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(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.
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(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.
###
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