Setting for lynx

December 19-21, 2015:  Another trip with little to show for my efforts. The marten, fisher and mink aren't cooperating, the coyotes and fox that seemed to be on all my trails have now disappeared, and the wolves have yet to return. So, I spent a lot of time checking empty traps (with the exception of three more bait thieves and another squirrel), re-setting traps that had been snapped, and replacing stolen bait.

Weasel number 18 of 20 on the season.

Another bait thief out of commission.

In the previous blog post, I talked about catching a bunch of bait thieves over a two-day span. What I forgot to mention was an episode of thievery at its grandest scale. When I returned to the cabin that day with five weasels in tow, one of them had been snapped in the trap against the bait, a fist-sized chunk of beaver meat. There is so much fat and grease in beaver meat that it never really freezes solid; this is what makes it such good bait. Because the weasel was snapped against the beaver meat, it had blood in its white fur along its neck. The blood can be removed from the fur simply by getting it wet and rubbing Borax into it. The Borax removes the blood and leaves a clean white fur coat again. On this day, however, I decided I would leave that particular weasel until the next day for cleaning, so I left it on the rocking chair that sits on the porch of the cabin.

Later that night, I heard a rustling outside the cabin door and instantly knew it was the weasel that had been eating the carcasses that I'd left on the woodpile who was making the noise. He had come back for more. I looked out the window on the door of the cabin and saw him on the deck floor. What surprised me though was that he had the weasel I'd left on the rocking chair in his mouth. I quickly opened the cabin door, hoping it would scare him off and he'd drop my weasel. He took off all right, but with my weasel still in his mouth. I took off out the cabin door yelling at the thief to drop my weasel! The yelling though, just made him run faster! But I was hot behind him, running through the snow in my slippers after him. However, a weasel in the snow, even with his own body weight in his mouth, is a lot faster than a man in slippers. I soon ran out of cabin light and the thief disappeared into the night with my catch in his mouth. Standing there watching him disappear, I quickly realized my slippers were full of melting snow and my feet were quickly getting cold. Back in the cabin while I was changing my now wet socks, I started to laugh, realizing I must have looked like the village idiot chasing a weasel through the snow while wearing slippers.

Weasels are pure carnivores. They don't eat anything but meat, including their own.

My intention on this trip was to start getting lynx cubbies set up. Lynx tracks have been showing up with regularity in my old locations and in several new spots as well, so filling my quota of five shouldn't be an issue. I'd been holding off because one of the main things that the fur graders look for is how white the belly is where the spots are, and how much silver is in the guard hairs along the back of the lynx; they call this "clarity" and it's given a grade of 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5, with a clarity of 1 getting the best grade. My clarity grades have been averaging 3 with the odd 2 thrown in, which I'm not happy with. I'm chalking it up to starting on the lynx too early so this year, I held off for about three weeks, hoping my clarity grades improve, as the lynx should be in a more prime condition.

A proven lynx cubby set up once again.

This is what a lynx would be looking at. The bait is suspended just above a stick smeared with Lonesome Tom lure, a smelly concoction that the lynx want to go in and rub themselves on. The bait is the deciding factor. Lots of trappers don't use bait; however, I find it works extremely well. Once the lynx commits, the game is over.

I've never set up a lynx cubby on the Extension Route before because I've never seen a lot of lynx tracks down there. Over the last few weeks, however, I've been seeing a big set of tracks near the mid-section of the trail, and another pair of sibling tracks at the far end of the trail. The big set of tracks must be from a big tom cat because the tracks are huge; it almost looks like a Clydesdale walked down the trail. I decided I'd better get a cubby up where his tracks have been most consistant to try to catch him.

The set of tracks being consistently left behind by what I presume is a big tom.

The new cubby set up for the big lynx on the Extension Route.

