A right to trap question

[TBark]

It's still a bit confusing.
So anyone, res trapper or Line holder, can trap the watercourse of a RFMA, crown or private land ? If they don't trespass to enter the watercourse of private.
Sounds kinda like hunters trying to hunt undeveloped road allowances surrounded by private land.

TBark

[jawa]

Originally Posted by TBark

It's still a bit confusing.
So anyone, res trapper or Line holder, can trap the watercourse of a RFMA, crown or private land ? If they don't trespass to enter the watercourse of private.
Sounds kinda like hunters trying to hunt undeveloped road allowances surrounded by private land.

TBark

I would check that one out with fish and wildlife. Eagle river flows through center of mine and there is no boundry or corridor on any maps I have. As far as I no im the only one allowed to trap the section of the river on my rfma. The only exception I have herd of was damage control on crown land. Can see where this would cause a lot of conflicks between people kind of throws the whole concept of rfmas out the window if anyone with a trapping license can follow a water course and trap it . Not meaning to be rude but I would ask for clarification on the rules before going out and setting traps.

[waterninja]

Originally Posted by jawa

I would check that one out with fish and wildlife. Eagle river flows through center of mine and there is no boundry or corridor on any maps I have. As far as I no im the only one allowed to trap the section of the river on my rfma. The only exception I have herd of was damage control on crown land. Can see where this would cause a lot of conflicks between people kind of throws the whole concept of rfmas out the window if anyone with a trapping license can follow a water course and trap it . Not meaning to be rude but I would ask for clarification on the rules before going out and setting traps.

Yep, it is confusing. I had a similar question about trapping Beavers on a lake (large slough), here about a month ago. I can access the lake from a public road and walk to beaver lodge without ever stepping on private land. Could I legally trap beavers this way?

[parfleche]

I was told by a F&W officer , In order to trap on a river that is surrounded by private land , And a river to which I have right of access , I would need a damage control permit over and above my regular resident trappers license.
IF I do not have the right of access over private land then my only recourse is to access it from a road allowance or where a bridge crosses the river and I may access it there, The high water mark or where the vegetation ends is the line to which I may not trespass on either banks.

[HunterDave]

Originally Posted by jawa

I would check that one out with fish and wildlife. Eagle river flows through center of mine and there is no boundry or corridor on any maps I have. As far as I no im the only one allowed to trap the section of the river on my rfma. The only exception I have herd of was damage control on crown land. Can see where this would cause a lot of conflicks between people kind of throws the whole concept of rfmas out the window if anyone with a trapping license can follow a water course and trap it . Not meaning to be rude but I would ask for clarification on the rules before going out and setting traps.

I'm relatively certain that this is correct. There has to be a ton of rivers, creeks, sloughs, etc running through RFMA's. Would private property inside of an RFMA not also be an exception though?

None of the Crown land that I trap is within an RFMA so permission through F&W is pretty straight forward.

[bill9044]

This will help muddy the water in the dam a bit. Hehe he. A friend of mine up north traps and beaver for the county. Many of these ditches are bordering rmfas the county informed him that their right of way was until the from the road to the far side of the ditch. So he traps beaver in the ditch. He does not trap past the ditch line due to the rmfa bordering the road. They had tries contacting the line holder and the holder does nothing about the beavers. So he traps them and will do so til the county says stop.
Here enlys another question if there are problem fur bearers on an rmfa should it be the line holders responsibility to trap the problem fur bearers. Hahaha this should get some good responses

[Tfng]

Originally Posted by jawa

I would check that one out with fish and wildlife. Eagle river flows through center of mine and there is no boundry or corridor on any maps I have. As far as I no im the only one allowed to trap the section of the river on my rfma. The only exception I have herd of was damage control on crown land. Can see where this would cause a lot of conflicks between people kind of throws the whole concept of rfmas out the window if anyone with a trapping license can follow a water course and trap it . Not meaning to be rude but I would ask for clarification on the rules before going out and setting traps.

It seems weird right? It sounds like it's only when the boundary is a river though. Rivers within the boundary are exclusive? I'd be upset to own a line on the North Sask or Athabasca river and I couldn't trap below the high water mark.

[TrapperTroy]

This may be a bit of a reach, but, is it not legal for a licensed trapper to trap within the high water mark of any water way, river, brook, or lake? To my knowledge you cannot be denied access to water so long as nothing is disturbed on any private property that is being crossed where no other option is available.

All this being said, if a land owner puts up a fuss, whether you are in your legal right as a trapper or not, you may have to weigh the options to if it is worth the confrontation or not.

Just an opinion.

[parfleche]

IF a confrontation arises , Then that is where the F&W should be involved . When you are within your legal rights NO ONE has the right to infringe on that . It may suck to be the one crying the blues BUT still. What if someone objects to you going down a dead end road and turning around every two days for instance , Is he within his rights to stop you? Just a question . It,s stupid but there you are !

