Right on. You are doing very good! Especially considering you are so close to town in Wasilla. I'm assuming you are catching your cats with cubbies or snare pens. How about your coyotes? Mind sharing what sets you are using? Just mostly trail sets/blind sets? I know you mentioned hay sets, but it appears you use mostly snares. I thought hay sets were made with foot traps. Kind of like a dirt hole set. Thanks for sharing your photos. I'm enjoying them.

drasselt, Absolutely a smoother ride then the wheeler! I got a little 85 Suzuki King Quad, will get me to just about anywhere I want to get, but once things freeze up and the ground is hard, she beats my butt to death! That and I am not a fan of it on ice, I am always afraid I am going to roll the dang thing when I get sideways

Here is a pic of that mink on the board. The one on the right is a average size buck mink. I should have taken a pic before I skinned them out.

The wife had one

That’s a Tank of a mink!

Well today was an interesting day.
I spoke with Crucible6 the other day. He lives down by the Palmer hay flats, and when we talked he was like John you ain't gonna believe what I saw today! I saw 2 ptarmigan! The first one I second guessed myself, maybe a seagull, the second I know for a fact it was! I am thinking to myself....OK. Well low and behold today at first light I swing my sled in to check a patch of spruce with a bait station in it when what flies up right in front of me, a freaking ptarmigan! 12 years of hunting trapping out there and that was a first! Never expected them to be in the low lands like they are.

Further on down the line I pull up to a lynx cubbie to relure, made it stinky, hop on the sled and hit my loop to get back out on the main trail when I come across this track. I found three track total the one was to faint to take a pic. It sure as heck looks like a bear track to me, and if it is it is a pretty small cub out in mid December at 8 degrees.
What are your guys thoughts?
I have only had a wolverine come through my line once, is that a possibility?





That track looked like it was paralleling a set of cow and calve track and everything was headed towards a creek that is about 500 yds away. I figured today would be a good day to walk that creek out and scout for some otter. I made it up the creek in the general vicinity were I thought the moose would cross and sure enough found their track, but only theirs.
I kept walking, came around a bend and in the distance I saw something that just didn't look right, this is what I found,



Felt bad for that little fellow, he is froze in tight! The ice around him was pretty clear, the only thing I can think of was he fell in and couldn't get out.

Ended my run catching this pretty fellow on my last snare line



It is getting colder here, in the single digits finally and they are actually calling for some snow come next week!

You guys be safe out there!

From what I see I would say bear track. For one thing a wolverine should have hairier feet. Did you chip-out that fox? Also I saw 3 Ptarmigan sail across the Parks near Lowes a week or two ago. Surprised me. They usually seem to come to the lowlands when the snow gets deep up high. I've seen them dead on the tracks by Birchwood even.

I would guess a bear track also.......mainly because it looks like your trail is too hard for a wolverine to make a track that deep.

In the Mackenzie delta we have no mink this year. not sure if maybe the creeks are still running and they are under the ice. But with there total absence seems like maybe a virus has gone through. not surprising seeing as to how no one traps them anymore. Leads to overpopulation and sickness, that's what the hippies don't understand is that the trapper is a vital part of a healthy ecosystem.

It's really interesting that when the wolf reintroduction started in the greater Yellowstone eco-system years ago, the environmentalists clamored that predation was necessary for a healthy population of elk, deer, etc. But when the "healthy predation" involves humans, they regard it as horrible or somehow destroying the species, and heaven forbid WEARING OR utilizing that animal.

drasselt- If I had trapped or shot that fox it would absolutely come out. I have fox and yote that run that creek so I am thinking that will become a point of interest for them, curious to see how it plays out.
I wonder if the ptarmigan had a population boom this summer and are dispersing? I have a few buddies that run up in and around Hatchers Pass, the snow isn't deep, maybe 2 ft at most but it is hard pack right now.

As for the track, I am headed back out there tomorrow and am going to recon it a little more. I can not imagine what a little cub would be doing out in this weather and if there is a den near by I'd like to know! Don't need no run in with a momma bear

Wolverine tracks are usually in the typical paired weasel pattern

drasselt- I will keep that in mind, the snow is still soft in the spruce, so I am sure I can pick up the track and figure out exactly what it is, just going to take a little walking and time, something I didn't have much of yesterday.

I'm sure you know but I'll post anyway. Here are some gulo tracks in fresh snow;




and here are some that were made in deeper snow and then blown on by the wind

Bear track in the first picture, hind.
You are stacking the fur up John! Hoping to see more success in the future for ya.

Good job

Well got out there and got things set for this snow we are suppose to get, Confirmed that yes indeed those were bear track, About a quarter mile down I cut track, from the stride it looks like a little bear maybe 4 ft. Couldn't say if it was a blackie or a brownie.

This guy wasn't to happy to see me though





Finally am able to run the creek and got some more gear out today.

You guys be safe out there!

Nice cat HFT,
That little wandering bear might end up in one of your sets.

Boco, I honestly hope not!