Big Joe and I will be again making tha trek to Kansas on New Years Eve!

On January 1st we will begin setting traps for two weeks of trapping paradise. Coyotes and Cats are top priority but badgers Coons and Skunks will likely be riding back to Michigan with is as well.

O each trip I have tried my best to document and share the action as we go. Many have said they enjoy the virtual ride along so I will do my best to share this trip as well.

Here are a few pics from the previos trips to get things started.

looking forward to it! heading to nm the same morning for a 10 day excursion

Awesome! Best of luck!

Me too!

The anticipation grows each day!

Awesome pics.

Looks like the place to be.

Great pics and catches furminator.
Looking forward to following your adventures this coming year.

Count me in!

Looks like a fun trip.

Always enjoy the ride along threads,here's to many burn circles in your future,safe travel's and have fun that shouldn't be hard.

Good luck

Thanks for sharing, looking forward to this year's pics.

Can't wait !!

I am counting the days!!

We will be leaving in 7 more days and a tonnof work has went into the preparation. I will be running 100 footholds and all of them are now dyed, waxed, scraped and put into ziplock bags with pan covers

I have 145 gallons of waxed dirt prepared. This week I will package it all
into gallon bags as well for easy use.

Baits and lures are packed and organized.

My truck was in the shop this week for pre trip work. Gearbox fluids have been changed and the spare tire has been inspected along with the lowering mechanism. I had the right wheel bearing changed and the front end alignment was completed. This truck is a 2014 Silverado with 79,000 miles. It has made this Kansas trip 5 times in the past and this will make trip # 6.

Prayers Sent !!!

Are we there yet?!?!

Without divulging too much, where abouts in KS you going? Hope you have a good time, most folks here are some of the best you'll ever meet!

YJ, he is about an hour west of me, up on 36 hwy. Nearly the middle of the state. Good luck boys, go get em!

good luck,

Look forward to following along your adventure,hackles and spots to come.

Good luck

Keep us updated

Lee is correct. We will be in North Central Kansas. I agree with you about the people. We are going back there for the sixth time and al lot of it has to do with the great people we have met there!

Are you close to where we will be?

That’s the area I used to turkey hunt! Seen plenty of coons, coyotes, and skunks back years ago. Even ran into a badger. Good luck!!

Couple hours away from there.

I had a little setback in my trip preparation but I am back at it again. A couple days of fever and loss of taste kept me on the couch but I am up again checking things off my list. The cough still lingers and will probably be around a while but I feel I will be good to go!

What do you do for a place to stay, trailer, rent a place??

The people that have us out there to trap run an outfitting business. We stay in the lodge their clients stay in.

Nice! That's always been a major concern for me. Not that I need much but one does need a warm/dry place to get a good night's rest.

watching safe travels.

We arrived safely and look forward to setting in the morning!

How did your first day of setting go?What kind of weather did you have,good luck,look forward to riding along your adventure.

The first day started out great as the temps were below freezing. There is residual snow on the ground which is nice to see sign but it is limiting our travel. as soon as it gets above freezing we are inable to drive on many roads and properties.

Keep posting!! I am ready to watch.....jk

I use a 4 wheeler so I dont rut up property. Same for dirt roads. Get to the dirt road on gravel then unload it. Those dirt roads only get a maintainer once or twice a year. People dont like them rutted up either. Side by sides are popular for the same reason. I built a trailer out of an old boat trailer. Can load or unload in less than 5 minutes.

good luck, keep us posted,

First Check day and second set day. The ground thawing each day is putting a damper on our ability to set traps. We aquired a couple more large parcels to trap today so hopefully we can get to them before the daily thaw.

I'll be out that way south of you here in a couple days, not staying nearly as long though.

Whereabouts you going to be?

keep at it guys!!!!

Teaser!

Here kitty kitty……

How did today go for you guys?

We had a great morning!

I have about 35 sets out and Joe has about the same. We set on some fire hot sign today and are trying to expand our range but the muddy conditions continue to hinder us.

One of the properties is a sheep farm and they have a super high predator population. This morning I had a fantastic bobcat catch. We plan to have the bobcat backstraps tomorrow for dinner.

