Trapper Ron 2012-13 Stuff

[TrapperRon]

Yeah I did Jim. Thanx

Marten are an opportunist and will eat whatever is available be it day or night.

[TrapperRon]

Well it has been a busy pre season and now trapping season. I have picked up a few marten and looks like lots of lynx sign (opens Nov 15). Wolves and coyotes coming to four bait piles I have established.

Sitting outside by the fire one evening and this guy wandered into camp. Certainly a more welcome visitor than the last one that visited this summer.



Snow has come early this year. This is the top end of my line (6500 feet)just below Greystokes Park. My line actually goes right into the park. There was a foot of snow beginning of the month.



We had our outside fire tarped so we could sit at the fire out of the snow and rain. While we were in town it snowed a bit much. The tarp was old and the temp roof for the cabin for two years.





Here is a nice double and always nice to see those.



A few marten, most are XL, in our neck of the woods it is rare to get an XXL



This is how I dry my marten before turning. The front feet and legs dry very nicely and then are left inside after turning.



My wife Sheila with a Marten. In this set I caught a marten last check. Took the trap with frozen marten with me. I had set another trap but forgot to attach my quick link. This marten was dead in the box in a 120 LDL. It was struck right across the top of the head and behind the front legs. The skull was crushed right in.





Here is one of our "girly" sets, trying to entice one of those XXL Males.

[musher]

Do you leave the claws on the front feet?

[TrapperRon]

Nov 14, 2012 16:25:40 GMT -6 musher said:

Do you leave the claws on the front feet?

No claws, I just pull the front legs and back legs right down and most of the paw or all comes off. The claws stay on the carcass.

Nor recommended to leave claws on marten or lynx as they can tear the fur in the drumming process.

[musher]

I cut the front feet off the carcass prior to making the first cut. I've been scratched a few too many times.

[TrapperRon]

Yeah they are sharp little claws, like needles.

[TrapperRon]

Got my first light coloured marten of the season.



I am happy that the dark ones keep coming though. More dark marten than I have seen in quite a while. This one never moved in the box.

[TrapperRon]

Oct 7, 2012 14:23:52 GMT -6 jim said:

I think you have the vertical and horizonal wording reversed.

A question are marten mostly a day time hunter? thanks

Jim

Marten are opportunists and hunt by day and by night.

[TrapperRon]

Well I have been posting on the forums but no time to update "Trapper Ron Stuff". Since my last posting i have dome one trapping course for 7 students and doing an ongoing advanced trapline training for a local First Nations student. So far I have 20 marten, 5 lynx, 2 coyotes, and some ermine and red squirrels. Not a big catch but ok for an old guy with bionic knees. Chased out of my high country earlier than expected due to very heavy snow. Up to my waist and just too hard on myknees slugging through it from the sled to my sets.

Now setting up our lower line for lynx and wolves. The fellow I am mentoring to be a future certified instructor will be helping me out. The trail so far is a 50 km run up and back and bit too far to be on my own for safety sake. I did do the run solo the other day, One hour from the last trap to return to the truck. Three and a half hours total. We will have several side trails as well. That trapline is not a very good marten line except at the highest elevations where we may eventually get set up for January.

Been busy making more wolf snares and lynx snares as well. Should have had that done last fall. As well my lynx pens and cubbies were not prepared so making them in winter conditions when I should just be setting is bit of a bite and takes up more time.

Wolf snares I make up. They are 11 foot long with toothed cam lock, kill spring and trigger. Five feet of 5/64 1x19 wire for the loop, with 3/32 7x7 tie back wire. Fish tank tubing for wammies, and 11 gauge wire for holding the snare out in place.



Lock and kill spring.



My snares all get put into plastic zip lock bags after boiling. 12 lynx snares to a package and 6 wolf snares with 6 pieces of 11 guage wire in each package.



First few furs sent for February sale. Will have another shipment before Jan 6.



My First Nations student with the very first marten set he has made. We made a lynx snare set right there also and he caught a lynx in it yesterday. I will help him pelt that one and one other my buddy gave him as part shares for being allowed to trap part of his line.



My favorite is solid boards however we needed a wolf board so I made up this 8 footer from Western Red Cedar. no time to biscuit joint a solid one.



Made up some 280 lynx boxes, 2" sides, 1" tops, bottom open except for two 1x4 straps.

