Hello everyone! I see there is no Pa trapping thread yet so here it is if anyone from Pa wants to post to see how we all do. I have not started yet but will around the 15th. Good luck to everyone

There’s one in the Trap Talk forum.

I haven't started yet either. Weather has been to warm, rain has been relentless, ground is completely saturated and I want to harvest prime fur. Last season I spent countless hours with set remakes due to the constant warm temps, continual down pours, freezing, thawing and the whole process repeating itself every couple of days. Waxed dirt is an excellent trapper's aid, but the continued hard downpours of rain we had last year would expose some of my sets. I am sure other trappers in our area encountered similar issues on the trapline, but that is trapping. The numbers of furbearers harvested no longer matters as I tan the selected animals that I choose to harvest, the others are released.
With that said, good luck to all fellow trappers out there and enjoy your time pursuing your chosen pastime.

I'm just across the PA border. Rain has been non stop. Managed to pick up 6 coyotes in 6 days on 8 sets. I think the rain washed human scent away. Just have to keep the bait and lure working.

Laying some steal tomorrow since archery season is done. Plan on getting out at least 12 coon sets and a couple K9 sets on the home property. Wednesday I’m planning to hit a property I got permission to hunt this year with a dozen or so K9 sets and a few coon sets. He has a ton of coyotes roaming the property with trail cam pictures on my personal cameras of packs of coyotes 4 - 5 strong. Along with the single and double roaming through. Couple nice greys on the camera as well out that way. Probably will either set off those traps or pull them come rifle and then be back at it afterwards

Good Luck. Get them in today. We have rain, freezing rain and snow on its way in the next 24 to 48 hours. Clean out the coyotes. They do a lot more damage to our deer herd, then many of our state oversight organizations care to admit.

I figured I’d rejuvenate this thread. Put my southern line out the last 2 days. Anybody back at it now that deer season is over?

I am going to get up north this weekend to set some for fisher. Very good location we have and plenty of sign, so I am hopeful

I never quit for deer season, just haven't been going full tilt......

Last year was brutal with the rain and freezes. This year has been slow for me, I have my three year old most of the day and setting in a line with a 3 year old can be a little tedious to say the least. I only have about a dozen of my 10 dozen traps in and have 1 coon for my efforts. I have seen more fox gray and red this year than I have in the last 6 years. I've got 2 different fisher running around also so I am hoping to put some work in and catch some stuff.

Love this weather. Wish it would stay cold. I'm just playing, running a short line, but enjoying it.

I managed to pick up one fox just from the two sets I have right in my yard. I am a little worried about the forecast for this weekend in Tioga county its says it may get up to high 40s nearing 50

And out come the grinner.

I ended the day with a rat and a red. A dusting of snow came through last night and possible snow showers late tonight. With the snow and rain coming the next couple days, it should be interesting.

15 degrees warmer this morning than yesterday morning, in Snyder County.
Nice pictures folks.

playin with 50 coni's and 50 legholds for mink and trying to see which produces better for me.making myself set some old places in new ways.will get a couple dozen cat,fisher and canine sets going soon i hope.GOOD LUCK EVERYBODY.

in my chicken coop Monday night. they will not bother the girls no more!

Nittany Lion sent me picture of todays catch...
3 Coon, 5 Mink

Today’s catch: 1 opossum 1 gray fox 1 muskrat and no snow showers as of now

I found a Flying squirrel in one of my weasel traps today. Otherwise nothing. I received permission to trap some of the swamp areas in the middle of Philipsburg from a family friend. I grew up there and know there are plenty of fat muskrats I never seen any mink though. The only thing that keeps me from trapping there is that this swamp is literally in the middle of town. 25 ft. from a bar, 35 feet from a trailer court. So I am sure prying eyes would be all over me, I've been trying to figure out the best times to set there without compromising my gear. The place has changed a lot in the last 20 years and so risk (of stolen traps) versus reward has had me a little apprehensive.

Caught a fisher, a big boar coon and four muskrats today. Fisher was released, but they are becoming plentiful here.

Feels good to FINALLY get the line off and running. Can't trap the property until after rifle season so just got traps out this week.

Good luck to everyone this year. Appreciate everyone sharing their insight and expertise over the years.

good luck on the cats and fisher

Good day pcr2. I rode with Nittany Lion yesterday. He caught 3 mink 3 rats and 2 coon. It was a good day.

