Back at it...........

[trappnman]

bet all those guys saying wait on early coon from MN/WI/MI are second guessing today....


started setting up again today.... we got a couple of inches last night- just enough to make it sloppy, but ground not frozen so sets weren't to bad. Used a rake to rake snow away from set- one thing I hate about snow, is the darn drift patterns- one has to get out in open a bit more. Used a first layer of peat, then dry dirt enough to bed trap, cover trap with peat, then a wide fairly thick layer in pattern and set area.

Certainly have eye appeal

looks like at least 10 days of below freezing weather 24/7- so for the most part what was there today, will be there for a time to come-

set everything on speculation as with fresh snow not possible to see anything of informational value.

got 30 sets out today, 60 to go.

[bblwi]

Yup I waited and did not set the first 6 days of our dry land season then trapped for 4 days and pulled for 6 days while going to New York. I then tried some new ideas that did not work to well for 3 days and thus did not get my water line out but for 3 days. It will be a short harvest for me this year, but I am nursing a hurting shoulder and a bundle of other non trapping organizational work that is filling up my time. The coons I have look pretty good as do the few rats. Normal for me at this time is 120 rats and 75 coons I have half those rats and 1/3rd the coons.

Bryce

[musher]

Your ground looks like mine - except for the trees, soil, hills, water and stuff!

Is your ground frozen?

[trappincoyotes39]

Hey Tman snow trapping is fun at times, just remember to stay out of the Low areas Swales any wind and more snow and those will drift in fast! Or rapid melting and the water runs down across your sets and then they freeze like concrete at night.

Enjoy it.

[trappnman]

ground not frozen yet- would imagine today will be surface hard

it gets tricky figuring out where to set TC, that's for sure!

[trappincoyotes39]

Talked to a good friend back in Faith today said was -17 this morning and they got 6" of snow for that area nothing uncommon at this time of year.

He is pumped about deer opener this weekend up that way.

[braveheart]

I think we will be looking like that this weekend.The coyotes have been giving it up even with all the corn in the field.The maddaxe will make you know you did something swinging it all day.The ground is froze about 2 in. here them easy going.Coyotes look real nice here.
Marty

[trappnman]

Man do I agree with you on that Marty! nothing tires me out more than swinging that mattock!

been getting a few, over last 3 days got out 74 sets, have 4 more to put I none location, 2 in another ,and 4-6 in another after deer hunting sunday.

We skipped for this year 5-6 locations that were borderline (meaning among the 6 I get 1-2 coyotes over a week most years) at best but traditional areas that at times (4 years ago for example took 12 off those locations) can be good, but last night showed zero tracks, and really zero season for a coyote to come by on snow except very sporadically

So far, not drifting in, but.....

I know that the saying "what you see on snow is what coyotes do on bare ground" is, more or les, true.

but damn it all- snow has to make it worse. I've had too many too count setups over past 2 days where coyote(s) are coming in to the sets...but just are staying back 10-20".

I have to believe that the big dark circle in the snow, with our scent and our tracks all over, HAS to give them pause for at least a night or two.

odd thing, yesterday pulled into a stop, on a hill we go down into a big bowl- Lori says "there's a coyote" and sure enough, one standing in a big black circle of dirt- as we came down in, I'm thinking...don't believe I have traps there and as we got further down (coyote just standing there watching us) the valley I could see- not my sets. First I wondered someone else here? but then he walked off and again stood there watching us- about 150 yards out. I grabbed the gun, figured I'd take a chance, but last shell didn't object- but he stood for a minute or so watching me try to pry shell out. In retrospect, probably a good thing I didn't spook him

but for discussion- how much more, or not at all, does snow change behaviors to novel visuals?

[braveheart]

I have had little luck with snow on the ground and scrape a new area for a trap.When snow is on the ground I go for the big blown out area's of no snow and lure or bait the crap out of things and bring them to me on bare ground.With Hansen style bale set after setting them out takes a fes days but the coyotes will start working them.
Marty

[trappnman]

bene getting a few each day. but lots of tracks...

heres yesterday to show you my sets and conditions. had odd thing happen- where I saw the coyote on the hill- got home, just sitting down, and farmer outside of town called, I had a coyote in that location- and he wasn't there when I checked- farmer said he saw a coyote earlier that day mousing around in same area, I have no doubt (well, educated guess) since its similar in size and color its same coyote we saw

heres me making set



heres coyote

[trappincoyotes39]

You can have hard lines in the snow just like when dirt trapping................

[trappnman]

I try to eliminate that by brushing back site dirt/mix in a random matter

to paraphrase what Mr Monk used to say- snow.....its a blessing & a curse

[Deleted]

When you use the term "brushing back", are you brushing toward your set or away from it trying to break down the edges?