Lynx have small heads, so you don't want your snare loop size to be any bigger than 7 or 8 inches wide. But lynx also have long legs, so you want your snare to be about 12 to 14 inches off the ground to the bottom of the snare loop. Placing a couple of sticks on an angle with just enough room for the lynx to step through below the snare, guarantees he's going to put his head into the snare. You also have to make sure your bait is far enough back so that the lynx can't reach in with his paw and get the bait, or get his paw caught in your snare. As well, lynx cubbies need to be big enough so that the lynx thinks he can go in and turn around. If the cubby is too small, the lynx won't go into it. It should also be sparse, not filled in with spruce boughs and dark looking.

Another view of what the lynx would see.

I managed to get 11 lynx cubbies set up on this trip. We'll see how I do on the first check; this will determine how many more cubbies and trail sets I need to get up, if any. Last year, Dakota and I caught our quota of 5 lynx in about 8 days with just 9 cubbies up.

When I returned to the cabin that night, I skinned out the three weasels and the squirrel I'd caught after cooking myself up a nice steak dinner on the stove.

Boiled potatoes and a nice rib steak goes down real well after a long day on the line.

Weasels and squirrels are skinned and finished with the leather side out and the fur in.

Trapping is a lot of hard work and most people that take the trapping course through the Alberta Trappers' Association usually quit after their first year or two, finding it too hard, to expensive, or too time consuming. In fact, we believe that of every 20 who take the course, only one will trap on a regular basis. It's easy to fall in love with the idea of trapping, but to actually get out there and be the boots on the ground can change that love in a hurry. However, for me, I can't imagine not being out there witnessing nature during the toughest months of the year first hand.

Until next time!

Wearing out skis, lost guns, wolves, weasels and marten

December 5-14, 2015: Again I'm pressed for time, so I'll condense two trips to the trapline here into one blog post. As I've said before, this trapping season has been a slow one for me and many other trappers that I have talked to. I can only surmise a lack of snow and cold weather is the reason why. Short of three marten, weasels have been the bulk of my catch so far. And on this trip, it was thievery at its finest. I would bet that 60% of my marten boxes either held no bait or just a snapped trap with nothing in it, except for two boxes that held weasels. I must have at least 60 boxes set but with the bait missing from the majority of them, catching a marten is nearly impossible, if not completely impossible.

This weasel tried to pull a squirrel out of the box and got caught in his greed. The squirrel I had caught there earlier but the Belisle 120 magnum had damaged it beyond it being salvageable so back into the box it went as bait.

Adding to the weasel count.

On this entire trip, I only caught two weasels so my morale was low. The South Trail wolf pack have returned though and are doing and marking the same things they have in the past. I left the trapline vowing to get my foothold traps dyed and ready for the next trip in. I only have two foothold traps big enough for wolves but they would definitely be going up. I can't seem to catch very much in my other sets so it's time to add to my arsenal. I also planned on getting some footholds up for fox and coyote that are still hanging around the trapline because of the low amount of snow. Normally, they disappear to lower elevations because the snow gets too deep.

The logging operation decimating part of my trapline has turned my main route to the Extension Trail into about a mile of rock, making snowmobile travel a disaster. I'm going to be talking to them about buying me a new set of skis for my snowmobile and a new sled, as the bottom of mine is getting perilously thin from traveling this section. Not sure how they are going to react to my request but I wouldn't be wearing out equipment if they weren't there.

This section that I have to travel is about a mile long and really causing damage to my snowmobile.
This used to be a nice trail that I used every year, now it's a rock road.

At home, I went to work dyeing my traps. Satisfied they were ready for use, I hung them up outside to stay free of any foreign odors. Wolves have an incredible sense of smell (estimated to be 100 times that of a human), so you have to take every precaution to keep them free from human scent. In the photo below, the traps hanging are Number 3 Soft Catch traps, not the much larger MB750s that I have for wolves. The MB750 isn't the best wolf trap on the market but they work.

Number 3 Soft Catch traps dyed and ready for use for lynx, coyote and fox.

