He left Wisconsin as a young man in 1975 and moved to Alaska, not to be famous or well known, but to live self sufficiently and get away from it all. But over time, Heimo Korth became a legend. Today, Heimo and his wife Edna live more remotely than anyone else in Alaska. They are the only permanent residents of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, having settled there just … [Read more...]
Mink, Mary and Me: Episode 66, Trapping Today Podcast
In this episode I go over one of the great trapping and wilderness adventure books of its time. Mink, Mary and Me was written by Chick Ferguson in 1946. Copies are expensive and tough to find, but I believe it's well worth the cost. Click here to find a copy of Mink, Mary & Me hardcover The book is now available on Kindle! Click here. … [Read more...]
Labrador By Choice
A man takes to the woods to make a living during tough times. It’s a story most of us can relate to on some level, but Depression era Newfoundland was pretty extreme in the tough times department. Ben Powell was born in a small coastal village of Newfoundland in the 1920’s. Everyone was poor and everyone was hungry. There were few jobs, and the ones that existed paid very … [Read more...]
Carry On – Stan Zuray
Most outdoors folk are attracted to wilderness. It gives us a feeling of freedom, an escape from the civilized life we’re forced to live, at least for a while. But for some, the attraction is so strong that only a true wilderness lifestyle will do. Such people find themselves in the wilds of northern Canada and Alaska, living out lives that others can’t help but envy. Stan … [Read more...]
Raccoon, Oppossum, Skunk and Weasel Trapping – Herb Lenon
Following his highly popular book “Secrets of Successful Trapping”, Herb Lenon wrote several other trapping books to cover various details and additional species of interest to trappers. In 1946, he wrote “Raccoon, Oppossum, Skunk and Weasel Trapping”. As you might expect, there’s much less detail to cover on these ‘lesser species’, as Lenon termed them. They are much easier … [Read more...]
The Secrets of Successful Trapping – Herb Lenon
In his landmark 1944 book “The Secrets of Successful Trapping”, professional trapper Herb Lenon brought gold to the trapping world. Lenon was quite a successful trapper at the time and was developing quite a reputation. With this book, he provided a source of information that was hard to find in the trapping world in those days. The book covered the basic concepts needed … [Read more...]
Russ Carman’s Professional Fox Trapping Methods
In the early days of the fur boom of the 1970's, trapper and lure maker Russ Carman put out his first trapping book, targeted toward beginner fox trappers who needed to know the basics. Years later, when fox prices were sky high, competition was stiff, and everyone and their brother was looking for trapping information, he rewrote it with more advanced information geared … [Read more...]
Open Water Beaver Trapping Made Simple – Kyle Kaatz
Last time I had a challenging open water beaver problem to solve, I pulled Kyle Kaatz' "Open Water Beaver Trapping Made Simple" off the shelf for some ideas. Kyle has taken beaver in a variety of open water situations, and his book is loaded with pictures showing set examples and beaver catches. After an overview of beaver population dynamics, harvest management, and the … [Read more...]