[trappnman]

depends on the backing- against weed lines we are brushing to the sides, and back away from set

to avoid drifting, making as many sets as we can in bean fields (and they are producing best) by raking duff up in a circle to form a misshapen pile of duff, the brushing snow back further in direction of pattern.

getting less than half an inch of mist-like snow- just enough to coat everything white, yet leaving holes open- down to single digits again, so think that top layer of dirt will get a slight crust, taking away that damn bouncy feel of peat.

I'll say this- running this line is fun- I do like SOME aspects of snow covered ground and cold- followed a line of coyote tracks down the field road, along the corn going down to the sets, and there he was- I'm guessing a 40lb make- biggest one of year- I'll find the pic and post it- wear I hang them to squeegee off, most tails don't touch ground, some have tips brushing ground, this one had 2/3 of tail laying flat on ground

am not going to hit numbers I wanted...but at least coyotes now are nice- full bellies.

Lori sold a doz early coyotes, toss out a $5 (you guessed it TC ) red coyote, and 11 average coyotes for Oct sold for $27 average

What I got left is better, so can live with that.1 flat fox $10

[trappnman]

actually- misread your question- by my saying brushing back- I have the site dirt from the roughing up, the dirt from the bed, and the dirt from the auger around the hole- that is brushed back and scatter to the sides, and back from hole

[Deleted]

I asked for a reason. I for one thourghly enjoy trapping in snow and have some experience working with it and the deeper the better for some types of sets. That being said, only with shallow snow do I use scents and for the depth I'm seeing in your photos, I reverse the philosopy of blending the set into the surroundings. I really can't see why that philosopy wouldn'r work with your dirt holes? I blend the surroundings into the set. I've found by sweeping the snow in toward the set or across the set area I get rid of the sharp lines, my tracks, and mottle the entire set area with a roughened and fragmented snow cover. I've found I do not want a vivid, novel object, I want and succeed with a mottled/subtle/les-novel set look. If I have to bring a couple of extra scoops of snow to the set I will. The absolute best though is to set just preceeding a snowfall where even the 1/2" is nice but up to 3" is great! I spend as much time I'm sure as you and Lori making a set and the tracking sround under similar conditions as shown in your photos, if I miss a coyote it's because of 1"-2", not 10"-20" no different then without snow.

You mentioned the 10"-20" of tracks to hole but no commitment. Now even without the snow you should see the same thing in the dirt apron IF they were prone to hanging-up there. At that distance you've got them inside the novel visual BUT I can imagine they are extremely nervous being there and therefore many aren't commiting to working the set. I remember 1080 talking about getting the coyote inside the pattern before it knows it is BUT that I feel can only hold true until the novel visuls are so viviid, so novel, due to the compounding of the snow contrast that you get a heightened neophobic response of discomfort so they aren't inclined to work the set.

[Deleted]

I got to thinking that maybe I was taking your 10"-20" for granted that the coyote were approaching your sets as you would anticipate their approach OR were they behind the backing in the un-broken snow?

[trappincoyotes39]

I have done the same at times , yet many areas blow clearer than others if the area looks better open then I make it open, if it looks better blended then I blend it in.

In snow I don' t like the 2 ft circle and then clumps laying around it.

[trappnman]

I understand what you are saying-

but, even if I wanted to brush snow back ovr, it wouldn't last- sun angle still high enough, and the flurries and drifting snow, is melted or evaporated off the patterns by afternoon. Friday it was low 20s, and puddles were forming from melted snow on the field roads.

its such an inbetween snow- on sidewalks it never got more than 2"- but drift patterns make that different in country of course. had I'd say 1/2 inch of those flurries last night, so all sets will be covered by that, and would have been by dark last night.

am setting 2 more locations today- will brush back some snow on those

never, tracks are both in unbroken snow and my foot/tire tracks- no real pattern. Because of the drifting, I'm setting even more out in open than normal-many times just a pile of bean duff-



MY MISTAKE- I just read my earlier post....I see I posted 10-12 inches- duh! I meant 10-12 feet-

no, when I see the tracks, its tracks of an aware coyote.....back 10-20 FEET from the set..... but just not accepting what he sees.

[trappnman]

seems like last few days, nothing but big males. Don't know if its the population dynamics, the behavior characteristics of the big males at the set, or perhaps it just them that are moving now.


had drifting and snow Saturday, so yesterday if we could see the hole, we left them alone if not we raked them out, and never I did to the back raking at end

set up last 2 locations with 4 traps each- done setting coyote sets for the year, just going to ride these out a week/10 days depending on whats going to happen this weekend in weather- could be 40 which would be nice, but sloppy- mostly depends on the coyotes I can live with what I'm getting each day

some of those big males last 2 days

same as above, expanded view