5 More this morning.

[Grayfox]

After his successful morning turkey hunt, Mitch went and pulled his traps and ended up with another 5. He's pretty jacked up now, made $29 bucks on 9 gophers this weekend and shot a pretty good tom this morning.

[x1957x]

Way to go Mitch! Good job. Do you have pictures of the traps you use and how to set them? I live in s.w. minn. and are starting to get a gopher problem on my nephews place. I am 54 and I also love to trap anything. Thanks for the info>>jeff.

[Grayfox]

x1957x,

We use strictly death clutch traps. We dig out the tunnel down to the run and insert the trap. I usually dig it down a bit and sprinkle loose dirt over the exposed metal. I don't know if it helps or not but it can't hurt. We always leave the holes open as well, no need to bury it up. Here's how it looks in the hole and the finished look and a couple of Mitchell's glory shots from past years. Let me know if you need more info and good luck.

Rob

[x1957x]

Mitch ,you are definately the gopher King! Keep up the good work. How do you find the hole, by probing it? Is that the entrance to it? how far down appx is it/, 6 to 8" or so? Just a few more questions is all and thanks you guys are great. Thanks for posting the pictures also. Mitch, keep up the good work. Thanks Jeff

[x1957x]

Oh yeah, i bought some of those traps but they didnt come with instructions. Do you have a copy or how easy is it to set? Jeff

[x1957x]

Oh yeah and further looking at the pic's, why do you put the stake in front of the hole and do you wire and stake the trap? Thanks again Or is the stake small enough that is how you set it?

[hawgchaser]

Grayfox,

At the risk of being a bit sappy, I've been wanting to tell you how much I appreciate your posts...partly because they are so packed with information, but mostly because it is obvious how much of a bond you and Mitch have. My son turned 39 today, but the bond & love of the outdoors we share that began when I was dragging him and his popgun in a galvanized washtub through a duck slough never lessens. He's several states away now, and we only get together a couple times a year. The marvel is...when we do get together, everything we share just picks up as if we'd never been apart. Your posts always give me an enjoyable and memory-filled "kid fix". Thanks again and keep enjoying/posting!

[leech~~]

After his successful morning turkey hunt, Mitch went and pulled his traps and ended up with another 5. He's pretty jacked up now, made $29 bucks on 9 gophers this weekend and shot a pretty good tom this morning.

Great job Mitch! I wish I had a Dad like yours when I was growning up!

[hawgchaser]

Jeff, I have a copy of the instructions for setting these traps. I could scan them and email them to you as a PDF. If interested let me know.

[Grayfox]

x1957x,

I did a search for Death clutch instructions and found it and there's also a short video clip out there as well that will help.

Once the trap is set,we adjust it so the lightest pressure on the trigger will set it off. Once you get it set,you'll want the rod to just catch the base of the trigger. Set it off a couple times and you'll see how light you can set it. I like to put the trap as far down the hole as I can, so the jaws are just up from the edge of the run. This distance will vary. Sometimes the tunnel is almost too short to get the trap trigger into the hole. In those cases we dig down to the run and put a 2 traps in, going in opposite directions. Then others where the tunnel seems to be 24" and you cant get to the run. Just make sure the trap sits flat in the hole or dig it down so it's partially below the dirt level and cover lightly. Once you get it where you want it stake it down "GOOD" with a 12" to 18" rod. We use 3/8" all thread. I'm not sure where you trap but we've had coyotes or fox dig up the caught gopher and try to take off with it. Hopefully, they'll just eat them off the trap,so all you'll end up with is the gut ball, instead of losing your trap and gopher. We've found some traps pulled out of the hole and all the grass around the stake gone in a perfect circle as they ran around the stake.

Good luck and I hope this helps a bit. They're pretty easy to catch but occasionally you'll run into a smart one and you'll have to make a few modifications to your trapping methods to catch them. Let me know how you do and maybe I can tell you a few more tricks.

I'll try to take more pictures this year of some of the odd things that happen while trapping these things.

[Grayfox]

hawgchaser,

I'm glad you enjoy the stories as much as I like telling them. I know it won't be long before he's ditching the old man to hang with his buddies or girlfriend as it's already started. I really thought I'd have a few more years of him to myself but it looks like I'll have to start sharing him. I think the bond really started when he ended up being born on my birthday,April 24,1996 if you can believe that. The best was listening to him tell everybody that would listen when he was little that "Me and my dad have the same birthday,but not the same year". What a hoot. He was always by my side as soon as he could walk, whether it was following me with his little shovel in the winter while I was plowing the driveway on the tractor or going on a Kansas turkey hunt when he was 4. On the way down, early in the morning,I'd look back at him in his car seat and see his big eyes looking out the front window and asking me if we're there yet. I'm

extremely fortunate to have 3 great kids. All of them are smarter and more talented than their dad was and I couldn't be prouder. You guys usually only hear about Mitch on here but my daughter Laura, a freshman in college was valedictorian of her high school class last year and has always been self motivated. We never had to tell her to study. If she wanted something she'd work to get it. She wanted to be at the top of her class and she made it. Steven and I,my oldest son,have always butted heads. He always wanted to take the easy way out and never wanted to study or take pride in anything he was doing. I tried everything I could think of to get through to him but seemed like it was never going to happen. When the grades started slipping to C's and a D, that was the last straw. I knew he was smarter than that and I wanted him to work at it. I told him that if they didn't get to A's, he was done with basketball. He started studying everyday after school and the grades climbed to A's and B's. I was so proud watching him turn his grades around and hear the teachers comment that they can't believe the change he made and to see he and his teammates this year. These kids came from behind so many times this year. Most games they eventually won, a couple they lost but they never gave up. They always believed they always had a chance to win. They came from 16 points down late in the 3rd quarter agianst a very good Northwestern team in the sectionals and won it in overtime. Then they played agianst the eventual state champs in the sectional finals and lost, but agian they battled until the buzzer.

Sorry to ramble guys. Must be way past my bed time. I can't wait though to make more memories with them and hopefully my future grandkids. I can't believe I just said grandkids. I am getting old.

Rob

[x1957x]

hawgchaser... That would be awsome to do it for me! Send them to [email protected] and a big thanks also to grayfox. I to am a little older at 54 years young. I cant tell you enough how after my children grew up how much I missed not hunting with them! The memories still live in my mind though. My daughter inlaw was killed in a head on collision and both my grandsons were airlifted to hospital. The youngest being 5 at the time was in a coma for 3 months but miraculously survived and lives a near normal life. He is a little week on one side. Point is that with you and your son, life is to short and to fast paced to let the family bonds slip through your finger tips. It is to easy to forget what trully is inportant in a mans life. On a further note, Dalton and Dillon both live in my wifes and my care. Now I get to teach them the fun of the hunt and the thrill of landing the biggest fish. stay in touch!!