new line

[musher]

I've been expanding the trapline the past couple of years by purchasing a few registered lines. My buddy has one that we've been trapping for 24 years together. He got it from his dad. His dad got it from God. My wife has a line which I showed the renovations of. My eldest daughter has a line which we trapped for the first time last year. I also showed the camp (I'm being generous) renovations.

Last fall I heard a rumour that a neighbouring line was for sale. It touched and partially encircled daughters line. I phoned and was told that it was sold but that the three guys that bought it were having a problem paying. They were also still "negociating" the final price. I told the seller that I'd give him full price and that he'd be paid before Xmas. Two days later he called me back and said "sold."

Now my son has that line. Here's the camp as we got it.



The inside:

[Stef]

Cool and nice........
How many cabins now?

Mine isn't build yet and fall is coming.
so many things to do...............................................

[musher]

Even though the camp was just made, we redid a few things. We raised the chimney and retinned the roof. The seller had used a pool liner. Crap stuff. The porch was slanted back towards the camp and water was already damaging things.

Here's the line owner beside the shiny new roof he installed. That's how he got slayed by the bugs.



My trapping partner has been a great help - as always. We now trap 400 sq. km. together. His dad came out a few times. I love those days.

Yesterday was one of them. We finished up some minor work on the camp (water evacuation for the sink, shelving, painting the floor, etc. ) and it was 10 a.m.. The old gentleman, who'd been warming his 84 year old bones in the sun, said, "Ti- gars, l'heure d'une biere." The translation is "little boys, time for a beer." Even though we are in our 50's we're always ti-gars.

He then opened up his lunch and took out 3 brews that were wrapped in newspaper. He always does that in order to keep them cold and to stop the bottles from breaking if they bang one another.

The stories flowed all day. I've heard most of them many a time but it's never too often.

The largest beaver he ever caught. 82 inches caught in a number 4 on the hut. They had set the trap, canoed off to set another hut and came back to see the water boiling. His partner got soaked as he grabbed the beaver by the front foot to stretch it out to give it a knock with the axe.

His partner had a small packsack so he carried way more than his share. One time he had a blanket and a pikoway (a beaver that just reached breeding age and is establishing a new colony) in his packsack while he toted another blanket in his hands. His partner, with the small backsack kept telling him to slow down as they walked 5 miles through the bush. He says that they exchanged words over the "small"packsack.!

Then there was the lynx that they got $980 ,in their pocket, for. It was so white it was almost blue.

It was a really nice day.

[trappnman]

does indeed look like it was a great day!

so noiw that you own multiple reg lines- can you put them all together into one line? or do they always stay legally as separate entities?

[musher]

They must stay separate. But the owner of the line can give permission to any licensed trapper to work them.

[musher]

We still have one more thing to do.

Here is daughters camp. It has issues. Ants, mice, leaky roof, mold etc.We did improve it by using advice gotten on this site. We used a paint sealer to kill the mold smell and we installed a turbine. It worked. But it's still a crap camp in a VERY bad location. It's also only 4 k away from college boys camp and there is no place to park your truck without blocking the road.



So we want to move it to college boys line to be used as a wood shed or whatever.

The first step was jacking it to install a couple of 20 foot logs to be used as skids. The winch on the truck with the help of a pulley helped. But it was still a not very fun job.









And we got them placed.


Now I need a way to actually skid the camp 4 clicks. I've got a tow truck lined up. I don't know if the camp will make it. If it doesn't we'll figure something out.

[trappnman]

so how much time is spent overnight at the cabins?

[trappnman]

Here is daughters camp. It has issues. Ants, mice, leaky roof, etc.It's also only 4 k away from college boys camp

as she says- its a perfect camp!

[musher]

My daughter would NEVER sleep in her camp. She would sleep in her brothers camp, though.

All the camps are a maximum of an hour away from my house. It IS the most comfortable camp! This year we are going to work some type of circle to trap the 400 sq.km. That will entail sleeping at home, at college boys camp and maybe at wifey's camp (depending on the weather) which is about 25 km. from college boys camp.

