Innholdsfortegnelse for January 2026 i The Trapper

Unless my arithmetic is wrong (which is entirely possible), this is the 140th editorial I’ve written for this magazine. The first one was in September 2008. I got the job by being in the right place at the right time. When then-editor Gordy Krahn moved on, I gladly stepped in since I’d already been writing for the magazine for more than two decades, it was a no-brainer. My job was twofold: write the editorials and, more importantly, look over the freelance feature articles and catch any glaring mistakes or miscues before they made it into print. Now here I am, 17-plus years into it, hanging in there like a hair in a biscuit. I’ve really enjoyed the ride and, yes, I’ve seen a lot of changes in the trapping industry.…

TRAPLINE CATCHES Winter brings a new rhythm to the line — frozen sets, crisp mornings, and the kind of silence only trappers understand. Across North America, our readers keep the spirit alive through their photos, stories, and hard-earned catches. Here’s what you’ve shared this month. The snow hasn’t slowed anyone down! Readers from every corner of the country have been sharing their midwinter successes. —North Dakota: Ben Kroeger reports a triple on red fox in a single night after a thaw refreeze. —Ontario: The Patterson brothers hauled 11 otter in five days from their new under-ice sets. —Kentucky: Jim “Stick” Holloway caught a rare color-phase gray fox — proof that persistence (and clean pan tension) pays off. Have a story or catch of your own? Email us a short note…

Thick ice, deep snow, pulling beavers on a sled makes most trappers wait for better weather. However, the professional beaver trapper knows at this time the beaver is fully prime. The competition is low and with the right knowledge a large catch can still be made with a little effort. Under ice beaver trapping is dangerous work. To do the job correctly we will need the following items, an otter sled, 330 bodygrippers equipped with 6 feet of chain and a fox grapple hook. We will need one inch in diameter stabilizing stakes to stabilize our trap. A few aspen or poplar boughs for bait and some 14-gauge wire. A 3lb axe is needed as well. In ideal circumstances a trapper already has the beaver lodge found and a rough…

Colorado Trappers & Predator Hunters Association www.coloradotrapper.com President, NTA Colorado Director, NRA Representative — Dan Gates, P.O. Box 128, Canon City, CO 81215, 719-275-4077 or 269-7972, Dan@ColoradoRidACritter.com Vice President — Adam Warren, P.O. Box 734, Dove Creek, CO 81324, 970-739-9404, adamwarren64@yahool.com Secretary-Treasurer — Karen Gates, P.O. Box 193, Canon City, CO 81215, 719-276-4260 or 719-275-4077, office@coltpha.com NW Regional Director — Kevin Herrman, P.O. Box 1862, Basalt, CO 81621, 970-379-5976, kherrman@advantagebuildersco.com SW Regional Director — Christy Bryan, 2375 Road 1.7, Dove Creek, CO 81324, 970-739-6437, skylinetaxidermy77@gmail.com SE Regional Director — Ethan Gates, P.O. Box 750, Canon City, CO 81215, 719-371-6401, ethangates21@gmail.com BOARD OF DIRECTORS Sept 1st, 2022 – August 13th, 2023 NE Regional Director — Naomi Yates, 38921 Poudre Canyon Hwy, Bellvue, CO 80512, 970-420-4250, naomiyatesgtb@gmail.com Wildlife Commission Liaison — Dan…

January not only marks the start of the new year, but also the start of selling seasons in the fur industry. Many of the local buyers haver already been active in their respective localities, but in January, bigger buyers start collecting fur along strategic routes or select stops. Indeed, trapping seasons across Canada and the United States run hard in November and December, and many trappers take advantage of the Christmas holidays to put up their skins in anticipation of selling them. Properly fleshed, boarded and dry skins always generate interest because buyers do not have to find “contractors’ to put them up. Large volume trappers often cannot deal with the amount of skinning and prefer to sell ‘green’ or ‘in the round”. Frozen pelts are impossible to grade and…

The high country silence was broken by the slight sounds of panting, the patter of feet on the occasional hard pack, and the S-H-H-H-H-H of the sled runners gliding smoothly through the 10 inches of new snow. The beauty of the virgin snow made me temporarily forget the hardships of trying to eek-out a living by running a trapline with a dog team. My mind was snapped back to reality when the huskies broke from a trot to a walk, then stopped. Ah, heck! Sometimes that smart aleck lead dog gets to thinking she’s smarter than I am. While I was taking in the scenery, we had come to a piece of orange surveyor’s tape tied to a tree limb next to the trail. The tape marked a location where…

Coyotes (Canis latrans) are among North America’s most adaptable and resilient predators. Once largely confined to the western plains, these canids expanded their range across the continent over the last century, thriving in farmland, forests, and even urban areas. Their success is rooted in intelligence, versatility, and an uncanny ability to survive alongside humans — traits that have made them both admired and notorious among trappers and wildlife managers alike. Historically, coyotes were considered secondary predators, often overshadowed by wolves and mountain lions. Yet, as human settlement reshaped the landscape, coyote populations surged. Forest clearing, agriculture, and expanding suburbs created abundant prey opportunities: rodents, rabbits, and other small mammals proliferated in these altered habitats. Coyotes quickly adapted, exploiting food sources in ways both predictable and surprising. Trappers historically viewed coyotes…

In baseball terms, an opossum on the trapline is a bunt single. There’s nothing flashy about them, and they’re more than taken for granted. But, at the end of the day, they’re far better than striking out looking or swinging. It seems like I’ve caught a lot of possums over these past few years in my foray of becoming a more serious trapper. It could be simple supply — lots of them in what was previous an untrapped landscape — or merely a result of my novice trap-setting abilities. Or both. Either way, I’ve embraced what some call the lowly possum. And I’m looking forward to putting those pelts to use as something both memorable (hat, perhaps) and useful (blanket?). As is the case of all furbearers in my area…

For the serious trapper, few resources hold the historical weight and practical instruction of the Classic Video by Herb Lenon DVD Trapping Instruction. This is not just a tutorial; it’s a preserved piece of American trapping heritage, offering a direct look into the methods of a legendary master. Originally filmed between 1937 and 1940 on 8mm movie film, this 55-minute feature has been carefully remastered and captioned to provide a clear, insightful education from the “old master” himself. A LESSON FROM A LEGEND Herb Lenon’s credentials are unparalleled. The video was initially created for training trappers during his tenure as a Michigan State Trapper Instructor. His lifetime of dedication to the craft earned him inductions into “The Trapper & Predator Caller Hall Of Fame” (1981), “The National Trappers Association Hall…

I’ve been around this industry quite a few years, and I can read some sign. Sign indicates there has been a downward trend in the fur market. Nobody has asked me to comment, but that’s never stopped me before. Let’s look at our world of trapping as a big house in which we dwell. Sometimes trapping is in the kitchen putting, food on the table. Sometimes, trapping is in the den providing recreation for many trappers. And sometimes, trapping is in the basement. That’s the lowest part of the house. And today we must hope that our fur market will at least rise to the level of the basement. Some might say that trapping is somewhere in the middle, while others might say it’s in the toilet. Hard to argue…