Dry Piling Fresh cut Cants (6" x 6"'s) in Winter

If you have to cut lumber in the winter and are not going to use it til spring ..... here are some suggestions.  We have been able to nail our cants in place as we cut them so have not had to make a storage pile.
1.  Find a level spot and place 2 big beams as good dunnage so pile won't tip over in the winter.
2.  Pile cants  1/4" to 1/2" apart so they are not touching, otherwise they get blue mold.
3.  Dry strip the layers with 1" thin strips of dunnage.  Always place the strip right under the strip on the level below so that the pressure point is the same all the way down the pile.
4.  Place a tarp on top of pile leaving the sides free to breath.
5.  Place lots of weight on top of the pile to stop it all from twisting.

Freeze up 10 days early than normal.

Oct 27th.  5PM.  Story by Bryan
Right where the trail meets the lake there is a water seepage into the lake so when the lake got a thin skin of ice on it around the barge this seepage flows on top of that thin area, constantly flooded it.  When I got there the seepage was 5" thick at the end of the barge.  I got started with the axe breaking the ice and then used one of the 2 x 10 ramps as a pile driver to get the ice away from the barrels.  
There are hundreds of these seepages around the lake.   This is so slow it does not melt the ice but just adds to it, not like a small creek.  
There was an 1 1/2" of ice for 30' out.  The big 9.9 motor on the raft wouldn't start - probably a little bit of water (most likely in the carburetor) which turned to ice.  I took the 4 hr off the boat and put it on the barge and towed the boat.  The barge is being put away for the winter.
Hint for going winter....
Always fill your equipment to the top (Honda pump, skidoos, quads, rototiller, lawnmower.)
The volume of gases increase dramatically with warmth and cold.   Like a 5 gal  partial gas jug with the lid cramped on tight.
Add a good gas stabilizer and park it where the sun doesn't shine.
If you must empty your quad leave the gas tank lid a little loose so it will breath easily.

Sketch of Vertical Marten Box

Placing the Trap...
You need 6 1/2" to get trap up and into seating on the little nails.
IMPORTANT
Make sure the trap is resting on the top jaws ONLY.  The bottom jaw hangs free under the nails.  If you do it the wrong way the bottom jaw is not free to close.

Grizzly Moose Kill.... photo sent by Jon S.

Jon S sent us this photo.  He told us that he'd seen the Grizzly feeding on this killed Bull Moose and then covering it up with mud just like a cat would cover it's stool.
Bryan commented that it is extremely dangerous to go anywhere near a cached kill.  The Grizzly will guard it with it's life and will keep coming back for weeks and weeks.    After each feeding the Bear will cover the carcass with mud and debri to cover the smell.  When it returns the Grizzly just digs a hole and starts eating again.

Comment submitted by Tom about Verical Boxes

Thank you very much for these detailed instructions for you marten boxes.  I've used boxes designed by Wayne Sharpe on horizontal poles, but found that I catch an unacceptable number of birds (mainly Gray Jays and Stellers Jays) also, sometimes a Marten is killed instantly and does not swing clear of the pole (making it vulnerable to damage by shrews and flying squirrels).  I also used some of Gordon Colebank's vertical Maren boxes with good results, but they're contructed out of plywood and are quickly destroyed by Squirrels.  I've been toying with the ideal of designing a vertical box built out of 1 " lumber but you have addressed everything I could possibly want with your design.  I particularly like the bait "basket" and the removable top.  
Thanks again Bryan, you are truly a mentor for modern, efficient trapping!     Tom S
Note from Vikki    Tom sent two great pictures but I don't know how to transfer them onto the blog. 

Vertical Marten Boxes Part 2

Now our cat Bee thinks this is a GREAT IDEA..... she played and rubbed and got really excited.... That lure must really be something.
Vikki took lots of pics.... so hopefully you will get the jest of the whole process.  Bryan had sawed up a pile of rough wood and then went at it in an assembly line fashion.  He cut in the slots for the trap, beveled the inside edges, stapled the wire mesh on the scent hole and the bait shelf, nailed the small support nails before assembling.

So he had piles of cut wood he put slots into, then piles of wood for stapling and nailing supports in.
He did 50 boxes in two days.
If he had done one at a time it would have taken a lot longer. 
Scent hole is 2".

Lid is not fastened.  Vikki just lifted it like you were renewing the bait.  

 At the back of the box are two drilled holes for hanging on the two nails in the tree.  Bryan makes the distance between the holes the length of the nail he is going to use for hanging the boxes.  In that way all he has to do is nail the first nail...   lay down the next nail horizontally and nail it in.  So there is no measuring each time.  The wire mess in this box is a little too large.  He has bought finer mesh to keep the shrews for stealing the bait and fowling up the trap with shrew droppings.
So he brought most of the boxes home to redo.

 The vent hole is 2" or whatever your tool is.

The side slot is 4" high and 1" wide and beveled inside.

