2022/2023 Trapping Thread

[MITCHMO]

My son has been all over to show him how to catch a fox. Even more specifically a red fox. Kids get something in their head and they just can’t let it go. I kinda thought there’d be pretty low odds of finding one around our place because it’s mostly all coyotes. I headed out to check our couple traps this morning and saw some crows in a tree above the set and knew there must be something in there. I couldn’t believe it when I saw a red fox in there. Went back and woke my son up. I wish he’d get ready for school as fast as he moved after I told him we had a fox. Now he’s already planning how he’s going to get enough fox to get his own fox blanket. I’ve got one on my bed and he just loves it. Reds just can’t resist a good skunky lure. The MB550 had a great hold on him.

 

[Yooper906]

Awesome thread! Tagged out on marten and fisher here in MI!

 

[MITCHMO]

My little trapping buddy and I got another one in the remake this morning! I was sad to hear some kids were giving him grief at school today when he told them he trapped a couple fox. Hopefully it doesn’t dampen his enthusiasm.

 

[NoWiser]

My little trapping buddy and I got another one in the remake this morning! I was sad to hear some kids were giving him grief at school today when he told them he trapped a couple fox. Hopefully it doesn’t dampen his enthusiasm.
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By the looks of it, he has more than enough enthusiasm to keep him going! Good job, Dad!

 

[Shangobango]

Once gun season shuts down I plan on setting a decent little local line for otter and beaver. Have heard there may be a bump on otter and commercial cat pelts this season. I may throw a few sets for bobcat out along the way. Hatter beaver and castor are always in demand lately.

I am looking forward to getting out in the shop and tinkering with some traps… I have 3 dozen 280’s that I have never even unboxed that need to be worked up and I am sure a lot of my older bodygrips need a coat of F1 and the cables replaced on them.

 

[Hunting Wife]

I haven’t taken trapper’s ed so can’t get a license here until they offer a course. Doesn’t seem like they are super motivated to put them on though. So I have to shoot or scavenge my fur.

But found a super fresh badger today that got hit on the road and he’s in decent shape. Figured I’d skin him so he didn’t go to waste. He’ll go to the tannery later, and I’ll clean the skull this spring. They are cool little critters.

 

[Sytes]

Once gun season shuts down I plan on setting a decent little local line for otter and beaver.

Look forward to the pics! Something very rustic within trapping.

 

[MITCHMO]

I haven’t taken trapper’s ed so can’t get a license here until they offer a course. Doesn’t seem like they are super motivated to put them on though. So I have to shoot or scavenge my fur.

But found a super fresh badger today that got hit on the road and he’s in decent shape. Figured I’d skin him so he didn’t go to waste. He’ll go to the tannery later, and I’ll clean the skull this spring. They are cool little critters.

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I want to trap a badger so bad! At this point I’d take one off the side of the road too!

 

[MITCHMO]

Once gun season shuts down I plan on setting a decent little local line for otter and beaver. Have heard there may be a bump on otter and commercial cat pelts this season. I may throw a few sets for bobcat out along the way. Hatter beaver and castor are always in demand lately.

I am looking forward to getting out in the shop and tinkering with some traps… I have 3 dozen 280’s that I have never even unboxed that need to be worked up and I am sure a lot of my older bodygrips need a coat of F1 and the cables replaced on them.

What’s your favorite set for cats? I’m striking out here. Lost something this morning that could have been a cat. I had one walk with 20 yards of a couple sets yesterday and never even check them out. So frustrating! We have a very short trapping season so it’s tough.

 

[Shangobango]

What’s your favorite set for cats? I’m striking out here. Lost something this morning that could have been a cat. I had one walk with 20 yards of a couple sets yesterday and never even check them out. So frustrating! We have a very short trapping season so it’s tough.

I am not an expert on cats by any means. Otter and racoons have always been my forte.