[9wire]

Thanks for all the good pics Trapper Ron! It is 1000% different there, than here in the deep south. I've never seen more than 2-3 inches of snow in my life, and it was gone the next day... And your scenery is MAGNIFICENT !!

By the way...., in your last pic, right over the extended arm- it appears ol Bigfoot was checkin his marten boxes too...

[TrapperRon]

Here are my two shipments to NAFA so far.



Second shipment.



Now have 3 more lynx and a start to shipment number 3. Here is a nice clear small lynx. Wish they were all like that.

[TrapperRon]

We went out to check the line and break trail the other day. Deep snowfall from this last few snowy days. hard breaking trail. We got a double on snares lynx at one of my cubbies. Just scent and no bait. One had went up the the tree and over the branches and was hung up nice and straight as you please.





When we went up the trail we could not see the old trail at all. We are on our way back and you can see more fresh snow while we were up there.



My buddy Ryan is up to his waste going in to check a 280 box.

[forestman]

Thanks for sharing.

[TrapperRon]

Time for a bit of an Update once again.

On some forums there are comments relative to dying traps. Some trappers are determined that traps need to be black, brown, green, or some form of camo. So For fun I painted some pink.

Today I caught an otter in one of my pink traps.





We have been checking this trap in a culvert from the top of the bank each time we go out. Today I paid for it by wading waist deep down the bank with my my bionic knees to fetch the otter and reset. Was not too bad going down, but climbing out was something else. Two steps ahead and one back. There is another otter there somewhere as there was sign of him in and out of the second culvert that has very little water in it. I do have a 280 at the other end of the one with the otter but no catch there.



Ended the day with a lynx and the otter. Then went over to my buddy Ryan,s line and we got another lynx.



A few pictures for last week. On this trip we picked up three nice lynx, a big tom and two juveniles.



This is one of my 280 boxes. They have not been producing lynx at all. They are an open box on the bottom except for a cross piece where the trap sits on and one on the screen end. it is my thought that they should be raised a bit above the ground, say 6 inches. So far all of our lynx (16) have been in snares set around the boxes or other lynx pens.



This is one of my favorite sets, I call it the corral set. About a 10 foot x 10 foot area or a bit larger is fenced off with some openings to set snares in. On some I have one wide opening with no snares. A large bait and a wing is hung from a cross pole.



This is another hutch type set open on both ends with a snare set at each end and other snares where where a lynx may go if circling the set, The bait is hung inside and a CD attractor outside.





This is a lynx caught in the snare in the last picture. It took the drag away about 20 feet.



Here is another snare set at that same cubby set just to the other side of the big tree where the lynx was caught.



We had a very nice trail for our sleds to check the traps. The snow was over two feet deep. Then some cityiot in one of those monster trucks with the tall wide tires and wheels decided to play and ran almost the full 20 Kms of our trail. Here is a shot of what our trail looked like. You can see in the following pictures it is quite a mess and riding is something else hitting those deep ruts. This is my buddy Ryan and his sled and skimmer.



My sled on a different stop along the way. You can see we were trying to ride the ridge between the wheel ruts.

[jim]

Ron: What did the big lynx weigh, just a guess if you didn't put him on a scale. Thanks

Jim

[musher]

Argo's will mess up a trail that way also. But usually they ride one track on the ski-doo trail.

I've caught lynx in boxes set with 280's. I use hollowed logs. If you tilt the front of the log up at a slight angle with a limb, by placing it under the front, the bait stays in the back and it is easier for the lynx to see in.

I like your corral set.

[TrapperRon]

Feb 2, 2013 4:02:56 GMT -6 jim said:

Ron: What did the big lynx weigh, just a guess if you didn't put him on a scale. Thanks Jim

Not sure but the one I am holding in the picture with the otter was a tom and it weighted 22 pounds. The big lynx in the picture of the 3 was indeed a big tom and big fat chunks everywhere when I pelted him. I would guess, and only a guess at around 30 pounds. I have two that size this season.

I never weigh anything unless someone is interested. If I get another big tom I will weight him.

[Rod17]

Ron

what do marten pay (average) for the ones you showed?

Randy

[TrapperRon]

Feb 3, 2013 9:36:54 GMT -6 Rod17 said:

Ron

what do marten pay (average) for the ones you showed?

Randy

They are at the February NAFA sale and I'm hoping for between $80 and $90 average. Our section here is not quite as good as farther North. Will post here after the sale.

[maule]

Thanks Ron for all the information you post. You are truly a generous person with a wealth of knowledge.

Maule