A friend called this past weekend to ask if I could come out to Moose Head Lake to trap some beavers that were making a nuisance of themselves. Always looking for an excuse to trap, I told him I would be there. Saturday evening the family sat on the dam cooking hot dogs while I dug out the beaver’s handiwork from the spillway. Looking at the damage the critters were beginning to inflict I was once again reminded of how, no matter how advanced mankind becomes, Mother Nature will always have the last word and she will always be at the helm, whether we think so or not. A perfect and ominous example fresh on my mind was the terribly tragic earthquake in Japan. Japan is the largest economy in Asia with, arguably, the most technologically advanced society on earth. Yet, in the face of all this advanced technology and society, Mother Nature showed us all that she is definitely in control. With her there are no guarantees outside of survival of the fittest, and we are little more than pawns in the chess game of nature. At best, we should just learn to enjoy the ride and stay in the saddle as long as we can while we’re here.
And enjoy the ride we did Saturday evening. I stood thigh deep on the edge of a beautiful private lake deep in the Ozark Hills. Far from the nearest highway, the only sound outside of the kids playing was that of the peepers in the trees surrounding the lake. After I cleaned out the beaver’s dam work from the spillway, using some of the beaver’s poles I hurriedly built barriers with float poles to guide the industrious critters to my traps. I set two 330 conibears at the spillway, one at the spot where they were climbing out on the bank, and one at the end a beaver run through a weed bed where they were gathering mud for the damming project. It was a great plan. The strategy was right. The implementation was perfect. They wouldn’t know what hit them until it was too late. I was in control and the result was little more than a forgone conclusion…so I thought. But that is for later in the story. We did get one thing right; we got in the saddle and enjoyed the ride on a beautiful Ozark evening.
The last step - the One-Eyed Hillbilly gingerly taking off the safeties at a dive-stick set. Next he will fence the gap with beaver sticks to guide the critter around, down, and through the trap.
The last step - the One-Eyed Hillbilly gingerly taking off the safeties at a dive-stick set. Next he will fence the gap with beaver sticks to guide the critter around, down, and through the trap.
LaDonna, Ashley, and Coleman were on dinner duty while Alex and I set the 330’s. I always like to have a second person with me when I’m setting 330’s because it can be difficult to remove the darn thing without help if you accidentally get it on you…and it will happen, trust me on this! As I bedded the traps and removed the safeties, Alex was always within several feet of me waiting with the setters, just in case. Luckily this trip I did manage to keep the whole clan from rolling around in hysterical laughter at me by not getting hung in a trap – it’s one of the few times, too! Just as the last light was reflecting off the calm surface water of the crystal clear lake we finished up the traps and mom yelled that it was time to eat. Perfect timing!
It’s amazing how good a hot dog tastes on the bank of a lake on a cool Ozark evening. As we sat around visiting and eating the kids began fighting over who would be the unlucky person that only got one hot dog. There was enough for everyone to have 2 hot dogs apiece except for one person. And who only got one hot dog you ask? The 14 year old girl – I don’t think so. The 13 year old boy – are you kidding, no way. The 7 year old boy – there’s better chance of Bass Pro running a close-out sale on .30-06 ammo the night before deer season. So, you guessed it, mom and I shared the last hot dog – it just wasn’t worth the fight!
Learning to enjoy the ride like its the last ride of our lives. Folks from the hills enjoying hot dogs on the lake dam after setting beaver traps. Greg, LaDonna, Coleman, and Ashley.
As the weekend came to a close the great plan with the right strategy and the perfect implementation was once again foiled by a Mother Nature curve ball. It rained all night and all the fencing work and trap setting was for not – the traps were under an extra 18 inches of water as the lake rose over night. The beavers were laughing at me. This was just a small example of how Mother Nature is always in control. We had sat on a dam designed to control the natural flooding of water while providing recreation, scenic beauty, and fishing for mankind. Mother Nature introduced beavers, muskrats, and erosion into the equation and in the court of time that strategy will ultimately prevail over this man-made structure. This is a more pronounced example that Mother Nature will always have the final say. Finally, as we pray for the well-being of the unfortunate victims of the Japanese earthquake we are witnessing an ominous display from Mother Nature that human life is just as susceptible, despite our advanced society and technology, as any other life on earth when nature decides to assert her dominance. There are no guarantees so live every day like it’s your last. Get in the saddle and enjoy the ride in the Great Outdoors. So says the One-Eyed Hillbilly.
As the weekend came to a close the great plan with the right strategy and the perfect implementation was once again foiled by a Mother Nature curve ball. It rained all night and all the fencing work and trap setting was for not – the traps were under an extra 18 inches of water as the lake rose over night. The beavers were laughing at me. This was just a small example of how Mother Nature is always in control. We had sat on a dam designed to control the natural flooding of water while providing recreation, scenic beauty, and fishing for mankind. Mother Nature introduced beavers, muskrats, and erosion into the equation and in the court of time that strategy will ultimately prevail over this man-made structure. This is a more pronounced example that Mother Nature will always have the final say. Finally, as we pray for the well-being of the unfortunate victims of the Japanese earthquake we are witnessing an ominous display from Mother Nature that human life is just as susceptible, despite our advanced society and technology, as any other life on earth when nature decides to assert her dominance. There are no guarantees so live every day like it’s your last. Get in the saddle and enjoy the ride in the Great Outdoors. So says the One-Eyed Hillbilly.
Greg Stephens is a 35-year veteran & life-time student of the great outdoors. His column appears weekly in print & online publications. You can email him at gregstephens@one-eyedhillbilly.com. For more columns go to www.one-eyedhillbilly.blogspot.com.
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