during the summer we all get together and have a wild game cookout. my role in all this is to supply enough turtle meat for the guest that come.
not every one wants to try turtle meat but there are lots of other game to try. raccoon muskrat pheasant quail frog legs elk deer meat wild boar you name it. its probably there. with about 300 friends we all have a pretty good time.




































thanks for looking.

mousie

a good healthy hatch assuring there will be snappers for generations to come.

For some reason one of the Rolling Stones song just popped into my head:
I see the girls walk by dressed in their summer clothes
I have to turn my head until my darkness goes

lol. we always have a great time. last year we had several t man members come. one from as far away as minnesota. chris lyons who goes by lynoch i think.

Fried Turtle is good stuff...Yummmmmm...lol...Cool pics Mousie

Thanks a lot for sharing. Looks like everyone had a great time.

from the black lagoon. an overgrown swamp full of black muck and mosquitoes. you would have thought this place belonged in the south somewhere rather than ohio. had to cut a path with machetes just to get to it. one way in. one way out. also had to float in the hoop nets and float out the catch. every turtle earned. no doubt about it! had some help this trip with a 12 year old grandson of a friend who wanted to 'go on an adventure.' oh he got to go on one alright! lol he seemed to enjoy it though in the sweltering heat.
we had to hose him down afterward due to the poison ivy he waded through carrying sacks of turtles.




it was some trick to dump the turtles in a floating sled and grab them all and sack them up before they started fighting or escaped back into the lagoon. once a turtle went into the black water grabbing for it seemed like a good way to get bitten. we only lost one but likely caught it again the next day after baiting the hoop net again. we thought that we would see the monster of our dreams here but only caught 7 keepers. still worth the trip if nothing but the experience.

as summer waned we had a decision to either hit a few ponds and creeks or call it quits for the season. the water was cooling fast and we knew the turtles would be shutting down soon. our catch had fallen off and we knew to push things would be a gamble. we decided to go for it one last run. win lose or draw we were turtle trappers first and the only loss we hoped would be not going for it.

it was labor day weekend and we decided to hit a few ponds first heavy and pull after one night. if we set heavy we figured we would have a good chance. we figured wrong as 6 nets in 3 ponds only netted one turtle. disappointed but still determined we decided to go to the creek we had been driving past all summer and set it up while our bait still had some freshness to it. we guessed it would only be good another day. not paying attention to the weather proved to be a big mistake.



that night a 2 inch rain fell and the creek swelled up over the banks. we hadnt staked our nets but i doubt it would have made little difference.
the next morning i went to pull the nets only to find the water was 2 feet higher and the nets were nowhere in sight. thinking i could rescue the nets from the rushing water proved wrong. a lot was learned that day on how powerful rushing water can be and it is not to be taken lightly. a mistake i will just say i wont be making anytime soon.



it took days before the water went down enough to venture back in. nearly a week in fact. we walked the banks every day but we could see through the murky water. we waded in when it felt safe and probed the waters but to no avail. once it had gotten back to its original level we decided to make a serious effort to find our nets. we expected the worst yet hoped for the best. nets could be replaced we knew. trapped turtles would have perished however and to waste their lives needlessly would be our biggest regret. the nets we feared may have been washed to the river.

we didnt expect much but luck would be on our side. sand bars with snags had indeed caught our nets. twisting in the strong current would prove too much collapsing them and sinking them to the bottom. the pvc poles had washed away but those are easily replaced. the nets were none for the worst. one turtle was all that was lost. a softshell. we took its remains and returned them to the waters. we knew with the crayfish and minnow population it would not go to waste.




and so with that we decided to call it a season. lucky we had one at all. a few days before the season opened my best friend and partner was involved in an automobile accident which nearly cost them their life. a slit second decision saved lives that day. it seemed at that moment the season would be on hold if at all. still determined we started later than expected but once we got things going we never looked back. a lot was learned this year on the line. some dreams came true and some did not. challenges were met and some exceeded our expectations while others handed us rears back to us. but we never gave up hope that come hardship or high water we finish out the year putting everything we had into it. we had learned near seasons end that a buyer had backed out leaving us with almost our entire seasons catch of over 2000 pounds of live turtles. never the less we explored other markets. regardless we felt we had a good season.

Great thread Mousie.

we had a lot to do cleaning and putting away our nets at seasons end. one doesnt see all the preparation that goes into making all this happen. it looks easy on paper. its a lot of work making sure nets are mended. you have enough bait. organizing everything day in and day out. each net has its own series of poles all numbered. all covered in mud. lol. it was still warm so despite our saying we were done for the season we did set a few more nets out just to explore some waters we hadnt touched. we ran a few days but never caught any keepers and returned them all back to the water. my friend angie said she learned a lot and would do it all again regardless if we sold any turtles or not. the offers did come slowly but they came and so we re now in the process of butchering all of the male turtles we have on hand. the females were bred and released to ponds we had selected around the area. although we harvest turtles it is also as much about the preservation of turtles for future generations to come. with that said we re looking forward to next season.

a 2 year old snapper. we dont see many of these as our nets all have 8 inch escape rings. this one couldnt figure it out until we gave it a hand. angry little cuss. lol.

Good for you. Good times.

Great storyline and photos.

My biggest turtle, never got to weigh him because I turned him loose..Thats a 4" wide bait net laying beside his head..He would not fit in the bottom on a large metal garbage can..Caught him on a trot line..The whole head of the holler was muddy were I caught him..Im guessing the shell length was an honest 18 1/2"-19"..

thats a dandy kyboy. were you able to remove the hook? i dont use hooks personally due to we have a 13 inch shell limit and removing a hook from the throat of a smaller turtle could injure the turtle and quite frankly be dangerous for me. im convinced i can out produce someone using hooks by using hoop nets and they are far more selective. for now we have started our butchering this fall and as of date have only found one turtle with a hook lodged in its throat. the hook had not rusted and was attached to a small mesh net containing some foul smelling substance. possibly liver. i m guessing because the line was mono that it was intended for catfish.

Yes, I got the hook out..Im not a turtle trapper per say but catch plenty trotlining. we always keep some to eat..I had enough and there was no reason to keep this big boy. I left him for breed stock..

washing out turtle tanks.





recycling water

TTT! First softshell of the year for me. She is a nice one.

That the one I looked at hyesterday?

Yup. Trying to get some more just like her. I want some turtle soup and some turtle sauce picante!

You call me when ya get it & I'll come help ya eat it!!