While I was at work one day that week, I received a phone call from a guy named Paul Christensen. Apparently, he was moose hunting on my trapline and had his gun, a 30-06, in a scabbard on his snowmobile. Somewhere in his travels he lost it. He talked with the loggers who gave him my contact information and then he called me. I informed him that I hadn't found his gun even though I know I followed his tracks along my trails for many miles. He said he had put up a sign and that he would be back up there the following Sunday and might run into me while he was looking for his gun. Sure enough, the next Sunday, I ran into him on Old Forest Trail. A real nice guy. He had moved to Canada from New Zealand in the mid-70s and loved living here. He still hadn't found his gun though but he was sure he knew where he'd lost it. He said he had gotten into some real rough stuff off my trails and had tipped his snowmobile a couple of times. He was on his way there hoping to find the missing gun. Later, after coming off the Extension Route, I ran into him again - he had found his gun exactly where he thought he'd lost it.

The sign Paul put up looking for his gun. I know I'm the only person that saw the sign.

On this second trip, the day before I ran into Paul, I ran the north end of my trapline. The weasels were running short of luck, as I managed to pick up five of the little thieves and three red squirrels but the marten were still eluding me. I put up three foothold traps for coyote and fox, one on Center Trail and Two on Clear Trail. Both of these trails have had good coyote and fox activity this year so we'll see what happens. The sets I made for them are called "dirt hole" sets. Essentially, you dig a hole into the ground about a foot deep and five or six inches wide, put a blob of nasty smelling bait down the hole, and then put a small grass plug in the hole. Then you set your trap about 10 inches in front of the hole and cover it up, using snow and some of the dirt from the hole. You want to make it look like an animal has buried something there. A little urine behind the hole, a couple of small twigs to guide the animal's foot into your trap, and you're good to go.

That night in the cabin, I skinned out three of the weasels and all three squirrels. Two of the weasels were frozen into the traps, so I left them hanging on the porch and would do them at home. Below is a couple of photos of more weasel catches.

A big male weasel. The vast majority of weasels I catch are males.

On the Sunday morning, I headed south to run the bottom end of my trapline. My first order of business was to get my foothold traps up for the wolves. Setting wolf traps is serious business. You can't get off your snowmobile and disturb the area or make tracks in the snow. You have to ease your snowmobile up to the spot you want to set, climb over your snowmobile and get into your sled or skimmer and set your trap from inside there. In this case, these wolves travel an open area so I had to attach my trap to a drag, which is essentially a green log about six inches wide and about seven or eight feet long. You can't use a chainsaw to cut the tree down because of the odor that would be left on it, so a handsaw must be used. As well, you have to prepare the drag well away from where you're setting your trap; again, so as not to disturb the area. The idea of the drag is so that when the wolf steps into your trap, he can still get away but not very far with the drag trailing behind him. Once he gets into the bush, he gets hung up until you come along and dispatch him.

The first set I put up was a scent post set. Wolves like to pee on tufts of grass, mounds, brush piles etc. This is to mark their area to let other wolf packs know that this is their territory and to stay out. In this case, the wolves continuously mark a spot where I have two trails that intersect. With my trap already attached to my drag and ready to go in my sled, I pulled up to the spot I wanted to set. After climbing over my snowmobile and getting into the sled, I went to work. I tossed the drag out into deeper snow behind where I wanted my trap. Once that was done, reaching over the side of my sled, I cleared the spot I wanted my trap to sit in. I laid down a piece of crumpled wax paper first; this will keep the trap from freezing down. Then I covered the trap with another piece of crumpled wax paper to keep snow from getting between the trap pan and the bottom of the trap, which would stop it from compressing once a wolf stepped on it. Then I proceeded to sift about 3/4 of an inch of snow over the trap to conceal it. I also pushed the chain deep into the snow and buried both it and the drag with more snow. Then with a whisk broom, I smoothed the area out so it looked natural and undisturbed. I added a little wolf pee to where they were peeing and then made some fake tracks leading up to the spot. And then I was off to set up the next one.


Standing inside my sled, I put the MB750 on a piece of plywood I used as a work table and set it.

Here you can see the drag tossed out into the snow behind the small tree and the chain leading to my trap.
The wolves mark the spot beside the small tree where my trails intersect.

