and a strong cup of coffee

In an effort to learn how to trap, I asked my uncle to take me out when he set his traps last winter.  He agreed and we went out to set some beaver traps and learn how it’s done. My uncle has been trapping for most of his life, so he knew which areas to check for fresh sign and he had been asked by the landowners to come onto their property to take beaver out and keep the bog from flooding and eating up more land.  Unfortunately, that was the case for a section of our trail and we had to get out and walk. We loaded up an ax, the traps, lures, gloves, a shovel and started hiking, which in waders is no easy task!  We looked for slides, caster mounds and freshly dropped trees.  It was obvious that there were beaver there, we just needed to pick the right place where they were being the most active.  My uncle slipped carefully into what looked like a shallow stream coming out of the bog and almost instantly went up to his thighs.  Waterways that lo...

I bought into the Hollywood version of trapping.   I sat on my couch in my warm house and watched the guys on Mountain Men check their traps and through ‘that could be fun.’ I watched as they put their traps out, checked them the next day, skinned an animals and did it all over again the next day.   Through the wonders of editing, it looked so simple to be a trapper.   I had a couple of friends who offered to take me out when I told them I had an interest in learning, but they wanted me to take the Trappers Ed class beforehand so I could legally handle the traps. There were six of us in the initial class in Sidney.   Most were there to make trapping their hobby and pick up some extra income in the off months of winter.   I was there so that I could learn and write about it.   Just like bear hunting, I believe that if you want to write about it, you should try it and have some firsthand knowledge.   That first night was filled with...