Pretty big disappointment trapping but it may change

Well I didn’t get to set my traps out on the river because of the earlier then usual freezeup. Normally the temperatures are approx. 30 degrees warmer then right now and last night temps were around 4 degrees. Normally it doesn’t freezup until around early to mid December. Drove by the Cedar river the last few days and its completely iced up so, so much for setting by my boat.

I heard of another way to trap some coons though that I’ve never heard of. I talked to my boy the other day while helping him set up his deer stand and he told me of the other way he heard about just a few days before. He said the guy who owns the land wheres hes hunting told him that a couple guys stopped by the landowners house last year and asked to set traps for coons in and around his barn. The owner said I doubt there’s many but have at it if you want.

So a few days later the owner was out doing chores and the guys pulled up to check their traps. One of the guys came out of the barn with a coon and said I think this may be the last one. The owner said, the last one? They said yes and that this one was the forth one in just a few days. The owner walked over to the truck and in the back, it had atleast 30 coons in it from just that days checking the barns of other farmers.

Where I was going to set my traps for coons is by a creek and the roads that cross that creek for about 30 miles because its a good area with fairly easy access. I still may set the creek but am thinking about asking to trap the barns of the farmers where I was going to ask permission to trap their portion of the creek anyway. Coons den up especially when theres a cold spell and they eat at a farm often because its a constant food source because of the farmers feeding their livestock. I never heard of setting just barns but am going to give it a try and see how it does. Years back a farmer told me that they don’t like rats, mice or coons around their farms because they crap in the grain and the farmers can get docked for the dirtier then desired grain. So far I’ve gotten 4 coons and 4 muskrats while working in a near by town. Anyone else have any mostly unheard of areas.

Coons, love old farm buildings, my dad has trapped since he was in high school, I personally don’t set any traps myself but have tagged along more than not. Many of his properties are farmers barns and buildings, a barn full of hay makes a big warm and sheltered place for coons. With a few live traps placed throughout and baited we often find several coons. Old silo’s are also great places to find coons, we have more than once looked up the ladder shaft to see eyes looking back, its a tricky shot but it works. There are several ways to actually hang a coni-bear on that ladder shaft as well, (if it is no longer in use), a search online should bring up a few plans to build a wooden hanger for them. My dad has used them with some success, and I don’t believe he came up with the idea all on his own. Good luck, and you should definitely be able to find some fur in the barns and outbuildings, especially when it gets cold and windy. And also don’t be afraid to, if you have permission, to go crawling through old barns, and hay mows full of hay with a flash-light and .22 searching every hole, behind boards, etc. it gets to be a pretty interesting when you start finding them.