Here you can see the trap covered in wax paper both above and below it.

A little wolf pee collected from another pack is a sure-fire way to get this pack fired up. They think their area
has been invaded and will get excited and start marking even harder, especially where you have your trap.

Here you can see that everything has been concealed and looking natural. I've applied the wolf pee to the
spot they mark after pushing the snow back a bit to give my trap more room. I only had to do this because
I got too close with my sled when I pulled up to the spot and didn't have a way to circle back around.

The bottom of a two-litre pop bottle is a good way to make large, fake tracks.

They look more like lynx tracks but a track is a track in the eyes of a wolf.

A few tools of the trade.

The next trap I set was a blind set, which is simply a trap set in the same manner except it is without foreign wolf pee and directly on a trail they use. In this case, it's where they veer off of my trail and head off into a different direction. I've seen their tracks veer off at this same location for quite some time now so I feel more confident of a catch here than at the scent post spot.

Catching wolves isn't easy. You have to be absolutely scent free, you can't disturb the area, and you have to know exactly what they are doing. They only come through the area once in a while as well, sometimes not even showing up again until three weeks later. And if you think about it, I have a 48-square mile trapline and I'm trying to get a wolf to step on a 2-inch wide trap pan. Not an easy task to say the least.

Once I was done, about two hours later, I resumed my trapline check. After traversing the rock trail through the logging area, I hit the Extension Route and three traps later, I had one more weasel and a big male marten, my fourth of the season. Things were looking up, or so I thought. A dozen traps later, I only had one more weasel.

The big male marten frozen into the trap. This one came home with me for skinning.

Once again feeling disappointed, I hit Old Forest Trail, which is a good lynx trail but not a trail known for catching a marten on. I set four boxes along this trail at locations where creeks run, as creeks are generally travel routes for furbearers. One particular location has baffled me for years. It's a prime location for both marten and fisher and even a mink should be using the area because there is a good creek running through it that is open year round in spots. However, I've never caught a thing there except for weasels, which are everywhere. However, this time pulling up to my trap, which is secluded behind some trees along the creek, I immediately noticed marten tracks crossing over my footprints that lead to the set.

Here you can see the telltale two-two-two of a marten track heading straight over my trail.
A set of weasel tracks are also visible coming out from behind the small tree sticking out of
the snow at right and passing over the marten tracks.

Another male marten, only this one is a young-of-the-year marten and exactly what you want.

The three weasels frozen into the traps came home with me for skinning.

I've been holding off on setting up any lynx cubbies, as I'm hoping they'll be more prime with the longer wait. Contrary to popular belief, cold weather doesn't make for primer fur, it's the amount of light in a day that dictates primeness - less daylight means primer fur. With the shortest day of the year fast approaching, it's time to start getting some cubbies up. Stay tuned. I'll let you know how I make out as the season progresses.

Catch Count:
Beaver - 2
Weasel - 17
Squirrel - 4
Marten - 5

Time to catch up!

November 14-28, 2015: I've been busier than my big rooster taking care of his hens (must be good to be a rooster!) and because of that, I haven't had a chance to update this blog with any frequency. Hopefully, that changes soon. For now, I'll catch you up with what I've been doing.

Trapping has been really slow for some reason. I chalk it up to all the activity that's suddenly taking place on the trapline. They are drilling two wells right now, one near the middle of the trapline and one on the northeast end. As well, they are logging like crazy on the south end, taking more than 1000 acres of old growth forest. It breaks my heart to see what's going on down there, as they are taking out my best marten area. Having said that, I've been hitting it hard down there hoping to catch the transient marten but so far my luck has been poor. I'm not sure what's going on but I'm seeing little marten sign, nothing in the way of fisher, and no wolf tracks. I'm not sure where the wolves have gone, but they certainly aren't spending anytime on my trapline. I'm still seeing good lynx sign and lots of rabbits and grouse, so when I start setting for lynx in a couple of weeks, my luck should change, or at least I hope so.