[jawa]

Originally Posted by bill9044

This will help muddy the water in the dam a bit. Hehe he. A friend of mine up north traps and beaver for the county. Many of these ditches are bordering rmfas the county informed him that their right of way was until the from the road to the far side of the ditch. So he traps beaver in the ditch. He does not trap past the ditch line due to the rmfa bordering the road. They had tries contacting the line holder and the holder does nothing about the beavers. So he traps them and will do so til the county says stop.
Here enlys another question if there are problem fur bearers on an rmfa should it be the line holders responsibility to trap the problem fur bearers. Hahaha this should get some good responses

First option as far as I no is always given to rfma holder if he/she cannot or will not do the damage control then it is contracted out this applies only to the species being targeted usually wolves or beaver and in the off season when fur I pretty mutch worthless bounty is paid by oil companies grazeing lease associations MDs etc
It does not give a person an open invite to trap all species


Here is one for resident trappers to check out CN rail used to give permission to trap rail road right of ways falls under same restrictions as residential trapping might be worth checking into

[Big Grey Wolf]

Guys, just some more clarification. I dug out some more maps they show our line ends on high water mark of the Athabasca river. However the Berland a good size river the trapline boundry is back and forth across the river. Thus Berland in part of both trapline RFMAs. This would apply to the medium size rivers and especially small ones like Edson river. It appears that only large navigatable rivers are the exception. Smaller rivers creeks etc belong to RFMA.

[Talking moose]

Originally Posted by Big Grey Wolf

Guys, just some more clarification. I dug out some more maps they show our line ends on high water mark of the Athabasca river. However the Berland a good size river the trapline boundry is back and forth across the river. Thus Berland in part of both trapline RFMAs. This would apply to the medium size rivers and especially small ones like Edson river. It appears that only large navigatable rivers are the exception. Smaller rivers creeks etc belong to RFMA.

I would agree with this to be the most likely scenario.

[Red Bullets]

So I put forth the OP's exact question to F&W regarding the beaver trapping scenario.
This was their reply.

"It may be that the trapper has a lawful authority to set a trap for beaver (a fur bearing animal) in the situation described. Flowing waters that move through private land are commonly not part of the deeded land that they run through, and access to the flowing water may be legally possible via a road allowance as mentioned. In these situations, it is recommended that the landowner contact the local Fish and Wildlife office and speak with a local officer about the situation. The local officer can investigate first hand and may have knowledge of the trapper, any licences issued and other specifics relevant to the particular situation. Each and every scenario may be different, and we cannot provide a one-size-fits-all answer as there are many variables to the scenario described."

[kingrat]

In other words if he's a legally licensed trapper who accessed the river legally then there's nothing they can do

[Lefty-Canuck]

Originally Posted by kingrat

In other words if he's a legally licensed trapper who accessed the river legally then there's nothing they can do

I read it as, in other words contact the local F&W Officer to sort it out.

LC

[The Spruce]

Originally Posted by bill9044

This will help muddy the water in the dam a bit. Hehe he. A friend of mine up north traps and beaver for the county. Many of these ditches are bordering rmfas the county informed him that their right of way was until the from the road to the far side of the ditch. So he traps beaver in the ditch. He does not trap past the ditch line due to the rmfa bordering the road. They had tries contacting the line holder and the holder does nothing about the beavers. So he traps them and will do so til the county says stop.
Here enlys another question if there are problem fur bearers on an rmfa should it be the line holders responsibility to trap the problem fur bearers. Hahaha this should get some good responses

Illegal without a damage permit. The RFMA holder is first point of contact. If he refuses, MD gets a damage permit pulled with ESRD, and traps/contracts. Completely legal with the damage permit in place...illegal without. Been there done that (legally).

Spruce

[The Spruce]

Originally Posted by Red Bullets

So I put forth the OP's exact question to F&W regarding the beaver trapping scenario.
This was their reply.

"It may be that the trapper has a lawful authority to set a trap for beaver (a fur bearing animal) in the situation described. Flowing waters that move through private land are commonly not part of the deeded land that they run through, and access to the flowing water may be legally possible via a road allowance as mentioned. In these situations, it is recommended that the landowner contact the local Fish and Wildlife office and speak with a local officer about the situation. The local officer can investigate first hand and may have knowledge of the trapper, any licences issued and other specifics relevant to the particular situation. Each and every scenario may be different, and we cannot provide a one-size-fits-all answer as there are many variables to the scenario described."

Typical ESRD answer...It might be legal, might not.

I ran into this EXACT situation a few years ago, though a touch different as I was trapping for a landowner. Fish and Game was called, and traps were fired by the neighbor across the river. Went in and met with CO's about what I was doing there. As long as I hadn't left the water and accessed the land I didn't have permission to be on (which I didn't) there was no problem. In the end the Lady across the way got a very stern warning about touching traps and has never been a problem since.

I make a point of speaking with local CO every season about waters that I will be trapping just in case there is an issue. This way he knows who to call if someone complains for some reason as well. They will even "watch out" for some of my areas...they know who is supposed to be there, if not me they will stop and ask some questions. Always be involved with your CO's, they can be a great asset, and you can be a great asset to them as well. They typically stop me in the fall to find out where the goose hunters are at, not to see my paperwork.


Spruce