Trapping With My Girls

The sun was a still well below the horizon, but we – my three daughters, Helen, Maura and Rachel, and I – were all wide awake, ready to run our trap line and put out a few more sets on a cold winter morning. I’d started the truck, so the thick layer of frost on its windows began melting.

- Pat Donnelly

As we gathered the last of our gear my daughters pulled the beat-up thermos out of the cupboard, setting it on the table. “Aren’t you forgetting something Daddy?” one of them said, the others nodding in agreement.

One driving factor behind their willingness to go out on a day with sub-zero temperatures was a thermos filled with hot chocolate. They knew the true value of hot cocoa. We’re not a family of many sugary treats, so hot chocolate was something to look forward to.

Before boarding the truck, we took a moment to take in the star-filled sky. Years ago, my brother taught me the main constellations and stars, so we always paused to see and appreciate what God has painted across the sky.

The trapline was mainly land traps, but included a few water sets, too. I had permission to trap several farms in West Virginia and southern Pennsylvania, also a large piece of land owned by the sawmill I worked for.

Heading down the road, the girls kept asking about the temperature. My reply, 10 below, repeated itself, so they grew bored with that and turned their attention to other things as we headed into the mountains.

Checking sets and putting in new ones, the cold took its toll. Hot chocolate gone; the girls soon fell asleep in the warmth of the truck. The day ended with a possum, a coon (a bonus, because they usually hole up during cold snaps), and a surprise beaver.

The beaver was in a No. 330 bodygrip set just below the water’s surface at the bottom of a slide. A dive stick above the trap sent the beaver into the waiting trap.