What has worked the best for me on cats is just big flashy dirt hole sets with a ton of blocking and just straight castor down the hole. I know it isn’t legal in some places but here I will take a handful of duck or chicken feathers and throw them right in the hole.

I make it kind of like the base of a cubby built around a big messy dirt hole. I give them one place to step if they are going to look down that hole, and that is right on my trap pan.

You will catch grey fox, raccoon, and opossum in then too if you don’t crank up the pan tension. I usually shoot for about 3 pounds of pan tension when targeting cats and want to exclude all those from the catch.

 

[Shangobango]

Awesome thread! Tagged out on marten and fisher here in MI!

Awesome! Both of those are on my bucket list.

 

[WildWill]

What’s your favorite set for cats? I’m striking out here. Lost something this morning that could have been a cat. I had one walk with 20 yards of a couple sets yesterday and never even check them out. So frustrating! We have a very short trapping season so it’s tough.

Dirt holes with a ton of backing and a suspend duck or dove wing if legal or cat toys and Christmas tinsel if not. You can also get away with using more guiding to get them to step where you want.

 

[MITCHMO]

Dirt holes with a ton of backing and a suspend duck or dove wing if legal or cat toys and Christmas tinsel if not. You can also get away with using more guiding to get them to step where you want.View attachment 255486View attachment 255487

Beautiful cats!

 

[Nambaster]

Been having some success so far. We are up to 2 skunks, 2 foxes, and 2 coons so far.

 

[NoWiser]

The ridiculously deep snow messed with my plans for marten trapping. By myself I could have run my line from last year with a snowmobile or snowshoes, but I wanted my family involved so I set a line off a plowed road. I didn’t like the looks of the woods and I wasn’t wrong. I got skunked. But a long weekend in NE MN with the family is always worth it. I can’t wait to try again next year.

That pretty much wraps up my trapping season unless I try to snare a couple midwinter coyotes. I’ll be watching closely for others to chime in.

Merry Christmas everyone!

 

[brymoore]

What’s your favorite set for cats? I’m striking out here. Lost something this morning that could have been a cat. I had one walk with 20 yards of a couple sets yesterday and never even check them out. So frustrating! We have a very short trapping season so it’s tough.

I bobcat trap the $800 tom’s in Idaho. I leave my traps exposed. I wouldn’t waste my time burying them. I’m not interested in catching a coyote.

I get heavy snow and have moved from cubbies with long springs to 220 boxes. Cubbies and long springs would have too much snow issues with getting buried and freezing. I’ve seen too many Bob prints on frozen pans. Plus I was catching mountain lions in my long springs.

I just set out a small line yesterday. Bait in the box (beaver is best), bobcat gland in box, 220, skunk call in the tree and a CD on a string twirling from a limb. By catch from this setup includes red fox, cross fox, skunk, marten, mink, and ermine.

I need to go check my sets…

 

[Treeshark]

I haven’t taken trapper’s ed so can’t get a license here until they offer a course.

I have been frustrated by the lack of courses here in WI for years as well- one nice thing about Covid is the state went to a 100% online course so I was able to get it taken care of.

It was way more in-depth than I had anticipated, and I do kind of wish I had done an in-person course with an experienced instructor.

 

[JCS]

This is a couple of years ago. Used to do lots of trapping.

 

[Jbotto]

The ridiculously deep snow messed with my plans for marten trapping. By myself I could have run my line from last year with a snowmobile or snowshoes, but I wanted my family involved so I set a line off a plowed road. I didn’t like the looks of the woods and I wasn’t wrong. I got skunked. But a long weekend in NE MN with the family is always worth it. I can’t wait to try again next year.

That pretty much wraps up my trapping season unless I try to snare a couple midwinter coyotes. I’ll be watching closely for others to chime in.

Merry Christmas everyone!

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I miss marten trapping. I ran a small line for a couple years while at school in Ely. Something about the big woods in winter! Quite the crew you got there!

 

[Buckskinbob]

Caught a nice fox this afternoon.