Think he's using those as drowning rods of sorts. Attack wire to the deep end side shove into the much then pin the top to another stake

Wading?whats that.
I set those in running shoes from dry land.
You guys must not know how many beaver are trapped in the North.I dont really care if it doesnt work in the tropics.
Not everyone traps in alligator snake country,or only with permission from John Doe.I doubt many would want to.
Carry on now hauling around your rebar,concrete and other building material,lol.

Dang I almost hate to admit it Boco is correct. I’ve trap many beaver in ankle hi boots. Years ago dumped the waders and hip boots.

I love trapping beaver in muck type boots. Just don't always have that option.

Yes but am using ones that have an end broke or corner broke so not full block. Don't have issues with smaller to average size beaver moving them but the extra big ones are moving them. Doesn't matter front foot or back foot catches.

Most of my areas are a walk. The problem here I usually have mud that is deeper than the water. No wading in that stuff.

Op is in Minnesota....so I'll agree...that's definitely north....from here...

X2

Swamp Wolf,
I run stakes like Boco. Now I often set them in hip boots, because I prefer to stand in the water when setting the trap, so I am already out there, but as Boco says they can often be set from dry land, just depends on how deep the water is how long you need to cut your stake to reach bottom from shore. Hard packed sandy bottom would be ideal, you should be able to drive a sharpened stake in that with an axe nicely. If the bottom is rock or hardpan, that is when I use weights. If you can't drive the drowning stake in hard enough the beaver can't pull it out, but you can get it driven in some, then you can do as Sniper says and use a long stake and bend it over and wire the top to a stake or tree or etc. on the bank, so that a beaver can't pull it up.

Warrior, a)I'm not cutting marketable stuff, usually alder, or willow that is growing along the edge of the creek. b) often enough I'm using "beaver sticks" that the beaver has already cut, so in that case the only cutting I am doing is to length. I don't like to use fir, pine, spruce or anything like that, that would grow into lumber (even though generally you can't log next to a creek anyways) if there is anything else available for the simple reason I don't like pitch all over my hands. So if I do use conifers, I prefer them to be dead and dried.

Standing dead is what you want.Nice and light and much more rigid.
Old beaver sticks work well,if you can find ones long enough.

Landowners deal with idiot deer hunters driving over stuff, driving nails and just being pains in the rear to the point of setting down some hard and fasts.

But I honestly don't see how that replaces a fiberglass rod.

You can also run 2 or more traps down a slide to the deepwater stake for multiples/extended checks..
I have pulled up 3 beaver from the one pole a few times.

I’ve heard others describe anchoring this way before. I think it’s too easy….hahaha.

Look in your big book Jake-pg-978 shows how to make the set.

If your bottoms are soft/muddy then drowning rods are absolutely the way to go. Fiberglass if you are having to tote them

For our rocky bottoms here I am forced to use a cable or chain system with a heavy weight on one end. One 8" concrete block is not enough weight to drown a big beaver. Most 8" block weigh 30 pounds or so. A 60 pound beaver will eat that for lunch. If I am using 8" concrete block I will use two of them as the deep end weight.

I have some 12" architectural split face block that are heavy as heck that work great. Just get tired of carrying them down the bank. If I am having to walk in a ways I will fill sacks with rocks

When someone figures out how to use/make a drowning rod in very hard bottom/rocky conditions my beaver trapping will get much easier

Concrete blocks make poor drowning weights because they have some bouyancy in water. Not enough to float obviously but their apparent weight under water is only about 60% of their actual wt out of water. So that 35 pound block you struggle to carry in is only giving you about 21 pounds of drowning wt.

Holy smokes, there’s a lot in this book that I haven’t seen yet!

Best thing about the deep water drowning stake pole is you can run 2 or 3 drown wires to the one pole,for multiple catches on extended checks.
I started using that set back in 1970.Its not new,was used for 50 years at least before that by the oldtimers.
Old Pa Turner taught me that set.

A 6 or 8 lb weight placed right on the trap chain as close as possible to the trap will drown any size beaver In short order. A beaver may be able to drag a cement block back to shore but If It can't keep It's head above water It's going down for the count.
We just stake In deep water with a long chain and a sash weight or a tie plate attached close to the trap. Works for me.

The multiple sets close together is a good idea. I watched “Teachers of the night, Beavers” DVD and the night footage of sets is pretty crazy. They started setting multiple traps after seeing the footage. It also shows how they hate the trigger wires in their face, and that they know there’s a BG trap hiding in front of them.
The one beaver was a fraction of an inch of being suitcased and backed out, went around. The triggers were formed in a circle shape.