My Office Today

Rally

NC Minnesota
Lamar,
She has the house and basement full of boxes, tins, etc. She also has displays in four shops! She's a buy four, sell three woman. LOL Her and her crew (Garage Sale Goddess') all have big plans since she retired. I meet her at the door of my shop when she comes "shopping".

Ian,
Not all of it, but I dug around under the bridge today and couldn't get it flowing again. Just one pipe is draining now. It's all coming out anyway and being replaced by a 36" culvert soon. Should be a 60" at least, but they'll have to figure that out when the contractors get there to bid it.DDFB580D-C4EE-44F2-AEDC-B8186AB8F807.jpeg
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Ian

Rally

NC Minnesota
I'd like to of seen the c4 before I started moving water in the beginning. Problem is he wanted to save the road because the contracts haven't been bid yet. Not that anyone is using the road, or likely will until hunting season at the earliest, but leaving a notch in the road is about when somebody gets on a crotch rocket, usually alcohol involved, and decides to take a night cruise. I flagged the hole and pulled logs across the road when I left, but you just never know this day and age, just check out Utube for picture proof of that!
Part that drives me crazy is I've put a bunch of water through there already, and it decides to plug the last day! I've sent him pictures (forester) and he said no problem. Just hate to leave a job like that.
 

fiver

Well-Known Member
I'd give it a go on the 4 wheeler, but I'd be looking around for a way to park and hunt from there or turn around and head somewhere else in a truck.
 

Rally

NC Minnesota
9AF2F508-E558-46D7-A96D-CD4197BD4738.jpegF0E5B433-54EF-423E-91B0-CA0A99896481.jpeg
Went back to the beaver contract yesterday to see if I couldfind out what had caused the road to overflow. Turns out after some digging, that the top pipe had a piece of cinder block and a piece of wood washed into the end causing the obstruction. I could barely reach it to clear it, but managed by laying on my back and half wiggling under the collapsed bridge. The bottom pipe upstream end, is buried in sand and rip rap, but still running at about half capacity. Which means the water is sifting through rock and sand before draining.
Then I went up to the dam and dug out the last 18” or so of clay to drain what is left of the water in lower pond. Called the Forester and gave him the scoop. He figures the cinder blocks there came from a previous installed Clemson Leveler, and the blocks were used to support the outlet pipe. He had a contractor coming out there today to bid the work. Back down there in a couple days to check it out again.
 
Last edited:

fiver

Well-Known Member
should be down to the regular stream flow by then I'd imagine.

so is the contractor going to remove the dams or just repair the pipe work?
 

Rally

NC Minnesota
They are putting in a whole new road. The contractor will have to remove the collapsed bridge and pipes there, install a 36” culvert, and modify wings on new road at culvert, usually fabric and rip rap. He”ll have to remove the remaining dam to get built to road specs and use any material onsite. Reality is the hoe operator is going to move that dam about 50/50 right and left of where it is, because Invasive Species protocol requires any wet material removed from a waterway, not used at the site, be trucked to designated area with disposal protocol onsite. A good hoe operator will take about five minutes to leave that dam “onsite”.
 
Last edited:

fiver

Well-Known Member
that's too bad, if it was shredded down and screened out it would make some dang good garden soil in a couple of years.
 

Bill

Active Member
I love this thread, and I don't want to cause any drift, but I read the Lewis and Clark journals a few years ago, and it seems that despite all the great choices they had on the menu beaver was the number one hands down choice for the whole crew, and dog, which they traded for was near the top

Bill
 

Rally

NC Minnesota
F5C74353-666C-49B6-8DF2-CF4D196B3F38.jpegI’ve been slacking on this thread. Having my truck down for a week sucked.
This is three beaver I caught adjacent to a county road. Note what they are laying on, a culvert they got tired of cleaning out, so they pulled it out, then the beaver built a dam there! Lol County foreman told me to call him when the beaver were gone! Took five out of there then removed the dam.
I’ve got three state rice contracts this year. This picture is looking West out over the lake. It should have more rice growing than it does now, but they had some contractor troubles last year that didn’t maintain the water level low enough, so it may be a couple years to get it back.

