# Bittersweet Day - Pic Heavy



## magnumhntr (Aug 18, 2003)

Bittersweet day yesterday. With my classes starting back up next week, and the Ravenna sale this weekend it was time to hang it up for the year. Pulled the last of my traps, and put up the remainder of the fur that was in the freezer. 

With the fur market questionable at best, I decided that I would dedicate the majority of this season trying to learn how to catch more K9's. Seeing as I've caught a couple here and there over the years, I figured I could hit that target if I put my mind to it. Never in my wildest dreams had I though I would far exceed that goal, and have as much fun running as hard as I did, for what is a considerably fewer amount of furs compared to years in the past. 

My goal for the season was lucky #13 for no other reason to shoot for a bakers dozen, and of course to learn as much as I could in the limited time the weather/work/life/school/family affords. I set the first of my lines on Nov 1 and start catching the following morning with a nice female coyote on a weed patch in the middle of a corn field, with no sign whatsoever to set on ~ just a hunch, lol. The first week was a catch every couple days, and alot of misses to learn from. 

The third week brought the snow, and enough that it changed the travel patterns of the K9's in my areas. Couple that with the fact I had to report to Jury duty ~ and subsequently being picked to serve on a jury ~ running traps after court until 1:00am in the blistering snow/cold was miserable as best ~ especially when they are empty. Once the snow melted though, it was game on.

From Dec 1 - Dec 15 I averaged 1 per day, of course some days were 0 catch days ~ but I was learning what they were telling me I had been doing wrong ~ and my confidence grew as well. I found myself setting traps not with the 'hope' of catching in them, but with the expectation there would be a coyote or fox in them. Of course some never got worked, and others took 2-3 each.

Anyway, thought I'd share a bit of my success with the thought that it may help motivate others to go after them as well. It helped to have a prime rib dinner on the line against my brother to keep the motivation going when it got tough, and to share ideas and what sets were working. 

Enjoy


























And of course the most important memories of the year 








Hope everyone has a Happy New Year!!!

-Chris


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## tcfishes (Oct 2, 2013)

Great job man!


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## Duckman1 (Oct 14, 2004)

Awesome. Great job running a line. 


Sent from my iPhone using Ohub Campfire


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## ReallyBigFish (May 8, 2014)

Very nice. Take out every one of the yotes. Good job. Did you win the prime rib dinner?


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## Nostromo (Feb 14, 2012)

It's tough to be a canine in your area. 

Nice work!


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## ottertrapper (Jan 6, 2006)

Nice job! I much prefer trapping in the snow now it was a blast trapping in all the snow this yr. just wish we had more yotes around my area.


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## magnumhntr (Aug 18, 2003)

Thanks guys! Yes, I did win the prime rib dinner, but he was the comeback kid as he only lost by a few. At one point I had him doubled, and then his sets/properties really turned on ~ was kinda sweating it here towards the end. :lol:

Forgot to mention that I dealt with a coyote I've labeled as 'Hoover' again this year. He's been around the block a time or two, and I have yet to catch him. He loves to uncover traps... to the point it looks like a shop vac sucked all the dirt/peat moss off it. Sometimes he even pulls the polyfill out from under the pan. I spent a lot of time trying to catch him the last couple of years, and this year pretty much ignored him ~ if I don't it just drives me nuts trying to catch him. 

Otter ~ I've gotten to where I hate trapping in snow once it gets more than a few inches deep. Absolutely shut me down the week it was here... I'll take this southern Mi weather any year...

-Chris


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

Bittersweet is only a frame of mind Chris, I think you did a sweet job. I'm like Otter, I absolutley love to trap in the snow, almost to the point of enjoying it more then bare ground but then again, it's a different mindset all together!


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## Fur-minator (Nov 28, 2007)

Congrats on a great season!

I guess I am kind of picky but I prefer to have a couple of inches of the white stuff with a dusting each day. Nothing like having a blank canvas and a new story to read each and every morning! The misses, the close calls and the line of tracks in the field that I know are heading for my sets but can't quite see yet! That right there is trapping at its best for me.


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## ottertrapper (Jan 6, 2006)

It is definately different trapping with snow no doubt but its fun! Caught several that i would have thought no way those traps will operate yet still made catches. Now our snow is almost gone again these canines have it made up here this yr. 

Learning is always fun we will never know it all. Congrats on a fine season


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## pikestalker (Dec 30, 2010)

Thanks for posting these pictures. I love looking at trapping pictures. Question, if I may ask a question, the third picture from the last, is that a yote, looks pretty big. Just wondered.
Thanks again!


