Importance of Ice Safety While Trapping

This year in Wisconsin has proved a point in the importance to watch you surroundings. Wisconsin has not gotten real cold this winter; therefore many ponds still have open water or thin ice. My friend and myself trap for beaver in northern Wisconsin. There were many beaver huts, however we do not have a canoe so when trapping in the winter we count on ice. Many of the beaver huts were in ponds that had not yet froze over or had too thin of ice.

Trappers need to be careful when trapping on ponds iced over. Be sure to check how thick the ice actually is. We always check and set traps together therefore if something would happen, the other can help rescue. If trapping alone, please be cautious and prepared for the worse. Last weekend, we carried a life preserver on a rope along with us, that way if there was a spring or for some reason one of us fell through the ice, the other could throw the preserver out and pull the other to safety.

When trapping with a partner, which is a very good idea when working on the ice, be sure to keep your distance from one another. Walking and staying 10 to 20 feet away from each distributes the weight over the ice. If both of you fall in together, the concept of the other being there to save you does not work!!

When trapping beaver, you must be very careful close to the hut and feed pile. These areas are extremely dangerous due to a large amount of activity going on underneath the ice. Beavers are continuously moving in and out of the huts to the feed piles, thus always creating movement in the water preventing solid ice from forming with mild temperatures. This year so far, we found that a majority of the time, the area around huts and feed piles were open water.

Below are a few ice safety tips:
* Don't go out on the ice alone or without letting someone know where you are going
* Wear or keep within reach a flotation device
* Have spare clothing in your vehicle
* Carry a chisel or spike to assist pulling yourself out of the water in case of a fall in
* Know the ponds, lakes you are on – Currents, inlets and outlets

If you are unsure of the ice, don't risk it. Go to another location or wait a few weeks for more ice to form. Falling through the ice for an animal is not worth it.