After 12 summers of snapping turtle trapping I have decided to call it at an end. Snapper trapping is a very physical pursuit and at 68 my old hip replacement (done in 2002) is telling me it's time. First picture is the truckload that I sold Sunday, 3100 pounds. That puts me at just over 137,000 pounds of snappers for the 12 summers. Last trap I pulled had 9 turtles, 6 of them legitimate keepers, was a great ending. Here are some other turtle pictures from over the years,












Sometimes the best part of turtle trapping was the sunrises

Awesome pics. That's a lot of turtles!

awesome pics. youve caught a few odd ones over the years. i miss trapping them back in the day.

I've been waiting for this eric! Always look forward to your threads. So happy for you that you ended on such a high note. I am also sorry to hear your gonna have to stop trapping turtles, so bitter sweet I guess. Thanks for posting threads like this with such great pics and thanks for ALWAYS taking the time to answer questions and help others, like me. You are the kind of trapper that gives trappers a good name.

I look forward to see what you get in to next and wish you well my friend.

Thank you eric, I appreciate ya,

Jeff

Thank you for sharing we catch a couple every year

How long does it take to clean them all?

Enjoyed your pics. That's a lot of snappers

Dang man that's a lotta turtle soup!

Eric, good luck to you and thanks for posting that. Incredible pics and that’s 68.5 ton of turtles. Amazing!!!! Do you know the average price over the years? Thanks

Congrats Sir, that's quite an accomplishment. Thanks for sharing. Be nice if you had someone to pass the torch to with equal enthusiasm and you could stay involved as a consultant/assistant.

That's an impressive run, great pics!

Thanks for the pic. I assume they are sold for food

I always look forward to this post. The pic of the turtles in bed of the truck always makes me smile. It's just wild.

What happened, if you know, to the one in the 5th picture?

Thanks for sharing the journey. That is quite impressive!

Chris

Turtle in the fifth picture had been stuck in a plastic 6 pack holder when small. As she grew it tightened and gave her an hour-glass shape. Small piece of plastic was still imbedded in her shell. I released her and the hump backed one also pictured, They earned the right to survive, having already beaten the odds on surviving.

That is a whole lot of good old fashioned work there I have carried 2 snappers ,one in each hand a few hundred feet .It is amazing had fast they gain weight as you go You certainly earn to right to say It is a time to move on .Congats on many great seasons and best wishes as you pursue other things

Good job Eric!
Sad to hear I recall you sayin you enjoyed catching turtles so much... Hope that hip gets better

Way to go.

Some nice photos, thanks for sharing.


Is there a local market out there for them?

I think turtle trapping and eating was popular in SW WI back in the day. Not sure if its still going.

In Mi. you can only keep one turtle a day.