CF683ECB-2D8A-4E69-8B8D-97249F884C82.jpeg
00615324-E346-477D-A995-DEFCCD1069D6.jpeg
This is the water control structure/ outlet of the same lake. I have to keep it this way until October 15. If beaver move in or dam it, I trap them out and clean the control structure.
68413E1D-1E9E-4AB7-B295-7CDAEAB98BA1.jpeg
It’s about a mile ride to the control structure via 4 wheeler, through some tall grass. Note the grass seed all over the wheeler. Gotta keep cleaning the radiator out to avoid overheating the wheeler. I’ve never had a problem overheating here, but did in S.D. Once, and the grass seed plugging the air flow was the cause, well that and 90 degree temps!
ED68CB0A-3610-42F9-BEA0-6F446CA806B2.jpeg
This is the water control structure on my second rice lake. Note the small pool below it. You wouldn’t believe how many Northerns I’ve caught there. Nothing over 4 lbs but good eating size. Just upstream from this structure is a spot the beaver like to dam up. Well I took two beaver out of there, removed the dam, and drained it to the correct level, it stayed that way for over two weeks, was there to inspect it four days ago, and look what was there today when I went to take pictures for my end-of-month report!
041CF327-E84C-4256-B826-9B93985E6425.jpeg
So,I had to set a couple traps, and hope to remove them quick, before they build it higher, then I get to tear the dam out again! Pretty fair rice production now on this lake, so would not be good to flood it out.
910A25D5-86A6-49E5-809F-2635B1E5D50F.jpeg
This is my third rice lake, and what a good rice crop looks like. All that green out in the water is natural wild rice (duck food), and what is suppose to be growing in our shallow lakes up here. The problem is the beaver dam the outlets, raise the water levels, then the sun can’t penetrate the water to germinate the rice. The rice then only grows in shallow waters close to shore instead of a whole lake of rice, it looks like a “donut” of rice around the lake.
733A1191-9FE9-44D4-9C66-D13C21C485FF.jpeg
This is the outlet to the above lake and the dam I have to keep clean. That long white PVC pipe in both pictures, is the remnants of a Clemson leveler. Note where the beaver built the dam, right on top of the outlet! Lol The sound of running water is sure to get their attention!
 

Rally

NC Minnesota
Yep. I don't mind the trapping and tearing out dams, but the paper work is a pain. And, not everybody can fish in their office!
 

Rally

NC Minnesota
9BD89119-C085-4297-B6B6-C3A93AEB5254.jpeg
well got that beaver that built the dam on my rice contract. I’d set two traps, one at both sides of the dam. Guess what was in the other trap?
018CD4DE-B920-47DC-A034-2B41537872B4.jpeg
yep, big old swan caught by two toes , but none the worse for wear. That brown thing floating by the swan is the beaver. It’s surprising how strong a bird that size is. All that turbulence in the water is from it’s wings. It had taken the trap out to the end of the drowning rod, just like it was designed to, but three feet of water is no problem for the long neck or size of a swan. It was just out there swimming around and calling me all kinds of names when I got there! Had to pull the swan in with the drowning rod and let it loose. About like landing a B-52 with a fishing rod!

Next stop was a ditch that runs adjacent to a county road. The beaver had built a dam there and raised the water level in the ditch. County backhoe dug the dam out, then the beaver went 20’ downstream and started a new dam. I set four traps there and had four beaver today. Caught a pair of two year old males on the new dam, the big female and a pup at the old dam.
AB643F34-4C12-41C2-A1D9-0B07415EA787.jpeg
9F0EE797-0ABA-4941-B587-9730A7AD7CBF.jpeg
9D833EEA-E3DE-4A88-9A15-E45256529D8C.jpeg
The next stop was dam a beaver built in a flowage that runs through a combination of woods, cow pasture, and hay field. The beaver had the water backed up over 3/4 mile and starting to flood a county road. This is a picture of the dam at the original creek bed, but is actually about 80’ long now. I’ve got a trap out from that break in the dam, the intention is to catch the beaver as it attempts to repair the break in the dam.
30A0950D-28D2-45BB-862D-638BB289F95F.jpeg
4899DAE4-7E52-402A-8146-2197463BAE38.jpeg.
This picture is looking upstream from the dam. The cell tower in the background is about a block west of the county rd.
B01D37A6-74FF-4593-8A96-73792EB88188.jpeg
I set four traps here also and caught a three year old male and a two year old male. Should be 6 or more Still at this location. May have to launch a canoe here to finish the job. The landowner here is pretty happy to get the beaver trapped. He has two deer stands in the flooded areas.
 

Ian

Notorious member
This reminds me of a chess game and is fascinating to "watch" through your reports. Plus, deer flies and angry swans are better seen in pictures than experienced in person. :p
 

fiver

Well-Known Member
yeah chuckle, angry swans are... umm well, big angry large birds.

dang man your starting to rack up the body count.
 

Rally

NC Minnesota
Most folks don't realize how big a swan is. They aren't aggressive, or try to nip at you, they are just huge birds that can swim well and pump their wings even under water. The turbulence from that swans wings had the water churning and that beaver was bobbing like a fishing bobber! It was hot and the spray of water was refreshing anyway. LOL
It's so dry here, the beaver aren't really causing many problems this spring. I'm usually busier this time of year. When we get rain the beaver start plugging things up, or we notice their activity more anyway. It was a pretty slow sparse dispersal this spring, with the male two year old beaver starting first, usually females later. I'm guessing it could happen later if we get big rains.
 

RBHarter

West Central AR
Obviously you've never picked up a presumed dead swan ..........

Actually at least the tundras are pretty docile . Nevada has a season . Quota by tag , closed by tag limit or by X number of I think it was whistlers . Just in case you were wondering why I had a presumed dead swan destroying my kitchen ........
 

fiver

Well-Known Member
I dang near ruined a good Ruger red label beating a swan down in about 3' of water while a 100 lb. golden retriever was also attempting to beat it into submission.
the dog was smart enough to try to work the swan out of the ditch, I didn't think that far ahead, and got too close to shoot it again.
plus I didn't want to ruin it so I could get it mounted.
I ended up ruining it's head when I Babe Ruth'd it with the butt stock and ended up flat on my back in the middle of the ditch filling my waders with mud and muck at the same time.