We used to trap separately but with the further lines (35-40 km. in the bush) we trapped together. The camps will give us a base to meet up and warm up. We figure that it will take 3 days to run the 400 sq.km. If we split up more it might be possible to do it in 2.

[Stef]

All the camps are a maximum of an hour away from my house.

My problem is mine will be 7 hours away from my front door.
When builded.... Won't be too much of a problem but, you know...LoL

[orcatdog]

Musher, can you explain this buying / owning a line thing. I don't understand how it works up there?

[Stef]

Musher, can you explain this buying / owning a line thing. I don't understand how it works up there?

Those are registered line where you have the exclusivity to trap.
Each provinces have their own laws about it and its complicated to explain...LoL

[irnhdmike]

You guys are lucky to have registered lines. Gotta love those oldtimers. Always interesting to have along. Best thing is how much they appreciate and enjoy going with you. Beer's wrapped in newspapers in my future.

[trappnman]

musher- you should rent college boy out to stef....then he can get his cabin built......

[musher]

Aug 9, 2011 10:21:32 GMT -6 orcatdog said:

Musher, can you explain this buying / owning a line thing. I don't understand how it works up there?

As Stef wrote, every province has different regulations. Here's how it works here.

Background. Prior to the 70's much of the crown land of Quebec was controlled by private hunting/fishing clubs. They were exclusive and they determined what happened on its territory and by whom. Becoming a member wasn't always easy and it wasn't necessarily inexpensive.

In the 70's the government abolished the private clubs. The land was still "clubbed" but membership was open to everyone. If you paid you could hunt/fish. Trapping rights were given exclusively to those that were trapping there prior to the de-clubbing BUT territories size was reduced. Buddy's dad's line was cut in three. he had first pick of the three lines (the one I trap with his son.)

You were granted exclusive trapping right for a yearly rental fee.

Then in the 80's trapping courses became mandatory. after the 40 hour course you became a certified professional trapper. A line transfer could only be done between professional trappers and the new line owner had to have trapped the line, with the present owner, for a minimum of three years. Otherwise, the trapline was offered in a lottery. The trapper and trappers helper could only trap on the registered line and on their own private property. Crown land and private property was off limits and to be trapped only by those not owning registered lines

The serious boys didn't want a registered line due to the small size (from 20 to 100 sq. km.).

In the past few years they have changed the rules. Now a trapper can trap anywhere as long as he has permission to. But you can only own 1 registered line.

I don't own any, yet, but my permission deal is rather sweet!

Every year there is a lottery of open lines that trappers have abandoned, not paid the rent for, or have had taken away from them to to regulation infractions. That how Stef got his. Or you buy one from a guy that wants out. That's what I did. Technically you do not buy the trapline or the rights. You buy the camp on the line, the gov't rents you the land, and the gov't gives you the exclusive right to trap it.

Rent is less than $1.50 a sq. km. per year.

[musher]

Aug 9, 2011 14:08:37 GMT -6 trappnman said:

musher- you should rent college boy out to stef....then he can get his cabin built......

He's not big but he sure is wiry.



And he can be pretty handy when he isn't sleeping, skate boarding, long boarding, snow boarding, hanging with buds, chasing girls, going to school, working, studying ... and eating. LOTS of eating.

[makete]

Are you the only one who can hunt on the trap line property?

How much do the camps usually cost? I'm not about to move up there and grab one, just curious.

[musher]

Aug 10, 2011 10:17:59 GMT -6 makete said:

Are you the only one who can hunt on the trap line property?

How much do the camps usually cost? I'm not about to move up there and grab one, just curious.

Anyone who pays can hunt/fish. But only the registered trapper, and those he authorizes, can trap.

The maximum a guy who loses his line can charge is $6000. However, if you want to sell your camp(in other words you are not forced to sell due to an infraction) at whatever price the buyer will pay. Ball park figures are from one thousand to thirty thousand.