This is the only pic I got. Me+water+phone=need a new phone.lol
I really needed a day like this, I haven't set a trap in 3 weeks.
And being with a goodoldboy like Nittany made it even better.

all 3 of those are males,the one may be the biggest male i ever saw.hatchery mink.i'm just getting started but anyone is welcome to ride along.i cheat to and slowly move to ny state when our early ending season closes.not really farther than trapping pa.their beaver is open and i am gonna try and get a couple over the next couple days for bait.good luck folks,headed to the shop.

I trap the same swamp you talk about in pburg behind rjs there most the sign is on the (This word is unacceptable on Trapperman) creek tho the rats move to the creek once those swamps freeze up

Awesome catch! My current line is 7 miles round trip. So I was happy with today's catch. The big coon and the mink were on the same trail, but not close enough together for a picture. By the way, one of those muskrats is number 100 for the season.

I don't have a pic right now, but it's just an extension chain about 6 feet long and coyote sized grapple. I rig a lot of traps that way. I like to hook them in the brush rather than just tossing the grapple to the side. Sometimes I stake down the grapple end. The trap is a Bridger 1.75, nice all around trap.

Went north for fisher for a few days with no luck. Did get one grey fox though so I am happy. I am going to get out and set my local line this week. Nice catches everyone.

Ugly

What kind of set for grey fox? going to Cameron county next week to do a little fox/coyote/beaver trapping myself. can't wait.

Well I'm hoping to be adding to this thread soon. I haven't had much luck this season. Between my lack of experience, time issues, my 2 week frozen sets, etc... I'm out of work today at noon and won't be back until the 2nd. I plan on trapping and hunting hard. I can't wait to get into the mountains.

Tight chains to all!

That grey was caught on a powerline with the trap bedded 8 inches away from a stone i placed in the trail and I think it was only gland lure at the set

anyone else's creeks go up yesterday??anybody else have snow on the ground already??told wifey i swear it seems like its been raining since i was a kid.

Creeks going up means more rats, lol. Got some today in sets that have been empty for awhile. I put in a fox set two days ago along a small swamp connected to a large stream. The next day, my set was under half a foot of water. Lucky I didn't catch a beaver. We have a skim of snow over mud now.

Yesterday and today was a first for me. I was boarding a fox and noticed something was sticking out of its nose. I took a closer look and yanked them with the pliers and pulled out some porcupine quills. This morning I pull up to a set and see a fox laying there dead and coyote tracks circling the set. I ended up catching a coyote on the same property but I’ll never know if it was that coyote that killed the fox

Got us a Christmas cat.

Jerry that looks like a big cat to me.
PCR backyard sets are the best!

Nice cat Jerry . How much did it weigh ?

Ooops. I forgot, he was just shy of 32 pounds. Got him in a opossum remake.

Caught 2 smaller ones two years ago but had to let them go. That was fun.

5 reds,a grey and 2 coon out there.headed to look at them early this morning then taking off to set canine traps.good luck all.

Got a red in the bobcat remake. Also got a 48 pound beaver.

Jerry,
Nice size Red Fox. Congratulations on the Bobcat, Beaver & Red Fox.

Here is my First Pa. Fisher. Weighed 12 lbs. 13 ozs.

very nice gentleman.2 red mudballs for me today.

No luck for me lately. I am only running a small line around home and on some family property down the street. I know my sets have been freezing over night but I did not want to mess with them due to trying to catch a red that is very smart. I figured nice freeze proof sets would just get wet this weekend and need remade agian. This fox is a tough one. I see him around all the time and he is not afraid to walk all around the house at night. I see him go into the neighbors barn next door in the middle of the day. He ran around barking while I was out setting this small line. He seemed to be on to me before I got started. We had some outside cats that all disappeared this summer and I think it might be this guy getting them from how much he is seen around

Getting the kids involved. Ok, so she's not a kid anymore...three coons today for me, and I'm not trying to catch coon.

I’m finally on the board with my first catch of the season and my first ever fisher.

Also, many congrats to Jerry. I hope to also be adding a bobcat to my fisher taxidermy bill.