Here you can see the feller buncher hard at work.

The logging crew is supposed to cut me a bunch of firewood for both at home and for the trapping cabin. Not sure if they're just blowing smoke up my ass or what, but for nearly a month now, I'm not seeing it being cut. I called up the head forester there and asked him where my wood was and he said he'd make sure it was cut for me this past weekend. However, I went through there on Sunday looking for it, and still nothing. I did come across some logs piled beside the road, which may be for me but I'm not sure. Another call is in order I think. I hate logging companies.

Are these waiting to be cut up for me? I guess we'll have to wait and see.

The amount of logging waste is incredible.

One of the unique landmarks on the trapline is a big rock that somebody, years ago, painted a smiley face on. I say years ago because it was there when I bought the trapline five years ago and the guy I bought it off said it had been there forever. Because of the smiling rock, I dubbed the old worn out, deep rutted road Smiley Rock Road. Even on a poor day, passing the smiling rock always made you feel good.

Smiley Rock, the landmark that has been on the trapline for years and years.

Well, some assholes from Tangle Creek Energy, the company putting the two wells in on the trapline, decided they needed a marker to let their trucks know they were on the correct road. They spray painted Smiley Rock! I'm not sure what gives them the right to do that but I'm not happy. Why deface what has been a longtime landmark? Once they're gone and off the trapline, I'll be doing a little spray painting of my own, putting Smiley Rock back, although it will never be the same.

The defaced face of Smiley Rock.

But that's enough with industry on the trapline; in short order, they'll be gone and things should be back to just me and the trees.

Over the last couple of weeks, I managed to get my marten line in, as well as a few mink sets. I'll be honest though, my season has started off slow. I'm not sure what the reason is, but I'm hoping things pick up soon. However, one bright spot was the sudden discovery of otter sign on the trapline. I assume they were moving down from up the headwaters and most likely just passing through, but I've never seen their sign here before so that's just a guess. Every where I went, from Broken Bridge Trail to No Name Trail to Cabin Trail, their tracks were visible. In fact, they were even by the parking spot at the head of Cabin Trail Road. They aren't around anymore though, so my opportunity to harvest them is gone, but at least now I know they visit this area.

The first otter tracks I've seen on the trapline. This one is near where we park the truck.

Once again, there is no shortage of weasels on the trapline and the little buggers are up to their old tricks and robbing my marten boxes. One of them was robbing a set I put up on Cabin Trail with regularity and no matter what I did, I couldn't catch him. Finally, after feeding him for two weeks, with the use of sticks placed around the openings of the trap, I managed to catch him. Following are a few photos of some of the seven weasels I've caught in the last two weeks.

This little guy was robbing me blind for two weeks.

Weasel number 4.

Weasel number 5.

Weasel number 6.

Weasel number 7.

After setting up the southern Extension Route where they're logging, and having little success catching marten, I decided to put my trail back in down the trail that leads to Muskeg Trail and my way out from down south. This trail is a good lynx trail so I figured with lynx season fast approaching, I better get a snowmobile trail in. I never set this trail last year but needing a trail out that isn't a gravel road because of the logging truck activity that will wear out the skis of my snowmobile (and already are), I figured I might as well get the trail in. I do have four marten sets on this trail but have never caught a marten there. However, I figured I might as well set them anyway hoping that the logging has pushed some marten into this area. After doing quite a bit of chainsaw work, I managed to push my way out.

The first big tree down across the trail. I couldn't move the single piece by myself, so I had to cut it in two.

After trying to move the first tree in the above photo, I went ahead and cut this one into smaller pieces.

One of the unique things you get to see when you're trapping is the interactions of predator and prey. Snow loves to tell a story and when I'm traveling around the trapline, I spend most of my time on one knee on the snowmobile looking for sign. In this case, it looks as though a small owl, most likely a boreal owl, took aim at what was most likely a squirrel.

Notice the wing marks from the small owl in the snow.

