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Post by White Mountain Trappers on Oct 11, 2015 5:56:52 GMT -5
I thought we could talk a little about mink trapping, sets, baited and blind? Maybe some pictures of your locations and why you chose them and your sets would be helpful. before and after freeze up?
would like to hear from some mink guys here......Mr. Mole??? And I know I have read about mark starting to get into them!
Dale
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austinp
#3 Newhouse
the next fur season is never far from our minds :)
Posts: 3,008
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Post by austinp on Oct 11, 2015 10:28:46 GMT -5
I haven't made any mink-specific sets in years... but I make a lot of water sets each season with high-odds of taking mink. So that sort of negates the need for mink specific sets, because I simply pick off most of the travelers somewhere along my line. As a general rule, mink can be expected at sets in certain locations such as channels that connect two bodies of water. Those are obviously key, same as they are for everything from muskrats to beaver and otter as well. During low water periods the passing mink may spend equal to greater time at water's edge on land as they will in water. But when it rains and/or snow melts and water rises, they will spend most time in the water. So therefore, when you have sets out during periods of rising water, focus more attention towards bodygrips in classic pinch points that others refer to as "bottom edge" locations. All of us old-time muskrat trappers have been making "bottom edge" sets for decades, long before any books or dvds made the concept common knowledge. Last year I took 24 mink along the water lines, all in bodygrips and most of them in Bridger #150s. I do think the 5" bodygrip trap is ideal size for mink in the water.
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Post by mole on Oct 12, 2015 2:29:39 GMT -5
Volumes have been written about mink
If I am going to set a trap for mink my first thought is a pocket set. It is nothing more than a dirt hole set. You can make them wet or dry. I like bait , beaver being my favorite, muskrat second. A 1.5 coilspring is favorite trap, a #1 long spring will do just fine. Dig hole in slanting up if possible and no wider than the trap, pin bait in hole set trap with zero pan tension and you are in business.
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Post by jsevering on Oct 12, 2015 8:45:38 GMT -5
like blind setting for mink, with the streams we have here (rocky for the most part, blind sets are a hair easier to get in)... traps, wire, structure and go... quickest way locally to cover more ground with less hassles... the two pictures show how, shore structure, bank structure and natural guides come together to create or form pinch points some... hope they help... like anything in life, important to keep in mind all streams aren't created equal and you have other options, for what or how a stop presents itself... jim
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Post by White Mountain Trappers on Oct 12, 2015 11:22:09 GMT -5
The steams we have here in New Hampshire look very similar to those. Thanks for the pictures Mr Severing, they give me a reference of what to look for.....seems like mink will sniff and enter almost any nook or crevasse while hunting and I probably will blind set quite a bit. I'll use a BE set after we start to see some ice....hopefully they will be more apt to stay operational when the bad weather hits, as it surely will!! Thank you to Austin and Mole also. Would Salt Cod be something that could be used as a bait?? It has quite a fishy smell???
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austinp
#3 Newhouse
the next fur season is never far from our minds :)
Posts: 3,008
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Post by austinp on Oct 12, 2015 11:53:22 GMT -5
we have every type of water imaginable around me... from little rocky trickles and streams out of the hills to soft-bottom flows in the valleys. If you study mink long enough, you develop the "eye" to see hotspots anywhere for mink. That said, they are the one furbearer that will run dry land one trip thru and swim the bottom next trip thru. even baited sets for mink will miss those taking the aquatic route... which is why it's important to mix sets up with different types clustered when possible. Cover all bases, because you never know exactly which baseline those mink will run tonight
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Post by 160andup on Oct 12, 2015 15:23:25 GMT -5
Anything that catches your attention/curiosity along the edge of a stream will likely catch a mink's attention. Drain tiles, holes, undercut dry banks, pinch points etc... Set them all!
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Post by papabear on Oct 22, 2015 11:50:34 GMT -5
Dear Friend, Baited bodygrips, hanging bait, blind and pocket sets in the order listed is what I use. The first two are the most versatile during early fall's constant water fluctuations. Blind and pocket sets come into play more towards Thanksgiving when things start to freeze up and water levels tend to stabilize. Regards
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Post by White Mountain Trappers on Oct 23, 2015 8:33:13 GMT -5
Dear Friend, Baited bodygrips, hanging bait, blind and pocket sets in the order listed is what I use. The first two are the most versatile during early fall's constant water fluctuations. Blind and pocket sets come into play more towards Thanksgiving when things start to freeze up and water levels tend to stabilize. Regards Hi papa bear....when you say hanging bait do you mean hung over a foot hold trap?
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Post by papabear on Oct 23, 2015 16:56:01 GMT -5
Dear Friend, Yes sir, that's exactly what I mean. Regards
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