Trapping is not a task for just anyone to take on.
For those of you who don’t think trapping is a hard job, try it for a spell. The trapper who has a medium to large trapline has to endure all sorts of harsh weather and be willing to take whatever Mother Nature dishes out.
If other trappers are like yours truly, they get soaked to the bone from time to time, either from the rain or from finding some weak ice. Not to mention, the old “the dam looked a little more solid than that” excuse.
Then there’s the daily bumps, bruises, wire cuts, twig scrapes, the old finger in the trap trick, and the list goes on. But if you trappers are like myself you enjoy it, and once it’s in the blood it stays with you. Other hard-core trappers I’ve talked with all share that same sentiment. It’s an on-going relationship with the bush and every fall the clock in their head tells them it’s time to get out there.
There are long days in the life of the average trapper. Some trappers put in 16 or more hours a day working, sometimes for weeks at a time with no days off. Most professional trappers I know are on the trapline setting and checking traps before the sun comes up and don’t return to camp until the sun goes down. They squeeze in a quick dinner and skin critters until almost midnight, have a quick wash and drop into bed. I know I’ve had many days like that.
My hat also goes off to the families that have to put up with us being gone and working long hours, not to mention putting up with a bit of odour. Most animals do have their own smell and some of them are not exactly spring roses, if you know what I mean.
Not all trapping experiences are in favour of the trapper either.
For starters, animals are a lot smarter than most people give them credit for, and trappers usually have first-hand experience in this area. Sometimes those animals can be downright mischievous.
Beavers can be as wise an animal as any. Some of you think these shy creatures are slow, but in reality they can move like greased lightning and can be downright mean when cornered. They also can outsmart a trapper from time to time and even get some payback of their own in the process. I know some of you trappers have run into a wise old trap-smart beaver from time to time and maybe you have a story similar to mine.
I had set up a drowning slide wire set at this one particular beaver house and was using the standard number-four leghold with a slide lock. I knew I was up against a wise old beaver when I returned to my set the next day. I found not only my trap but the wire I used to secure my weight to the bottom of the pond all piled and partially buried in a mound beside the trail.
The only thing missing was the “nice try” sign in the mud beside my trap. Needless to say, I tried a variety of different sets including Conibears, legholds and snares, but this old beaver had his act together. However, that beaver did eventually make it to my stretcher board by getting too cocky and fell victim to a blind set – using a dummy set as a decoy. But this is a good example of a cunning beaver.
Some of these critters have been known to patch the holes put in their dam, which in itself isn’t all that surprising. However, some trappers I know tell tales about the smart and innovative use of materials by the beavers they’ve encountered. For example, not only have beavers been known to use recently sprung traps but they have used the traps that contain the carcass of a beaver – making the dead beaver a part of the patchwork of their dam. This happened to me a couple of times last season. Now is that smart or what?
Not only do they out-smart you at times but they have their own way of telling you where to go.
I knew a trapper who had problems catching a wise old cross fox and had to use an arsenal of traps to get him. The interesting fact of this particular story was that the fox deliberately traveled from fox set to fox set digging under his traps and setting them off. It took the trapper quite an investment in valuable time to get him.
There was another old trapper who had a wolverine problem to deal with. This animal was also traveling from set to set triggering traps. But this critter had a style all his own. It not only triggered the traps but demolished the trapper’s sets too and then left a calling card to boot. I’ll let you fill in the blanks. This trapper called a more experienced trapper to assist him in the taking of this critter. Not only did he have to recruit help but he also had to pull all his sets until mister wolverine was caught.
These are only a few examples of animal cunning, but if you can take the time talk to some of the older trappers. I imagine they can tell you a tale or two. It is a vicious cycle for animals in their environment and we should consider ourselves lucky because we are at the top of the food chain. The animal kingdom has its own cycle of life and death which goes on daily – from season to season.
Trapping assists in maintaining the healthy balance of fur-bearing animals. The wilderness is shrinking, and along with it the animals’ natural habitat. If we didn’t intervene, the delicate balance would be lost.
It is also in my own experience a very important part of Aboriginal life and a basis for our spirituality by keeping us connected to our traditional cultures through the old ways of survival. It was my grandfather who instilled the love of trapping in me by teaching me what he knew.
The trapper has to understand the animals he or she is trapping, including the life cycles of all the animals being targeted. Another important value to add to your trapping skills is to know when to pull your traps. Most Aboriginal trappers don’t have to follow quotas, but my understanding of the basis of trapping is, save some for the next generation. In other words, don’t kill off the beaver house.
Being educated about ongoing humane trapping methods should also be kept in mind. Most of all, though, trapping is a chance to gain an education from nature that not too many people in this day and age get to experience.
As our nights cool off and our days shorten and the change in the seasons can be felt on the breeze, I eagerly look forward to another hard but rewarding trapping season. However, my question still stands, “So you want to be a trapper?” If you have any trapping stories you would like to share with me, write to me at Comp. 5, Site 14, North Bay, Ontario, P1B 8G3.