Later, when I was setting up Pipeline Trail, I came across two of my wooden marten boxes that had been trashed by bears. For this reason and because of porcupines and squirrels feasting on several of the others, I've slowly been switching out to plastic boxes, which are quite expensive but last much longer. However, something must have decided to chew on one of my plastic boxes. Based on the evidence on the tree, I'm assuming it was a bear that chewed on the plastic box but I can't be sure, as the chewed spot doesn't look like something a bear would do. One thing is for sure, it was definitely a grizzly bear that left its mark on the tree.

Notice the chewed spot on the right of the box where the trap sits.

My first check of Pipeline Trail resulted in my second marten of the year. The first one came from Clear Trail but this one came in a box that has produced well for me over the last few years, giving up at least two marten every year. Judging by its early production this year, things won't change. Because of this, I set another box (plastic) in the same vicinity. On my second check of Pipeline Trail, the new plastic box set held another marten, my third of the season.

This box is one of my better producers, giving me at least two marten every year.

A good return on a freshly set box.

In the cabin, I'll skin any marten, mink or weasels that I catch. Bigger critters like fisher and lynx, I do at home. The ones I skin at the cabin, their carcasses I simply bag and throw out on the woodpile to be later dispersed around the trapline to help feed other animals later in the winter when things get tough for them. One night, I was awakened by a rustling sound outside the front door of the cabin. With my flashlight in hand, I went outside to investigate. In my flashlight beam, I could make out a weasel having his way with one of the bagged carcasses. I scared him off and went back to bed. That morning, while I was whipping up some bacon and eggs before packing up to head home, the rustling sound started again. This time, instead of a flashlight in hand, I grabbed my camera.

This little guy woke me up rusting through the plastic bag holding a squirrel carcass.

Here he is checking me out, wondering if I'm a threat or not.

Back to feasting on the squirrel carcass.

I'll be back on the trapline again later this week. I have to run the entire line, which is about 80 kilometres long. However, about 15 kilometres of that is roads where I don't have sets but need the roads for access to my different trails. I'm going to hold off on setting for lynx for at least a couple of more weeks, as the auction houses are asking for better grades of furs to be shipped this year based on the Russian economy. Russia is one of the better fur buyers in the world but their economic situation is currently in dire straits. By waiting, I should get a better clarity grade on my lynx skins, adding to their value as they would be more prime. I'll be updating this blog again soon.

Stay tuned!

Back in the Saddle

Mid-October to Early November: Dad, Dakota and I hit the trapline to do a little moose hunting and some trapline work in October. Dakota had been waiting a long time to draw a moose tag there and I expected it wouldn't be too hard to be successful. Because of how high up we are (4300 feet in many places), there isn't much for ungulates on the trapline but one thing there is for sure is moose. It is definitely moose country and we've had moose right out the cabin door on more than one occasion.

Dakota looking over the swamp the bull from the cabin door went through the night before.

The first day we came across a good bull right away, standing almost next to where we park the trucks on Cabin Trail Road. I messed up the shot though trying to get Dakota closer. The bull was 279 yards out by my rangefinder and by the time we tried to get closer, the bull figured something was up and bolted. I should have let him shoot from where we were. Worse, the next evening, Dakota returned from hunting by himself about a half hour before legal light was up. He came into the cabin, dropped his pack, and then looked out the window about the same time Dad did. They both spotted a big bull standing 50 yards out from the cabin door standing broadside. The problem was, Dakota's gun was strapped to his quad outside the cabin door. By the time he got his gun unstrapped and out of the case, the bull was already heading away. If the gun had been in the cabin, we'd of had the bull. The next morning, Dad listened to a cow calling beside the cabin for about 30 minutes while Dakota and I were away, no bull answered her calls. The next day, the temperature changed, hit 20 Celsius for the remainder of our trip, and we never heard or saw another moose.

In between hunting, we managed to get some work done around the cabin. Beaver had dammed up the creek and I knew the dam had to go; if not, come spring runoff, the cabin would be flooded. So I went to work removing the dam, which isn't easy work. I'm not sure what the beaver were thinking because they never would have gotten the water deep enough to survive the winter in the creek. They obviously figured that out too because they have yet to come back to put the dam in again.

