<pre wrap=""> Being Beaverboy I guess I should say something about beaver. I've trapped
trouble beaver for over 20 years and it is very easy to kill all the
beaver in an area. They are not the smartest animal. What deters most
people from trapping them is the amount of work involved in carrying and
skinning them.
Generally I have found it takes at least two years for other beaver to
move into a trapped out area. That is if there are any other beaver in
neighboring water. As I tend to skip sections of river that I trap I
never trap them all.
One colony of beaver if not preyed upon can reproduce to 608 beaver in
a ten year period. Four kits a year is not a bad ratio for rebounding.
I have caught 10 beaver out of one den several times but most are two
adults and four kits. Thank goodness beaver are hardy and like to
reproduce.
What almost wiped out the beaver was hunting and trapping them during
the open water months and when they were pregnant or nursing. Some
people on this list actually believed the MM didn't trap in the summer
when actually they were done with the bulk of their trapping before
,for instance, the present day Montana trapping season evens opens
(November 1st)
In the early 1980's when fur was still worth something I had a hard
time getting permission to trap beaver near town. Beaver weren't nearly
as thick due to a lot of pressure and landowners enjoyed seeing them.
Now with prices barely covering expenses the population is booming and
everyone wants me to trap them.
I wrote on the list once of journal accounts of trappers "working a
stream until clean" and of Osborne Russell commencing his fall hunt in
I think it was July! One of his journal entries talked of him taking a
long bath after checking his traps! I think it was July or August.
bb
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<pre wrap="">Wynn Ormond <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:cheyenne@pcu.net"><cheyenne@pcu.net></a> wrote: It would be more interesting to ask
for comments from men who had been involved in depredation trapping of
beaver. In other words, in area were civilization has proven that
mountain men would be able to trap with more ease than the high country,
there remains such a population that the government supports their
continued harvesting.
Wyn, you are right.
I sure never thought of that. There are probably official records
somewhere that are related to depredation trapping of beaver. If I can get
records from before 1900 that will prevent skeptics from saying "there are
plenty of beaver NOW, it took that long for them to re-populate the
areas".
I don't think beaver reintroduction was that common in the West. I'll be
contacting Wyoming Game and Fish to see what records they have regarding
depredation complaints. I suppose I may as well contact the U.S. Forest
Service about their records on reintroduction of beaver.
Thanks
Lee Teter
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Date: Sun, 8 Feb 2004 22:15:59 EST
From: MarkLoader@aol.com
Subject: Re: MtMan-List: fire starting
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Hello the Camp
Rudy tried the bow drill but his string broke. That was the only attempt they
showed.
They have Bamboo which is all you need to start a fire with the fire saw.
First split a 16 inch long and two inches in diameter piece of bamboo in
half.
Take one half make a slight notch across the outside of the round of one
piece.
Scrap some shavings of the bamboo and place on the notch on the inside of the
bamboo.
Take a splinter of bamboo that fits in the tube of the bamboo and break the
splinter so it hinges. Place this over the shavings over the notch this will
hold the savings in place. Hold the bamboo on the ends round side down. With the
notch lined with the edge of the other half and then slide it back and forth.
As the edge cuts deeper into the notch and starts to heat up increase the
speed until you have a full smoke coming from the shavings.
This is the time when most fail in friction fires by getting in a rush.
Give it a few extra strokes and give the ember a chance to grow and lump
together before moving it to the tinder.
The Fire piston is an other method used on the islands.
ND-COLOR: #ffffff" SIZE=3D2 PTSIZE=3D10>Hello the Camp
<BR>Rudy tried the bow drill but his string broke. That was the only attempt=
they showed.
<BR>They have Bamboo which is all you need to start a fire with the fire saw=
.
<BR>First split a 16 inch long and two inches in diameter piece of bamboo in=
half.=20
<BR>Take one half make a slight notch across the outside of the round of one=
piece.=20
<BR>Scrap some shavings of the bamboo and place on the notch on the inside o=
f the bamboo.=20
<BR>Take a splinter of bamboo that fits in the tube of the bamboo and break=20=
the splinter so it hinges. Place this over the shavings over the notch this=20=
will hold the savings in place. Hold the bamboo on the ends round side down.=
With the notch lined with the edge of the other half and then slide it back=
and forth. As the edge cuts deeper into the notch and starts to heat up inc=
rease the speed until you have a full smoke coming from the shavings.=20
<BR>This is the time when most fail in friction fires by getting in a rush.
<BR>Give it a few extra strokes and give the ember a chance to grow and lump=
together before moving it to the tinder.
<BR>The Fire piston is an other method used on the islands.
<BR>Good luck Roadkill</FONT></HTML>
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Date: Sun, 8 Feb 2004 19:41:37 -0800
From: "Randal Bublitz" <rjbublitz@earthlink.net>
Subject: RE: MtMan-List: fire starting
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Frank, With a shoe string, or constructing natural cordage, I'd have made a bow drill. If cane, etc... was available a blow tube would be a plus. Was anyone wearing glasses? a lens is a good source of fire. Yfab, Randy
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From: Frank Fusco
If there are any others on this list that have been watching the new TV 'Survivors' series you would have seen them struggling unsuccessfully trying to start a fire.
The group is on a tropical island and their only equipment is one machete. No flint and steel. Nothing. Most of them have tried starting by friction rubbing. They got a little smoke but no real hot coals. I don't recall that any tried a bow with a string.
I'm not sure what I would do. There is bamboo, so a fire tube with compression might be worth a try. I don't think there was any flint available on the islands.
Interesting hearing what others would do under those conditions.
Frank
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<DIV>Frank, With a shoe string, or constructing natural cordage, I'd have made a bow drill. If cane, etc... was available a blow tube would be a plus. Was anyone wearing glasses? a lens is a good source of fire. Yfab, Randy</DIV>
<DIV> If there are any others on this list that have been watching the new TV 'Survivors' series you would have seen them struggling unsuccessfully trying to start a fire.</DIV>
<DIV> The group is on a tropical island and their only equipment is one machete. No flint and steel. Nothing. Most of them have tried starting by friction rubbing. They got a little smoke but no real hot coals. I don't recall that any tried a bow with a string.</DIV>
<DIV> I'm not sure what I would do. There is bamboo, so a fire tube with compression might be worth a try. I don't think there was any flint available on the islands.</DIV>
<DIV> Interesting hearing what others would do under those conditions.</DIV>