Thanks for the pics Mark and Joe.
Good job guys.

that's a good start, keep at it, bobcat is very good eating,

Thursday was a little slow on the line. Heavy fog hung around for a good partnof the day. I got a coon and Joe got a nice skunk. the skunk did t spray and skinned out nice. The highlightnof the day was probably dinner as we had the bobcat backstraps from the day before!

Looks like you're really roughing it at camp.

Hope the weather gets better for you guys,I've ate a lot of bobcat back straps,it's very good.

Nice looking camp. beat the places that we stayed in. Keep at um and post pictures for us. Thanks......jk

Looks like a good time ..I must not have cooked the cat meat right I'm not a fan of it at all surprised everyone saying how good it is

That is a nice cat man! Great work!

Wow! Nice animals!

Things have still been a little slow and the weather had made property access a challenge. We have a lotnof great sets in on great sign so we are expecting the coyote catches any time. Meanwhile we are catching possums, coons and skunks.

We are driving around 75 miles per day on the line and the days fly by,

Keeping good records is important for so traps are all
accounted for and so we know what is working.

I'm glad you guys are back in town. I enjoy watching and following along on how things are going. Hopefully you get into some good catch numbers soon.

I pulled my line right before you guys were coming into the state. I was trying to skip the possible weather you guys brought with you the last couple of years !

Have fun, and good trapping.

.
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Teaser
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Joe and I had some ups and downs today. Joe was able to finally break the ice on a coyote and the fresh skiff if snow really let us know what the dogs were doing. Joe’s coyote had mange so it didn’t get a ride in the truck but we were happy things are starting to come together.

I got two skunks today and one of them sprayed before we got there. There were two sets of bobcat tracks that went throigj but the skunk was already plugging the set up. I made a second set and remade the skunky one. The smell permeated every bit of me and my clothes.

I was able to connect on my second bobcat of the trip. It was in the same set location as the one I got 3 years ago. It was a frmale and she urinated in the catch circle. this should bringnin some more toms.

nice!! looks like nice skunks,

Joe gets the Nice skunks. The ones I get are ornery and love to shoot this green jelly out of their rear ends.

Looks like a great time. Those cats look well fed.

Update from Kansas.

Having a blast running these roads and fields. We got a line on some exciting new property but have to wait for Tuesday. we have a winter storm coming Monday that has potential to dump 10” of snow with 50 mph winds.

We have still been picking up a ton of. coons and skunks but the dogs are not following the rules.

Bobcat backstraps were again on the menu for dinner last night.

looks like some nice country out there, I love bobcat grilled,

We have been planning for a winter storm here in Kansas. the snow was coming today and the wind and cold will be here tonight. Warm weather puts us out of business due to the mud andsoft conditions. We have been making plans to get everything checked which may not be easy.

This morning started with an excitement that is hard to explain. When I looked at my phone I noticed a notification that my trail camera had sent some pictures. I assumed It was more deer like I had seen the night before. Upon looking at the pictures I see that I had a bobcat in a trap and a coyote was circling it. Now a coyote isn’t likely to harm a bobcat but I wasnt certain. The subsequent pictures showed the bobcat safe and the coyote was gone.

The ran and started and we had thunder booming at 5:00 AM. By 6:00 it was still thundering but the precip had changed to snow. We traveled to the local service station to chat with locals over coffee until it got light out.

We went to the property where I had already caught one of the bobcats to harvest number 3. We then continued checking traps. At one location we backed up a full mile down a road to get to our sets. backing up made it so we did thave to torn around if it got too greasy.

Joe trapped a coupmenof beautiful skunks and harvested them without spraying. One had white on almost all of its back.

Tomorrow we expect high winds but the temps will be below freezing all day.

Nice run of cat action, congratulations

Congratulations

Nice cat, looks like the GW has been by to tag it.

Yeah we message the GW when we get a cat and meet him if he is going to be in the area.

We had a tough day in Kansas today. The 50 mph gusts created some treacherous driving conditions. Many roads were un passable and we ended up stuck in the middlemof the road twice. We also helped to un-stuck twonother vehicles.