Good job everybody . The trappings brutal with all the rain we've been having . Got one beaver so far , hoping to get a good line out this weekend . Will try to post some pictures .

been rough. have a nice cat on camera been chasing it and had traps freeze. did land a 40 lb beaver thursday plan to chunk it up and use it to hopefully nail the cat before the season is out.

any ideas?

peat isnt workin very well and the anti freeze flakes i got dont seem to be workin very well. do i need to really dump them in the trap bed and on top of it? i put a healthy coating of it down

Pipe Dream, changed my world

flashback pic,me with my first coyote in 1989.believe i've caught them every year since but might break that streak.coyote sign is void up here.sat and had a couple beers with 2 other canine trappers out there and between the three of us only 1 yote taken outta well over a hundred traps.very weird situation and obvious.

pcr2, You & the other two trappers, just have been so good with your coyote trapping over the years, that you must of caught all of them. lol I've had a few on trail cams this year, but have had more Gray & Red Fox on the cams. Also have not been seeing much coyote sign.

Here is a red that I caught yesterday on some family property just down the road. The second one is from today on my little line at home. Not the fox that I see all the time but probably one of his kids from this years litter. More to come soon in these remakes

Just pulled all my traps today with my prize catch being a long tail weasel I'll try to post a pic but other than that got three beavers two big one small one mink two rats an like a dozen coon

Hope this works pic of the weasel ?

Nice catch man. I have always wanted to catch a weasel

Well, I got my Cat. Will not mention how many miles were driven, how much energy expended or how many empty traps were checked to get there. Actually I got two and had to release the bigger one.

Back to work an freezer is full I usually focus on calling an ice fishing come the new year

Interested in buying green beaver in Cambria county pm me for more info

I got really lucky this year and ended up with a cat and a fisher

Frustrating season for me again. Just can't figure out what I'm doing wrong. Landing coons no problem, but I can't get a darn canine in a set. Have had foxes flip 2 over, several more approach but not commit to sets, and others get plugged up from rain and mud. Can't even find a coyote track anymore, they've been gone since early December.

Dyed and waxed the traps, inordinately careful to not contaminate with scents, in and out quickly, bedding tight, setting on sign, setting near sign, variety of sets, variety of baits and lures, etc. I feel like I've done a little bit of everything. Even tried some sets with a rusty piece of rebar set to the side (forget which book said to try that) to throw them off the scent of any metal in the ground. Still nada.

Fresh snow last Sat night and a fox walked within 3' of my set without hesitating for a second to sniff around.

Glad to see the success others are having though! Keeps my morale up!

Have you tried trail cams to see what is going on at the sets?

I have a camera up on a double set now. Wish I would have done it sooner. We'll see what it picks up.

Hang in there. Sometimes, they just don’t care. I had cameras in a couple sets last year where I knew fox were traveling. Hadn’t caught anything after a while so put cameras in and showed fox walking right between my traps and never slowing down. Just didn’t want what I was offering. Drives you crazy but maybe try a different lure or bait and see if it makes a difference. Make sure you pay attention to the wind or they might not even know it’s there.

I had the best day of the year today, had a gray and a small beaver. I've had foxes, coyotes, fishers and cats running past my sets all year, I've tried everything I have read and could think of with no luck, so I broke out the cable restraints and after 3 days landed my first gray fox. Unfortunately it had a large rub mark in the middle of its back.




This years total
3 opossum
3 racoon
1 gray fox
2 beaver
1 long tail weasel

I was working night shift the last couple of days. My wife asked to go with me on the check today. Of course I said yes. Bout 150 yards from our house I had a bobcat. She was all excited to see one that is alive, me, not so much. I knew I had to release it. The release went well (wife has video). It only tried to kill me a couple of times. She was beautiful. White belly with lots of spots. Way nicer than the one that I got during the season. But glad I got to let her go.

Nothing like releasing a critter that has 5 razors on each paw. To be honest, WE were happy to let her go. I was even more happy to not have to go to the emergency room. I know I took a big risk with her on the release, but I know she is out there killing rabbits. I will be making a plywood board to take with me from now on.

We never make those 4’x4’ plywood boards until AFTER the first time that we need it. I still haven’t made mine yet either. It was a beautiful cat Jerry.