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## SteelSearchin (Apr 8, 2004)

pikestalker said:


> ...third picture from the last, is that a yote, looks pretty big...


That's his neighbor's husky-mix- they call him "slump-buster"... ;-) But really, it's a 'yote.

Chris, now you gotta knock the dust off your old shooting iron and drag me out between classes to try and call in some of your leftovers. Nice work on the K9s, still can't believe how well you guys did this year- congrats again, and again, and again...!!


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## bigdaddyfischer (Jan 2, 2011)

Nice job. Good to see someone happy with their results, me not so much. Got a couple yotes the first couple weeks of November then nothing, a few close calls but no catches, just like last year. I'm not sure if it is the crops coming off, the present of hunters during deer season or the use of calcium chloride but things just go cold for me after about the 20th of November. Any advice from the seasoned veterans or highly successful new guys?


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## ottertrapper (Jan 6, 2006)

Hard to say but i do know its not the calcium chloride. Way too many good trappers use it without issue. I use it also without issues but i am not in that list of good canine trappers. There are many things that could affect ykur catch but without seeing it very hard to say.


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## magnumhntr (Aug 18, 2003)

Seldom said:


> Bittersweet is only a frame of mind Chris, I think you did a sweet job. I'm like Otter, I absolutley love to trap in the snow, almost to the point of enjoying it more then bare ground but then again, it's a different mindset all together!



Thank you sir! I definitely have a long way to go to consider myself adept at catching them ~ but there are a few things I am figuring out. Maybe in another couple of years once school is done, I can play in the snow with the big boys 

Otter ~ I would gladly trade all the coyotes in the world for a better population of otters down here. There are a few here and there, and with the beavers expanding quite rapidly, maybe the otters will follow suit. 

On a side note I seen on TMan that Phil Brown hit the 1000 fox mark in only 48 days this year ~ still leaves me a goal to aim for, lol 

-Chris


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## Sturgeon-man (Mar 31, 2002)

Stellar Pics !! What kind of sets worked best for Ya ? Dirt holes , Pee posts , Flat sets ? I've got a pretty good size Carcass pile going . Last yr I'd have a catch , then would go 1-2 weeks with nothing . Through trial and error I learned Not to set Right on it . K9's IMO are the Toughest Critter to get ..... Congrats on Your Success !!


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## magnumhntr (Aug 18, 2003)

Sturgeon-man said:


> Stellar Pics !! What kind of sets worked best for Ya ? Dirt holes , Pee posts , Flat sets ? I've got a pretty good size Carcass pile going . Last yr I'd have a catch , then would go 1-2 weeks with nothing . Through trial and error I learned Not to set Right on it . K9's IMO are the Toughest Critter to get ..... Congrats on Your Success !!


All of the above 

I know I am going to catch flack for this, but all of these sets work if you refine them to work for you. What worked for me, and my brother as well, was to put in many sets, see what the animals were doing at these sets, and adjust to the misses. Once I learned the subtle differences to make them step on the pan, my success rate went up considerably. The funny thing is that my brother and I use the same basic sets, but we both adjusted in different ways to be successful. 

One important thing I learned this year, was to leave the sets in as long as possible. I have many sets that sat for 5+ weeks before they caught ~ whether is was due to lack of animals traveling near them or the need for the set to 'cool off' I could not tell you ~ maybe a bit of both. Heck, there was a 10 day period in pretty nasty conditions where I checked 3 dozen empty traps ~ Either way they don't catch unless they are set...

Already looking forward to next year ~ ready to learn some more....

-Chris


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## bigdaddyfischer (Jan 2, 2011)

So in that 5 week period how often did you relure or rebait your sets? What freeze proof method have you decided to be the best for the way you do things?


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## magnumhntr (Aug 18, 2003)

Put em up on my grandparents barn wall as a sort of homage to the hard work we put in this year, and as a final farewell to the barn ~ it will be demolished this winter to make way for my brother's new house. Many childhood memories in that hay loft, with one last fantastic one for the adult mind. I can honestly say I have a new found respect for the guys that put up big numbers of K9's, as we worked our tails off for 8 weeks for what we accomplished. Good luck for the rest of the season fellas. These are headed to Ravenna tomorrow ~ hopefully they don't come back home with me 





-Chris


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## K-zoo (Jul 19, 2008)

Great pic Chris! Good luck at Revenna tomorrow.


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