I have finally caught my first beaver. Only really started trying this year, but it finally happened today. Let's start the story from the start. A few months ago, I was at a local lake that I enjoy fishing at, I don't catch much but a few 6-8" perch. They feel big on the 5wt fly rod though. I had come out during the fall to help the dog run off some energy and an old trapper was there who no longer traps but also enjoys running his dog there. This trapper has given me lots of gear over the few years I have known him. We were sitting there talking one day and saw beaver after beaver go under the water into a bank den where I presume they were houses in a root ball of the many cottonwoods surrounding the lake. So I mark it on my Onx to come back later in the year to try for beaver and I had a plan for Thanksgiving break. Well lo and behold, we had a hard freeze, only a week into November so my plans were off until the ice got good enough. By the time I had good enough ice to walk on, the road was closed off to this lake due to snow drifts. So I just trapped rats for the time being. After fishing this lake a few times, I headed up here on Tuesday during one of the many drives that I do during the week and I saw freshly chewed trees. So I investigated since this is where I believed their food cache was located. I found a decent sized hole in the ice about 18" x 18" and had fresh chewed sticks and mud slicked up on it. And muddy trails going to the north and south. So I dropped a 330 in on a stick using the springs to brace it and baited the trigger with a random wood that's bright green when freshly stripped. I went out yesterday and it froze in so I decided to change it up. I took a good piece of stove pipe wire and wrapped it around the ends of the springs where the chain usually is and it made a sort of U when the springs were put straight up and down. So I shoved a stick through the U and braced it into the snow. I then took another and wired the chain to it. Before I left, I took a smear of Dobbin's
Backbreaker and put it on a piece of drift wood near the hole. Now time for the good part.
I went out today with my dad after school. We got to the set after driving across the lake and I go to chip out the ice I get it chipped out and start to pull the trap out and I see that one spring is set off. So I keep pulling and I see some fur through the water. Well, the hole wasn't big enough with the springs not compressed. So I compressed one and chipped the hole out more and here comes a little 10-15 lb beaver. It may not be a big one like my buddy who had a 50+ pounder as his first but it's still a first. It was a great surprise since I have never trapped a beaver before, let alone through the ice. Now it's drying to be skinned out and I will then have to bring it to the fur buyers to be fleshed and stretched, I'm going to tan this one and keep it as well as one of its chewings from the hole. Anyways, enough of story time, here's a picture of me with it.
![[Linked Image]](https://trapperman.com/forum/attachments/usergals/2023/02/full-56390-169038-first_beaver.jpg)