Pulled the few foothold sets I ha out an replaced with crs payed off with

Any of you PA boys still trapping? I pulled my fox sets 2 weeks ago and got a few beaver sets out still

Still ain't the end of the season yet. Chasing a yote that has become my enemy. Lol. I have been after him since last season
And a few sickly fox I and others have seen around.
I let the healthy fox go.
And working on a freeze proof set.

Wetdog - you sound like me. We have a pair of coyotes working one farm and I’m going to try everything and anything to connect before the 17th. I ordered flake wax and I’ve been reading about the pipe dream set. My daughter, son and I are having a great season and we’re gonna push until the end.

Hooked up on our first Coyote EVER on Monday Night!
Almost pulled the traps ahead of the storm - glad we didn't.
Landowner "did me a favor" by shooting it full of holes.

I run a modified zagger set. No wax dirt or peat. Nothing but what is at the set. And glycerin. I keep sets near my house as test traps. Not set to catch, set to check. If they are frozen, then I will go to all my sets and check them to see if they are frozen down. So far its working very well for me. I've been able to check with confidence form a distance.
Pulled 4 trail sets last Thursday they were in the ground for 11 days, I was sure they had to be frozen down. I was wrong, they all fired no problem. I wish I would have left them alone.
Good luck on those yotes.

PS try a few blind trail sets where they are entering and exiting the feilds

congratulations Ditto

Congrats Ditto, that's a dandy.

Last week. I took four here, this was the biggest.

nice,i'm ready to get after them soon,real soon.

PASkinner, that's a great looking beaver. I hate to say that I never caught one in PA when I lived there. Seemed like everywhere I went to find beaver there was already 4 other trappers working the same pond, creek or slough. They'd have an H-brace in place staking out their territory days before the season opened.

Lots of beaver in this part of PA. They are making a nuisance of themselves...no prob getting places to trap them especially when they are worth about $8. I get them tanned these days.

Thanks! Landowner stopped and told me he saw another coyote. Guess he didn't realize there was more than one.

Thanks! The Girl is still talking about it. She predicts we will catch 3 coyotes next year.

Hey folks,

I want to thank you for all the help you gave me this season and seasons past. I don't post all that much, but boy, do I read. And it helps. Just reading that I'm not the only one getting swamped under from rain or stuck in the freeze, thaw, repeat cycle makes it a bit easier to roll with the punches. My Girl doesn't get on here too often, but she sometimes sees what I am reading and reads along. Medical issues slowed me this season and gave me a wake-up call that I need to be better if I want to be around to see the Kid run her own line.

I pulled the traps yesterday. Time to start preparing for next year.

Ditto, you’re not the only one who needs to get their priorities straight when it comes to their health. You and I both have our little girl trapping partners and we need to step it up. It’s no longer just about us. I’m glad to see that you had such success.

Good luck with everything.

I hear ya, TheBig1. I have been ignoring a lot of health issues up til now. Cleaning off the treadmill this weekend so I can get some miles in waiting for the Girl's bus to drop her off. They tell me that if you go stand on a treadmill, you will eventually turn it on LOL.

Good luck getting well.

I was wondering what that thing was in my basement that has coats thrown on it along with my dehydrators sitting on the long black thing. I wonder what they say about cleaning it off, will you eventually stand on it?

I think you're on to something. I initially thought ours was a new-fangled mobile "open" closet without walls.

With a jacket magnet.

2nd. year in a row for otter.

Nice catch MadTrapper375. Great picture.
Let's here the story how you caught it. How many traps did you have set? Was it going up stream or down stream?

Congratulations on two years in a row. As Hern asked, give us your story.
Your Otter looks like he's waiting for you to leave him go.

Not much of a story. Someone had already set the toilet that I got my otter at last year, so I went to another creek on the other side of the SGL where i seen otter sign last year. I walked the creek but did not see any fresh sign, so I set the pinch point in main channel by an old toilet. Thursday morning I got lucky. I had 3 sets out, 2 belisles and a snare. got her coming upstream. Had to keep the traps underwater so they would not freeze up. The snare was frozen up every morning after the first nite. Heres a better pic of the pinch point.

most of mine say "no winter maintenance" not a whole lot in summer either!

PAskinner, what WMU you in? I'm trying to take a few day trip later this year and catch a beaver. Feels wrong being a trapper and never having laid steel on one. I heard up toward 3C they're plentiful.

I'm in 1A. 1B has plenty of beaver too.