 You can see that you need to staple before assembling.  Also you can see the nails that hold the trap in place.  Bryan sets the trap and holding the two arms slides it up into the box and back down to rest on the two nails.  Make sure the dogs are on while doing this.  Remove the dogs after.

 You can see how the inside of the slots are develed. 

 Vikki will find out the name of this small holding nail.

These nails are 3 1/2" from the open bottom.

The wire mesh should be really fastened well because if you catch a Marten, the next Marten will try to get to that bait.

Nails to make a fitting lid and nailed from the inside and small nails are used so that they don't come threw the top.

 This is the BEST SCENT BOB you will ever find.  So easy to rescent.

The Pro's and Con's of different Marten traps

In my mind the Belisle is the king of traps for Marten.  Even though they are bigger, they are lighter.  You can have a whole box of them and reach down and pick one out.  Try that with any of the other brands which have loose spring dogs and the old original trigger dogs which also flops around and can do fur damage to the Marten.
The 120 Belisle also comes with cable instead of chain and the cable is always on one side of the trap so you don't have to wonder about which side of the box you have to tie it up to.  You want the trigger at the back and so your tie cable is always on the left.
I keep the trigger wires straight.  They are the absolute perfect Marten trap.  It is a 4 way trigger and even if a Marten wiggles in beside it, it sets it off.
I have never had fur damage with this trap.
The other ones.... can go off.  Accidental discharge is greatly reduced with the trigger dog design.
The tangling thing alone is enough to sway you.  They are compact, bigger whole for the Marten to go into.  The only disadvantage is that they don't fit old boxes.
Second (lagging) choice is LDL.  Third choice is to go back logging.
I don't like the little Sauvageau.... with pickle forks.  If you ever got caught in one of these you are stuck.  Also it can damage the fur.  This trap is overkill for Marten.  It will bust your fingers.

Vertical Marten Boxes

 Like many trappers I have converted to Vertical Marten boxes.  There are quite a few advantages.  The Marten never gets frozen in a box, no bait is robbed and most importantly no birds in trap.  The Marten seem to find it easier also,  and it is very quick to set up and take down, no horizontal pole to put up, also seems to catch a few larger predators like Lynx, Fox and Weasel.  I hang about 5 feet just below a good limb to tie off trap to.  The scent bob hangs off front of lid under overhang. (I cut front feet off Marten before I skin it with a garden sheer.  Put a piece of wire on these feet and you have the best scent bob I have run across.  You can take it off the nail and put foot into scent jar many times and not get it all over your mitts.)

 The box is alittle more work, but time saving and efficient in the bush.  Just one thing.  Don't hang on a Balsam with real smooth bark or the Marten can't climb up.  Lean a climbing pole if that is the case.
I use unplained rough lumber 3/4" thick and 8' long made with my Alaskan Mill but you could use your chainsaw to make the boards.  I have
Belisle traps  with will fit in a box 6" wide and 6 1/2" high inside dimensions but no smaller.Some of my vertical box's are 6 1/2" wide and 7" high because I have Sauvage mags as well as LDL and Belisle and they all fit.  Box is 12" to 14" long.
There is a small mesh wire screen at about 5" down box to hold bait in.  There is a removable lid on this box for easy access.  Trap is held in place by two small nails.  (Vikki will find out the exact size) and she will also post pics of box apart)

This set shows a Marten snare on the top branch.  
Another hint.... we use dog leash tags to attach our trap cable to a top branch instead of using wire.  When you are taking down a trap in cold weather it is so much faster.

Great trap conceiling Straw

 Now's the time to go and collect two or three boxes of tall dry grass.  This stuff is about four feet tall.  If you wait to much longer the snow pushes it down.  We use this on all our Wolverine boxes.  It hides the caniber trap and also makes the animal curious.  Bryan first throws in a handful into the box over the bait.  Then he drapes the straw over the set trap.  It makes the opening look natural.  Bryan then shovels some snow on top of the box.

 In the pic above you can see the Muskrat's are busy storing weeds.

Beaver Dehavilland and Long Ranger

First the heli landed and Vikki walked out and found two young men left there.  They turned out to by gold drillers from an exploration site south of here.  They were going to get a ride out on the Beaver when Chris arrived with our final supply load.  Vikki gave them the grand tour and visited with them in the cabin.  Another heli load of young men arrived.  Then here came Chris.  The young fellows had our supplies up on the porch in no time and off Chris flew with a plane full.  The miners said they would like to visit next year.  Chris said he'd bring in the beer and Vikki said she'd make pizza.  Some thing to look forward to. 

Burl Cabin.... down on the Inklin

Trail Making

HOW TO CLEAN YOUR CHAINSAW PART 2

 Use the wire brush to clean the air filter....

Hit it on a hard surface to dislodge dirt.

Give Air Filter a shot of either...

 Use the compressor to clean out the Air Filter

Use the air compressor to clean out the whole inside of the case.  But everything back together. 
DO ALL OF THE ABOVE REGULARLY.