We ended up with one raccoon catch today and tomorrow we will be unburying most of our sets. Some sets have 6 ft drifts over them

Great pics and nice catches Mark,
Looks like you guys are having a great time again.

Oh man. Those pics so familiar. ( Mn.)

I wouldda pulled every trap with knowing what you guys were gonna encounter.

Same here! Just finding them under all that snow is a real pain, then to dig them out!! Was seriously considering a trapping adventure to KS this year but glad I passed for now after seeing your pictures! Hang in there and good luck!

Looks like my driveway lol.
1/2 mile of 3 to 5 foot drifts. Farmer buddy is going to dig us out tomorrow. Makes me no difference. I’m finishing fur. Plenty of squirrel in the freezer. I’m good. The wife likes to be able to get out though!

Its good to see outdoorsman that don't quit because of weather. Not to many of your caliber left I fear.

Yea that makes for some tough conditions. Hopefully you can at least get to all your sets in another day or 2. Before the snow did you guys catch many coons? Just curious as to what you have seen for coon numbers. I will clear the majority of snow off my few sets that I have out later this morning and hopefully mother nature will melt off the rest before the next round.

Got my jeep stuck a little while ago. First time. Took all my chains to reach a tree and winch out. Still sloppy mud under the snow drifts. Slid sideways into a drift.

We are still snowed in here. Country roads still drifted shut. If you had a trap line out still here, it would be awhile before you could get to traps and might be a month before you could find each trap under the drifts

All of our traps are able to be checked . wr pulled some today that would be compromised with this next weather system. We spent most if the day digging out sets so they are operational.

pure determination!

This weekend predicting -11f in MO. Are you guys going to be able to trap?

Hope the wind dies down or the drifting will shut things down completely in some areas. Might need a couple pair of snowshoes shipped in. Or cut some plywood and get some flashing materials to make do walking the lanes.

I've dealt with those type of conditions. Depending on where your sets are at just being operational may not be good enough, especially for coyotes. That snow will completely change their travel patterns. Once that snow hardens, they just travel willy nilly anywhere they please.

Look for good cover with good food sources like tree rows that did not drift all the way in. Good time to break the snares out.

Happy trapping.

I seen multiple sets of coyote tracks today on top of drifts that they were not sinking into,

It was a hard day as we uncovered all of our sets and added new bait. Coyotes were running everywhere on top of the snow and even on top of our sets. Now they are all functional and the food is harder to get for the coyotes.

the next snow system will find us with less traps in the ground but the remaining ones will be good ones. we had to locate some of our sets with a metal detector and pulled most that were under deep snow. I did make a couple of snow cubbies where there is a chance of a cat working them.

We got to watch another Big Sky Kansas sunrise and it never gets old.

man you guys are working hard, sure hope you have chains , but I'm jealous, wish I could do things like that

Got some bitter cold coming today and through next Thursday, plus more snow guys.
Windchills here this weekend will be -35 .
Good luck!
Not for me, I pulled sets ahead of this.
Jim

I will give it to you fellas. Those are some difficult conditions to work with. Sure holds a fella back from running too far. Maintenance is all work and an everyday battle at times. I had some nasty winter weeks in Kansas over the years. Other years were perfect weather.

A good idea with the metal detector. Some of those sets would not be found until the snow melts and you can get better landmarks to locate them.

The cold won’t slow us down but the drifting snow tonight has us concerned. Afer spending Wednesday uncovering all of our sets we are looking forward to more driftd!

Uncovered the sets proved to be good for Big Joe! He connected on a beautifully spotted bobcat! It was the first bobcat of the trip for hiim.

WTG JOE, keep at it guys , hopefully the wind blows your traps clear and clean,

Congratulations Joe

Love these two posts, thanks for posting. I am too old for what you guys are doing.....jk

Thanks again for bringing us along ! Safe travels, supposed to get pretty rough here today as well. My brother is halfway to Kansas to go duck hunting. Not sure what he is thinking ? Good luck.

Hopefully the winds die down for you guys

Kansas 2024 turned out to be the most challenging trip yet but we still had the greatest time.

The mud started the challenge for us but the snow, winds, drifts and brutal cold took it to a new level.