Only residents can have registered lines.

[TrapperRon]

Very interesting read there musher. Sounds like you guys will have lots of work to get ready and lots of territory to trap. So between all those lines you now have 400 sq km. They sure must have made a lot of small lines in Quebec. How many beaver can you harvest on your areas? and where are you at with the lynx cycle ?

We have two registered traplines here in BC. One is mine and the other is in our son's name. I trap both. He comes to work with me for two weeks in November if he is not to busy flying helicopter. between the two areas we have 600 sq kms. We have one camp on the more remote line.

In BC you must be qualified to trap by taking the BC Trapper Education Course. As the Registered owner of a trapline you can give permission to qualified trappers to trap your Registered trapline or your private property.

You may only own one trapline. That said you can buy a neighboring trapline and join them into one. Once joined they may not be separated again. A registered line gives you the some right to trap only. If you make trails anyone can use them. You must get permission to build a cabin. One for the first 100 sq km and one for each additional 100 sq km.

My line has only two lakes on it. One lake has no beaver, the other I have not been to yet. Most of the line is above the 4000 ft level. A rocky river forms one boundary and has a few beaver, very few. So basically it is a lynx and marten line with the marten at an all time low in their cycle. There are also bobcats down lower near the river.

The other line is lower down, has more lakes and streams but few beaver also. Most of the lakes are dammed for irrigation water and the beaver may have been removed as nuisance. I will be checking out some of the other lakes this fall. Otter do run the creeks. Lots of lynx on this line also, some bobcats. No camp as there is too much irresponsible quad and snowmobile recreational activity. A camp would be trashed in the first month it was built.

[musher]

Ron: Near large urban centres there are lots of lines that are about 30 sq. km. The largest lines are near 100 and the average is probably 60.

There is no beaver quota. Two of the lines have lots of them but they are not rare on any of them. Catching 50 of them for bait/dog food and inexpensive fur should take a week of near- the-truck trapping.

I don't know where we are in the lynx cycle and I bet the gov't doesn't either! You can catch only two per line. That shouldn't be a problem.

Many of your rules are similar to ours. Camp sizes and constructions are well controlled. We don't have vandalism problems. The guys that share our woods know that we are the ones that help maintain trails and watch their stuff when they aren't there. We are also the ones that are careful not to over harvest "useful" beaver or set wolf snares that could endanger a moose.

A moose hunters average can go WAY down if you bait wolves at their moose spot. Or trap bears there.

A guy that has an expensive cottage or trailer in the bush won't steal your $20 trap. Neither will a guy that spent most of his vacation building a moose blind.

The only hassle we have is guys hunting grouse on atv's knocking down snares or guys killing nuisance beaver that we want to harvest during open season. But roads are expensive ...

A little story from last week. There are lots of trailers on the new line. On the way out we see a guy in front of one so we stop to introduce ourselves. The guy has been hoisting a few and he's a 2 year newbie to the area like us. We tell him that we are the trappers and that we DO NOT hunt moose. That always makes them happy. We talk about his moose area a little and we tell him about wolf trapping and our keeping an eye on things during the off season. We discuss trail maintenance.

Then the guy starts complaining about a beaver flooding a trail. We tell him that it's our beaver and we will kill it during the legal season only. It's a trail that is being flooded not a road. Guy isn't as happy. He wants to know what to do as he's tired of lowering the dam. I ask him if he has any white paint with him. He says no. But he says that he can get some. I tell him to make a hole in the dam and to hide there. When the beaver comes to repair the dam he should jump out from hiding and paint the beavers head white. That way the beaver will think that he's a foreman. That means there's no way that dam will ever be repaired.

Buddy was confused but we all had a good laugh. He installed a length of piping to deviate the water and I think we made a friend.

The joining of lines is a 2 edged sword. Once a line is too big it is expensive. That means young guys can't buy in. It also reduces the number of registered line trappers. There is strength in numbers. The way our law is written gives us the best of both worlds. As I get older I can downsize or initiate a new trapper.