Hey I’m a 15 year old kid from sd I don’t have alot of experience my best friend and I have been coon hunting a lot over the spring and summer for a state conservation program but last weekend I killed 6 coons and let me tell you these guys were big and the fur on there back was really nice actually alot of under fur with good long guard hairs but there under belly seemed undergirded compared to the back what should a guy look for to know when to start putting out the line

Look at the guard hairs when they are no longer wavy and are now straight are a good indicator. You'll still have young of the year and sows still blue weeks or sometimes months after your adult boars prime up.

The hips/legs of the raccoons prime up last so if they're a bit scraggly looking, the still aren't ready.

The " blue " color is the most noticeable after skinning and fleshing when you put them on a stretcher .

My personal favorite looking raccoon hide is late fall or early winter when they get to looking like a silver dollar so to speak with silver tips on there hair .

Brushing the hide before stretching helps so when you cut the observation window so to speak it looks nice then a old towel is handy for wiping off the extra grease off the hide after stretching the fur too .

Keep up the good work !

Use periods at the end of your sentences, so I can catch my breath.

Its these kids these days with their dang phones. Destroying any grammar or rules of punctuation they might know.

Guys can't be serious about the Grammer I hope I'm reading sarcasm there

The "texting" generation.....lol

Not all of us are like that.

me fix for u.
It’s early to trap beaver here, but here I am……trappin beaver.

Hey, don’t run this one off like that other “kid” who made 9000 posts in one day a few months ago, lol.
We are a dying breed, can’t afford to loose the next generation.

Good point, Average Joe. Just answer the kid's question.Good grief.

Farmkid - It is still too early for coon hides to be any good. They will start to prime up as the days get shorter, and not all will become "prime" at the same time. By about the second week in November most coons should be very nice in your area. Good luck!

Early to mid November coon here in SE Nebraska is still to early but I bet your neck of woods in South Dakota should be fine.
Our season opens on Nov 1st but after years of this (see pics) I always wait now until at least after thanksgiving and waiting to December 1st is even better. Now you are many miles North of me so your coon should prime a little sooner than ours here. Maybe 2nd week or November for you?
These were my finished mid-November coon. The darker ones are “blue” and not prime at all. The creamy white to tan hides are prime.
Waiting until after all are prime will get you more consistently better quality hides.
Of course some prime up later than others. Kits and sows seem to go much later than decent boars.

This pic, two in middle are too early and are blue. Outside two are more prime.


This pic (sorry it’s blurry, it’s an old pic) second from right is very blue. Second from left is slightly blue. The others much more prime.



Looking at guard hair is one way to tell but I always found actually peeling them and fleshing them out will absolutely show you how prime they really are.

I understand there are some logistics to manage with time of year too. Open water in earlier part of season you can hammer coon. The later you wait you will get better coon but the weather becomes a factor and after freeze up you have to change tactics away from water easy trapping to trails and fields more dryland trapping.

When I was younger driving in early season was much easier than navigating my vehicle on snow and icy roads too. Work with what you can and are able to safely accomplish. I trap coyotes mostly these days but still take a lot of coon just mostly out along field edges and trails.

Good luck and keep us posted on your successes. Always great to see youth getting involved and please know we all highly encourage you to go get em and have fun. With todays low prices quality matters. But on other hand what a great time for a newer trapper to get out and learn. Lots of animals out there, not as much competition, and wow what an opportunity to go have some fun. Go get em kid!

Jim