After the first big snow we cleaned off and re-baited every set we had in the ground. …Then the snow and wind returned with fury!

We pulled everything, packed up camp and made the long drive home. we were an hour from my house before we saw temps above zero with the coldest being -15

It’s time to unpack and reflect on the trip.

Tough trip Mark. I sure understand the mud scenario and the road/farm path conditions. Makes it impossible to get where you need to be unless you walk it. I do not have any experience with drifting snow and deep freeze conditions and have no desire check off that box either.

I have enjoyed keep up with your trips and glad you made it home safe and still managed to enjoy it in spite of the tough conditions.

Thank you for sharing!

I plan to do a recap post with some more trip details in the next couple days.

Cant wait great post for those of us that cant get around anymore......jk

Looking forward to it.

Always an adventure with Mark. Great trip despite what mother nature threw at us. Didn't stop us, maybe slowed us down a little. We just got home Sunday afternoon/evening and I would be happy to return next year. Sure, we can catch fur right behind our houses. It's the adventure and memories that draw me back.

Im glad you enjoyed your trip. To bad about the weather. Weather is always a gamble for a trapping hunting or fishing trip you have to plan weeks in advance. Looks like you did what you could to make the best of it.

Awesome trip , thanks for letting us ride along !

Thanks for taking the time to take us along on your adventure!
Some of my greatest trapping memories came from my trip to Kansas about 13 years ago... Super nice people and beautiful sunrises/sunsets!

Looking forward to it , really enjoyed following along. Thanks For the pictures .

Enjoyed the ride along!

I’ve been wondering about you fellas! While I was plowing out around my house for the last week. Tough Jan, that’s for sure. When I was younger, tougher, and yotes were worth something, I wouldn’t give up. I was trapping a grown over, hilly place when they started talking snow, and I told the fella I was trapping for, I’m setting everything off. He said, I would recommend it! Glad I did.

Glad you enjoyed your stay here in our little piece of heaven, Mark and Joe. Your welcome back next year!

Planning

A trip like this starts months and even years ahead. The first trip was the hardest to plan for but the learning curve has grown much smaller.

Where are you staying? Do you have local access to food or are you taking all you need with you? What kind of conditions will you be working with? How will you handle your fur and carcasses?

I take a skinning rig with us and have had it for the last 5 Kansas trips. Frozen traps are a waste of time and opportunity so we use waxed dirt at all of our sets. This can cause more coon mischief as they love to pick their fingers through it and pull your traps out. I had a total of 150 gallons of dirt weighing 1,300 lbs and Joe brought a bunch as well. I upgraded to a tandem axle trailer to spread the weight out after we nlew a tire on the last trip with the single axle trailer. Intake 2 spare trailer tires.

Joe met me at my house around 2:30 AM and we left about 3:00 AM. This allowed us to arrive at the lodge before dark which helped with setting up camp. Once we got unpacked and the skinning rig set up we it was time to set up the truck for trapping. We loaded up the dirt and a compliment of traps and setting tools. We basically split the back of the truck in two and we each work out of our own side of the truck. We turned in for the night knowing everything was set up just right for the first set day.

The morning starts with two pots of coffee. One is for drinking and the other goes into our individual travel mugs. Breakfast was usually eggs, meat and potatoes. Bacon was first on the docket as the grease will be used for future cooking. We then make some sandwiches to pack for the day away from the lodge.

Some properties have already been verified and others required us to touch base with the owner prior to setting. We started setting in the cold morning right up to the noon thaw. This put usnoutnof business due to the mid so we utilized this time to verify the rest of the properties. Many place have been available every year and each trip has brought new and exciting places to set. The longer you trap an area the more people you meet and the more property that is offered to you.

Setting and Checking

The first day found us at historically good locations and at many different properties. We think of our Long line as a net. The bigger the net is gets us on animals from a larger range. We were working an area about 13 miles long and 6 miles wide on average.

Each day we tried to tighten the net up by adding more sets on the properties and setting other properties inside the net based on new sign. Ultimately we would like a fine net (trap density). and a large net (wide range)
after the first day our focus became split between checking current sets and setting new ones.

