Brought the camera today on a nuisance job I have been working on.Canoe access.
Once I am done I will rip out this big dam,its holding back a lot of water,she should really rock once I put the back into it.





Just got off the creek before a big thunderstorm rolled in.

Nice pics.

is your access from upstream?

How are the bugs Boco? I don't it would be much in this country now.

Yes access is upstream from the dam-you can jump across the creek below the dam,lol.Not kidding its about 2 feet wide.

No bugs last few days cause its been cool with little sun.
When the sun comes out the horseflys are a bother.The mosquitos are only active in early morning and in the evening just before dark.
The blackflies and mosquitos have died down quite a bit now.From now on the bugs arent much of a problem.

you gonna leave before it drains?

I will be paddling against the current for about half a mile or so.Not too far.likely have to haul the canoe over at least one old flooded dam.Maybe have to rip it out some too.

That creek is full of fishing minnows.Red side dace,yellow side dace chubs,sucker minnows,and sculpins.Great pickerel bait.
There is a guy who commercial nets minnows on this creek,he may find a few of his traps a bit shallow,lol.

Boco, I always enjoy your pictures beautiful country.
What kind of canoe are you using?

We had the same kinds of minnows in the UP that we sold.

It is just about time for the second hatch then.

Warm days in October(Indian summer) are bad for black flies.

That is an old beater canoe,12 foot fiberglas that has been patched umpteen times.It dont leak much though.
It came with the last trapline I bought-it and a freighter canoe were at the cabin.
I hauled it out to home for doing nuisance work out of the truck on smaller water.I took a better canoe to the river camp.
I got a few old beater canoes stashed here and there on the traplines for occasional use.
I know where there are a couple canoes on one old guys trapline stashed,he said I could have them if I wanted to go in to get them in winter.
There are all kinds of old aluminum boats and canoes stashed all over the bush at portages and trail river crossings some long forgotten.

You can do it put your back into it!

Your darn tootin I can,just a bit slower nowadays.

Can you get a explosive permit because of your work ? Would think it would be helpful.

Not allowed to blow dams.Used to do it on the RR long time ago.
I have broken hundreds of dams by hand most are easy enough to do if you go about it correctly.
Remove all the sticks on the low side by hand,then pull the top and the water will do the work.That way you can control the amount of water that goes downstream so it doesnt damage fish habitat or infrastructure.Let it go slower than blasting.
Old clay dams with vegetation are tough or stick dams that are frozen.Dont encounter these in normal nuisance beaver work.Nuisance beaver become a nuisance due to recent activity.
A chainsaw with a 3 foot bar makes short work of stick dams summer or winter.
The worst ones I ever worked are small culverts,plugged inside with 8 or more feet of water backed up over the culvert.Too small to get inside from the low end,and too deep of water to effectively work from the deep end.A wajax fire pump can open these.or at least get the water running thru (after the beaver have been removed)enough to drop the water.Then the culvert can be cleaned out.

My trapping canoe is just like yours Boco

Nice area. Thanks for sharing

In country like that ,what is a beaver dam hurting?Is it just the flooding of timber and killing the trees?Nice pictures.