Getting geared up to tackle the beaver dam on the creek beside the cabin.

Using my hands and a hoe, it took a while but eventually the dam gave way.

Next up was burning the tall grass around the cabin. Dad went to work on that project and spent a while trying to get the grass to burn properly but it was still too damp. Now and then the wind would come up and he'd make some headway but it was often short lived. I had let the grass grow up over the summer, a mistake, and something I won't do again.

Dad trying to burn down the countryside.

With a dwindling wood supply, it was time to get enough wood put up for winter. The best wood for the wood stove in the cabin is smaller stick wood. Around the trapline, there is an abundance of the stuff and with my quad trailer, it is easy to bring back in 8-foot lengths, buck it up at the cabin, and then stack it on the deck. A few loads and some tough work later, we had enough for winter with what was already left over from the previous season.

Dad and Dakota with a load ready to go back to the cabin.

Bucked up and ready to be stacked.

Our trip ended without a moose but we accomplished a fair amount. It was great to have Dad back to the trapline again and it was neat to have three generations of Miskosky's spend some time together enjoying the outdoors. I could never thank my dad enough for instilling a love of the outdoors in me and I've been lucky enough to make my living through the outdoors for several years now. I couldn't imagine having it any other way.

November 2015: I got back to the trapline before the end of October and again twice in early November. I'll be back now each week until the end of January, with some trapping at the ranch taking place in between. I also received a call from an older couple that have 90 acres right on Lake Isle, about 30 minutes from home. Beavers had moved in, fell a tree on their 5th wheel trailer, and were making a mess along the shore of the lake. They wanted them gone and because I needed some bait for marten season, I took up the challenge and removed two large beaver from their property. The beaver must have just moved in because they had no kits and the house was small. The landowners also said they hadn't been there up until a few weeks ago.

With enough bait for my marten season, it was time to get some marten boxes up. The problem was, without the ground being frozen and no snow, I couldn't get anywhere without spending hours winching my way along my trails with the quad. Trapping by quad is not fun, takes forever, and makes travel difficult. However, I managed to get 15 boxes up in the lower bowl and three mink sets along the creek.

The cabin is still holding up real well.

Finally, some snow!

It finally started to snow, which meant I'd be returning with a snowmobile next trip in. I need to get about 40 to 50 more boxes up before I can consider my marten line complete. They are logging real hard on the south end of my trapline and I need to hit it real hard down there. It's some of my best marten country (or was) and the marten need to be taken out now before they either die from starvation, disease, or through battle with other existing marten in the areas they will now have to move in to because of the logging. The impact logging has on furbearing animals is far greater than any a trapper could ever inflict. Now that I have some snow and the ground is starting to freeze solid, I should be able to get set up down there.

Here you can see the next trees on the left destined for removal.

This cutblock will be 400 hectares, about 1000 acres in size. You can make out what used to be my trail
in the center of the photo. They are supposed to keep it clear so I can still use it to access certain areas.

If you look behind my quad, that is the extension of the trail in the previous photo. It too will soon be gone.

I had my 15 marten sets up for only a day. On my way out to head home, I made a quick check and discovered I'd already caught a single marten on Clear Trail. It's amazing how this trail is the first to give up some fur every year. We caught our very first marten here, our first lynx, and everything in between from squirrels to weasels to fisher and even a barred owl, which we successfully released, has been caught along this trail.

Right behind the marten box is a large squirrel midden Dakota and I have caught several squirrels from.

A really nice dark young-of-the-year marten.

Dad and I cleared Clear Trail the first year I had the trapline. Not having a name for the trail, it became known as Clear Trail, simply because we cleared it. It took us a lot of work but it has paid off in spades. It is also an enjoyable trail to travel down because it's just one of those places that looks wild, makes you feel good, and produces a lot of fur. I wished I had several more trails just like it.

I will be back shortly so stay tuned. I'll keep you up-to-date as the season progresses.

Cheers!