Frozen Traps

Last Friday night was a good night for trapping foxes. There were fox prints by four of my sets, one set of foot prints right on the top of my trap at a dirt hole set. Unfortunately I caught no fox, why? Because my trap was frozen into the ground. Two of the fox prints had been by some of my cable restraints (which thankfully do not freeze up!) But I did not get anything in those either. Judging from the prints the fox had started to go on the trail the cable restraint was on, but went the other direction instead. Then in the other cable restraint set I think the fox went through a small gap I had left next to the cable restraint instead of through the cable restraint (I fixed the gap after seeing that.)

Well, I am pretty sure I have my traps set in good locations so all I can do is keep checking my traps, and wait for the next night when the fox come out. Maybe I'll get one then!

Cable Restraint Course

I took my cable restraint course yesterday.

They gave me one cable restrain (we used them to make some sets out in the field for the instructors to look at to see how well we set them up), a manual on cable restraints, the pa hunting trapping digest (like I did not get one when I got my license), and a temporary card saying I completed the course that is good for 90 days (it might have been 60 I forget). The game commission is supposed to issue a replacement card for my temporary card. It cost $15 to take the course (the course is mandatory if I want to use cable restraints). It went from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm, while four hours my seem like a long time, the time passed rather quickly.

I missed four questions on my test (but I still passed), but I think would have done better if I had enough time to read the manual they gave me. I guess maybe if I have showed up before 9:00 am instead of 9:01 am I would have had time to look it over.

After the course a guy demonstrated trapping with steel traps (this has nothing to do with the course). One of the sets he showed was a hay/straw bale put out in a field by itself. Then you put your trap next to the bale, spread some straw from the bale over the dirt spot, where your trap is, so that is looks like it just kind of fell out of the bale. Next you dig a hole (like a dirt hole set up) under the bale in front of your trap. Put some bait/scent or some thing down the hole, and dribble some fox or coyote urine on the bale above the hole.