you might want to elevate your plywood platform on a few rocks or bricks. If it should happen to rain while you are trying to dry the dirt, you can spread a sheet of plastic over the dirt to protect it temporarily.
You can get the dirt to dry better if you turn it periodically with a shovel. This also helps to keep the dirt loose as it dries. Here is one little word of caution. If you have cats around, be they pet or stray, they may decide to make use of your clean loose dirt for their toilet. Watch for tracks, scratches, or wet spots in your dirt and be prepared to remove this contaminated dirt before you mix it up with the rest of the dirt.
I use another type of drying rack that I made myself from an old window screen. This rack is three feet wide and five feet long. It has window screen on the bottom. After using it one time, I reinforced the window screen with some poultry netting stapled to the edge of the frame because the weight of the dirt caused the window screen to sag and nearly tear off.
I set this frame on a few bricks so the air can circulate underneath it. I can dry dirt very quickly on this rack because the air can reach two sides of the dirt. If I spread out the dirt in a thin layer, I don't even have to turn it to get it completely dry.
You don't have to dry every bit of your dirt at one time. I usually go out and gather a large amount of dirt. Then I sift the dirt into tubs when I get home and dry it a little at a time. It will not hurt the moist, sifted dirt to set around for a few days or even a few weeks.
When the dirt is completely dry, you need a clean, odor-free, container in which to store it. This could be a clean garbage can, barrel, or bucket; but it should have a lid to keep out foreign materials or odors.
You can also use the large plastic trash bags to store your dirt. It is unwise to try to fill one of these bags too full because they will get extremely heavy. The bags must also be handled carefully to avoid puncturing them. You can avoid some of these problems by using a plastic bag and cardboard box together. Using the plastic bag as a liner for the box, you can fill the box full and tie the top of the bag shut. The box will protect the bag and may make the dirt easier to move around and store.
As you need this dirt for your trapline, you can transfer it to smaller containers for carrying. I keep a five gallon bucket of dry dirt in my truck, and from this I fill a smaller container that I carry to the sets. At the sets, I just pour the dirt from the smaller container - no sifting necessary.
Collecting and drying dirt is a good off-season project for the trapper. A good supply of dry dirt can help you weather through those times when a dryland trapline is not so dry. Having a ready source of dry pre-sifted dirt can save you hours of time you would spend searching for dry dirt, and save you the aggravation of having to shove mud through your sifter. You can take your chances and hope for fair weather, or you can take out a little insurance against the elements--it's dirt cheap.

###

For more information on trapping canines: Canine Books and Videos

 

Return To Rewind

 
 

For Trapping Books, Videos, Lures, Supplies & Equipment, Visit the Supply Line

 
   Rewind Archive Pages:

Rewind Arc. 1 | Rewind Arc. 2 | Rewind Arc. 3 | Rewind Arc. 4 | Rewind Arc. 5 | Rewind Arc. 6 | Rewind Arc. 7 | Rewind Arc. 8 | Rewind Arc. 9 | Rewind Arc. 10 | Rewing Arc. 11 | Rewind Arc. 12

 
 

Design and Production by Sullivan Promotions
Copyright 2000-2011 Sullivan's Scents and Supplies - All rights reserved.