We got a got a dump of snow here. -8 tonight and a high of -4 tomorrow. Gonna hit a property in the morning where a guy wants us to clean up the beaver. It’s on a river but apparently it’s low and not moving.
Looks like your trigger wires are straight like from factory. Im guessing you set them way off to the side? I started bending them in a T and under the water this fall after watching a video of them around 330s at night. Waders are good for keeping the pants dry, but mine are like funnels for crap falling in. $100 frog toggs. They’re comfy but not very tough. I might bite the bullet and order a set of Dans briar proof, looks like they fit tighter up top.

Those are new traps,I havent got around to twisting the 2 wires together as a single unit like I normally do.
I like to set dead center when trapping open water,no need for them to get too far into the trap in most open water setting.

You twist em and set off to the side or in the middle?

Dead center for open water or in deep water channells.
The only time I want the beaver well into the trap is when setting multiple traps side by side under ice at the main den entrance or multiples at dam breaks.Then I move them over to one side.

nice job

photos just go to show that beaver a dumb until the are not.
Around here, most problem beaver are USDA square and stick/ fencing shy by the time I get to play.

Smart ones on the line are your seed for next season.
No need to waste time just skim the cream and keep moving into untrapped country.
Why I like furtrapping better than nuisance,and the weather is much more tolerable than trapping in summer.

Went out to check the line today.Beaver getting thinned out now.Also got a freeze up now,but it could thaw before the permanent freeze sets in.I will pull the beaver traps next run if still frozen.If I decide to extend the line further back in I will wait till good ice.
Got two beaver today,a mink,and two Otters,one otter was a runt caught in a mink box,the other was a big one but was eaten up by cats.
The runt Otter smelled bad of skunk,he must have tried to tangle with a skunk and got the buisness.
Picked up another limit of ruffed grouse.

I always enjoy your pictures. It looks like you have a lot of grouse in your area or is it like that all over Ontario?

Not sure how widespread it is but the ruffed grouse dont often outnumber the spruce grouse and the sharptails like they are this year.

Which of those three are the best eating grouse. I only ate rough grouse in my lifetime

They all taste good to me.
Ruffed partridge are good fried as nuggets,spruce partridge are good in a stew with dumplings and sharptails because of their large size are good for partridge kiev.
Had some partridge stir fry last night,

Your making me hungry for grouse.

They are good eating allright,but I'll be sick of them in a couple weeks,lol.

Thanks for the pictures Boco. Always fun to see trapping from further north.

Checked a few traps on the driftwood line today.
I set out 16 boxes to see what is out there.
Picked up 3 marten and a ermine.
2 marten are definitely adult males since I could easily feel the groove on the top of the head.
The other is a female,cant tell until I skin if adult or juvenile.
Forgot to take the pic of the last marten before I took him out of the trap.

I will have to set up a few test boxes on the northern line next trip up to see how the marten pops are up there.

You using 160s for your mink sets in case an otter comes in?

No,120s in mink boxes.
120 will kill any size otter quick

Nice pictures boco …. Thanks for the explanation on the grouse species, you are piling up the partridge !

Went out today to cut a couple trees that were across the trail into camp.
I had a couple marten boxes set at the beginning of the trail and one had a fresh caught Canary Marten.
First Canary Marten I have caught in about 8 years.The last one I caught was part eaten.Back in the early 90's I was lucky to get 3 canary marten in one season.
This one is an adult male and in perfect shape.
i froze him whole in case a taxidermist wants to buy it.