That has been my general experience when setting baited sets.

Clark

Excellent pics! I love the hind foot catch! I did that last spring with a Duke 330...great great traps.

Sounds like you have a nice size line out. How much ice do you have in Maine now?

well the thickness of the ice in someplaces in an inch or so but at most of the flowages i'm down into 18-20 inches. should have got them sooner so i wouldnt have to deal with it.

I was going to start using a chainsaw because of the ice thickness now. For me it is another piece of weight to carry along.

How many people use chainsaws to cut their holes?

I don't think it's good to cut a large hole for snares, if a beaver is caught before the hole freezes over he can get out and run around all over on top of the ice.

I use a chainsaw, they work good. Canadians use them a lot.

Ax and chisel for fall (bait) b'vers, chainsaw for late winter.

Has anyone used a handsaw for cutting the ice? I am not talking about a wood saw, I am talking about a saw designed to cut the ice. They have blades around 44 inches long and the teeth look like something from a sci-fi movie.

Doesnt anybody use their power auger? i also use my power auger for my speering hole. just (2) 8" holes side by side.

I tried using a power auger, but does not work for me in Northwest Wisconsin. I use a 272 Husky saw with a 24" bar and also a 36" bar. Takes only a few minutes to cut thru a foot or more ice. Cut a square or long rectangle in ice for snares. I use snares 99.9% of the time under ice, 330 coni otherwise.

As mentioned before only set feed pile and legal distance from dam. As for ice closing up the hole or beav getting in a snare then up on the ice, I cover the hole with paper feed sack or boughs then shovel a couple feet of snow on top of this. If only a foot or less it work also to keep ice from getting to thick in hole. I have done this in -30°F and only had about 2" or less of ice in hole, sometimes no ice only skimed over. This also keeps the hole dark and beav does not get up on the ice. I check once a week and chisel very little.

As for the weight of the saw, I put it in a military type back-pack and small gas container (1 gal.) and the bar oil is veggy oil in a 1 ltr container all in back pack with wire, snares, pliers,mnachete and such. I walk in or snow-shoe most of the time in 1/2 mile or so. Use a otter sledsmall on also on check day's. Temp now is -5°F wind chill -15°F

i use a chainsaw sometime but usually i dont want everyone and their mother knowing i'm there, plus most of my lodges are a few mile walk, a walk i would rather do without a chainsaw, let alone a chainsaw with a beaver. i've never had abeaver on top of the ice but i had one break the cross pole and drag it under water, you could see where it came out in open water got hung up and chewed the snare off at the pole, so the snare is still on him, i sure hope he's not dead.

You only need to bring the saw in just one time, unless you plane on making more sets on the same pond. I take all day, say Saturday start around 6:00 am and go trapping all day. Make my sets on the ponds,carrying in the saw just one time, then do the next pond. You do not carry saw in every time you go check traps snares etc...

I am not a young buck like you Fisher-usmc anymore, but when I was I could and still do if need be carry a 20lb.+ saw in one hand and a 30lb.+ beave over my shoulder or drag or whatever with the other hand. The key or point is to work smarter not harder.

Hey, I have chiseled my fair share of ice not just a few inches thick stuff, like 18"+ when I was a few years younger, then I read about the guy's in Canada, Alaska using chainsaw to cut in ice and cover the hole up with snow, boughs, feed sack etc. WOW COOL IDEA!!! SOOOOO YOU DO NOT HAVE TO CHOP A POOP LOAD OF ICE ON CHECK DAY.

To each their own and other mileage may vary. Good luck with the ice

mntrapperboy's dad here, the kid has got me addicted. We've modified most of the baited 330 sets to what you guys have suggested and still only have so-so luck. When we put the work into the run sets we have good luck. I'm thinking it is in the location of the sets, how close and in what general location to the feed bed do you make the sets? Up high just below the top of the ice or somewhere lower? I hear you talk about the baited sets at the dams also, anything special with that locations, real close to the dam or just somewhere between the lodge and dam? Oh yah, fell in to my knees a couple of weeks ago, does that quailify as a polar bear or do you have to go totally under?

thanks stump, didnt quite know what you ment, i fill in the holes with snow to make it easier. i thought you ment taking it to check also. the smarter not harder thing, is reason i dont use a chainsaw to hump a few miles in. i would rather work a little harder for 5 minutes chipping a whole then working harder for and hour luggin it in, thats assuming your walking 3 miles per hour through waste deep snow in the thick brush. I do know what you mean though. but then again thats why when you get a 60 pounder that far in you should skin it on the spot, wish i did that but i like to clean skin em.

mntrapper, i set right on the edge of the feed pile on both sides and in front, if there is to many stik in the way i move a little out but still set right on the edge on it. and i very the set from being close to the top to in the middle, i hardly ever put in on the bottom, i'll post pics friday as to where i set on the lodges

Hey no problem Fisher-usmc. Do you cover your holes then put snow over the covering?? A GREAT little book by Trapper Art is a big help for the new and old beaver trapper. Does not cost much, and easy to find at most trap supply outfits. Yes, skin out big boy's on the ice is smart-good idea, just flesh it out later or clean skin out in the bush, what ever is you pleasure.

I set snares off feed piles. BUT be carful, you need to stay several feet away from the pile or you can get all tangled up in it. No fun when you have a beav on one end and it is all caught up in the pile, or worst yet tangle up and break -twist cable. Same with conni traps you can get sticks setting of your trap. Some take chisel or their arm and clear away the food-sticks then set, do what works best for you.

Trial and error sometimes is good for you. I set my snare or conni about 6" below the ice and then dependes how deep water is. Normaly water is around 3-6" deep with about 26" ice. so if in three foot water, snare or trap is about 6-8" below the ice, just off bottom. I do put 3 or 4 snares on some poles if water is say 4' deep or more. 2 on top (6" below ice) then 2 on bottom (8-12")I will even put 2 conni's on a deep set same wat 1 on top 1 on bottom. Their is many way's to go about it.

As for dam set with bait, depends what your reg's say. In Wisconsin we have to stay 15' away from the dam with a set. I have found out a baited set of the edge of the dam and land wher it comes together to be deadly. I have caught many a big big beav with snare or conni doing this.

Great information!! I'm thinking that I may go straight snares on my long walks the rest of the winter. Bringing a chainsaw in for the 1st cut would work out great and then just carry a chisel.

Skinning on the ice sounds good, but the time factor would make it tough most days. I need to get in, check, un-freeze my glasses and walk out. During the spring I bring my knife on the longer excursions.

I love all this underice talk!! There are alot of little tricks
that one can learn!!

Hi guys, here is the saw I was talking about. What are your thoughts?
http://www.icesaws.com/

When I was a kid I remember seeing oldtimers cutting the ice to set fish nets with a large saw that were used to fell trees. They made really short work of the ice.

I'm curious how well it works. It is expensive though.

I have used one of those saw's for years, it will cut through 2 ft of ice like a hot knife through butter. I love it. Only problem I have had is it can get dull and then you are hosed.
And it only works to open a new hole, no good for checks. Crutch