Most trips have had us setting for over a week to get our traps all set. This year we were limited by the daily thaw. many roads were un-drivable once it thawed and we took great care to keep the pastures and farm fields undamaged by our activities. The later part of the trip brought a new challenge with the snow drifting and cold. Our Michigan tires allowed us to travel many placed the locals couldn’t go but even we had limits. We were stuck 3 times in the middle of the road whick required a lot of shoveling to move the truck.

The Late afternoons found us skinning in the garage the lodge. We left the garage door open and had interaction with many locals that would drive by just to see if we were out there skinning.

The local people have truly became friends of ours and we now look forward to seeing each of them when we return. No place have I ever visited that has as many people that were interested in getting to know us. This is by far the biggest reason we return each year.

The catches get skinned and frozen green at the lodge. We bring most of the waxed dirt in large coolers and will use the same ones to haul the frozen furs back home.

Lodge Life

Having a comfortable place to call home is important on a trip like this. The first year we stayed in a camper and it was 10 below outside. The propane ran out in the night and getting out of the sleeping bag was a difficult task. Make sure you have cold weather sleeping bags if you are on a winter trapping trip!

Every trip since has found us in a hunting lodge. The accommodation’s aren’t fancy by any means but we stay dry, warm clean and have access to the kitchen for cooking. Joe and I work well together and often argued about who got to do the dishes. It was a challenge to try to get the dishes started before he did! Joe is an amazing camp cook and I can throw some grub together so we weren’t lacking in nutrition. We timed our grocery trips and tried to get most of what we needed at the local grocery store. We had a washer & Dryer but I still over packed my clothes. You never know what weather conditions you will find on a two week trip.

We were averaging around 75 miles a day on the line so we tried to plan on being out until late afternoon. Parts of the line brought us closer to the lodge so we occasionally made a pit stop before continuing.

Joe and I both had Note books for keeping track of our sets and gear. I draw a picture of the set location with landmarks and boundaries for reference. I marked each set with the trap style and the bait/lure used. Traps were totaled each day at the bottom and deducted if the trap was pulled. A tab at the top of the page listed the name of the site. Some farms had their own page while others had more that one page for the farm. If we pulled up to a new property I would name the location and make a map. If we moved on in the property and we were fare enough away from the first stop I would add a new tab and page. (John’s farm north and John’s farm south for example).
Each evening I would total the days sets, pulls and catches so I could effectively keep track of the gear.

Cabled earth anchors were used which made pull days easier. A quick cut of the cable and we were back in the truck. The cost of the earth anchors left is just part of the anticipated cost. There is no good way to get anchors out of frozen Kansas clay and even un-frozen clay would be too time consuming to attempt removal. On the first Kansas trip I left 60 chained super stakes in the ground because I couldn’t get them out. It’s been cables ever since.

On previous trips we would finish pulling on the last day, tear down camp, pack and leave. This made for a long tiring drive with many stops. We were much smarter this year as we packed up to go except for the items needed for sleep. We went to bed around 7:00 PM and were back up at 1:00 AM. This sleep before leaving helped greatly and only one 5 minute nap on the way home was needed. We planned ahead and knew where the fueling stops would be open as diving in the middle of the night can find a lot of closed stations. We changed our normal route home as the road conditions in Iowa were much worse than the southern option through Missouri. The temps were below zero for most of the trip with the coldest being -15. By leaving so early we drove through Kansas and Missouri in the dark but it was plenty light through Illinois which made the Chicago portion much better.

Upon arrival Home I messaged our friends in Kansas to let them know we made it here safely. I then waited for Joe to send word that he make the 2 hour drive to his house safely. Joe
Made it home and this brought our adventure to a close. It will be a month before I get my stuff put away and back to normal.

Thank you to everyone that followed along and the kind words of encouragement were always appreciated!

I hope to have you all back next Year

I know that was rather long so congratulations if you read the whole thing!

I did and thanks for posting

Great pics and catches Mark,thanks for the ride along.

Great story Mark. Fantastic pictures also. Thanks.

Mark, thanks again for the memories! This was a great trip.

I haven't done any out of state trapping adventures yet but have done some in state. Experienced much of the same as you have and hope to do Kansas one day soon. Thanks for bringing us along!