If you're in IL you need to let the people know your doing them a favor tell then what you can do for them if it’s “I want to trap” they won’t care in IL and permissions in the West is a world apart from permissions in IL. The chance of being invited in for cookies and coffee in IL is about zero! LOL

Get a plat book and find your big farmers. Drive the farms and look for solutions to offer. Beaver dams are indicators. Guessing Illinois around you is mostly crops. Eliminate flooding caused by beavers into crops and that will open up what you want to trap. Kill the beavers when you see them being a problem. Most farmers dont care about coyotes and usually are not a problem so they have no desire to have you around. Offer a solution that will impact their bottom line that they dont have to get an excavator out to solve. Again, get to know and ride with your conservation agents in surrounding counties - they get the calls for nuisance and be able to prove yourself - not just TRY to catch something. Be prepared to trap species you may not care about - like groundhogs or skunks.

Join your state trappers association and find other trappers around you. Ride with them and get to know landowners from them. It is an aging thing - would guess there is an older trapper that would desire to have you help if can bring anything to the table. Skin for them or scrape. Most trappers I know have multiple lines and would assist and younger trapper.

Call and ride with one of these guys closest to you.


ITA Board of Directors (Revised 10/2/2024)

Ryan Ruhl - President Bob Collins
5027 E 1670 St 3220 Gross Gables
Cambridge, IL 61238 Quincy, IL 62305
bhfdto@gmail.com lighthousebob@hotmail.com
(309) 368-2523 (217) 242-7414

Cody Champ - Vice President John Fink
9530 E. Meadows Rd. 1664 Pheasant Ridge Dr.
Mt. Vernon, IL 62864 Lincoln, IL 62656
Cody.champ@yahoo.com johnfink61@yahoo.com
(618) 231-4868 (217) 671-4329

Andy Day - Treasurer Jordan McGinnis
297 Creve Coeur Ct. 3730 E. 800th Ave.
Creve Coeur, IL 61610 Altamont, IL 62411
pcfixertech@gmail.com 437trapper@gmail.com
(309) 397-0691 (618) 367-1625

Mike O'Brien - Secretary Dean Corgiat
344 2400th St. dcorgiat@gmail.com
Emden, IL 62635 (217) 491-0936
moby915@hotmail.com
(217) 671-8045 Timothy M. Kelley
​ 22987 DiGiovanna Ave.
Dave Scifres Athens, IL 62613
28533 Queenwood Rd. tmkelley69@att.net
Morton, IL 61550 (217) 415-4347
dscifres@gmail.com
(309) 264-7133 Neal Graves
​ Forest City, IL 61532
Joe McCall bzbeaver@hotmail.com
303 Chestnut St (309) 989-7616
Varna, IL 61375
joemccall77@yahoo.com Mark Hebert
(309) 238-2155 1112 E. 2450 Ave.
​ Ramsey, IL 62080
Kent Weil mhebert062@gmail.com
11054 Robin Ln (618) 292-5079
Athens, IL 62613
kentweil.kw@icloud.com
(217) 836-2682

Mike Vose
P.O. Box 183
Perry, IL 62362
Buckfever.mikevose@gmail.com
(217) 779-481