Squirrel dog

[MarketHunter]

You boys are officially the coon killingest I ever heard tell of. That's some pile of fur, I wouldn't want to be in charge of skinning....

DLH

[Blind Dog]

Old Ed Markel was a local buyer (gone now) where I would drop off my 3 or 4 a night for $3to $6 a critter. Ed wanted the whole carcass as he had a market for the meat in the big city. His shop was pretty rank and sometimes he had a couple of pickup loads on the floor. He had a couple of teenage Amish boys to do the heavy lifting.

[Boxbirder]

You peel them and have them on the board in about 6 mins. Back in the day when I was a kid I met and old timer "Andy" who showed me the ropes of hounds and skinning. It wasn't until I got out of college and paid a few western long liners to showme how to really catch fur. Then it was Andy doing my skinning for many years, I can remember backing in with my truck and unloading a bed full of fur. Then when the fur market crashed everyone stopped trapping and I kept at it. My catch doubled with so few trappers. But even today with a busy business taking me into the heart of NYC I still find the time every fall to go back to my roots of havesting fur.
You put the time in on the off season runs like this state hopping can be done in short order.

[Tom Brown]

How many miles of trap line to get that fir stacked so high? Don't tell me that's just a day's catch... c'mon. T

[Boxbirder]

Out of state on a legal 2 day check. I hate to break it to you it all comes down to having your line prepped and ready to go, then it's set the traps. I know guys out in Iowa doing 100 plus coon a nite, some almost 200 set, check, pull, man becomes machine. At the end of the day all you need is a good work ethic and you can over come anything that is thrown at you except a deep snow or an ice out. My season just closed last week, this morning I woke up and unloaded my trapping truck, that will go to my mechanic to get the once over, replace what ever and stored in my barn til next season. All my gear will be washed prepped gone through, dyed and waxed. Any gear that is in question ebay, by June 1st I will have just about all my gear done and ready, then it's get my permission again, plan my line so by July I am done. Look over maps, maybe move some things around. But I know plenty of trappers that will start getting ready 2 weeks before the start and they wonder why they come up short every year. No bait, magic set, gear will put fur in the back of the truck just hard work. I know a gent in Indiana that did 400 plus coyotes in 11 days this past season it can be done. Of course you have to want it and being single sure helps. LOL

[Tom Brown]

I'm facinated with these large catches, nothing like I knew when growing up. Pete Rickard showed me how to trap foxes when he was alive, I was about 17years old then, I cought 14 one year both reds and grays using dirt hole sets. Mostly coon hunted. Pete knew many trappers around the states and canada like Pierre Cody, through his mail order trapping supply business of which is now permanently closed. Heard stories about Butcher and Dailey in their early days in the adirondacks and the "spring hole set". Had several friends in upstate NY both of whom caught 40-50 fox yearly and had their regular jobs. Nothing like what your averaging. T

[Boxbirder]

I am not putting down those men you mentioned, but there were guys trapping circles around them. Pud Long, J Cutis Grigg, John K smith, Marvin Bud Hall....... What thse guys did was learn how to use the auto line and give up the foot line. Of course Daily was a man's man but he was a foot trapper. Butcher was a joke, all he had going for him was he could tell a good story, he was a better fly fishing guide. He ran an add in the NY times and a few stock brockers started going to him. They did all his investing and he died a very rich man. He'd show up at the big trappingt conventions in his plane..... bottom line was he owned a massive INN up there that his wife ran.

[Big D]

I've had the unique opportunity to hunt ducks with Wylie Abbot on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. He was the 13 time World Muskrat Skinning Champion (5 'rats in 59 seconds was his best effort) He would trap 1,500 - 2,000 marsh rabbits a year.

[charlie cleveland]

all i can say is wow..... charlie

[Boxbirder]

Heavy D you better add another zero on the end of those numbers. Right now the champ is a 17 year old girl. There's an art to skinning, make your money cut leg to leg, and learn to use a winch.
Bada Bing