[music playing]
NARRATOR: Trapping season is on here
in the wild, northern Rockies.
TOM: All right, Sean.
Hey there, Mister.
NARRATOR: And for the first time in over a year,
Tom Oar is not taking on the mountains alone.
TOM OAR: We're just gathering up enough equipment to get
this trap line organized.
NARRATOR: For safety, partner Sean McAfee's kept his distance
during the pandemic.
What else you need, buddy?
Drum cables.
NARRATOR: But now, with Sean's help,
Tom can finally reopen his full 12-mile line.
I sure hope these packs can hold.
TOM OAR: Yeah.
We've got a lot of gear.
NARRATOR: Twice what he's been able to manage on his own.
Checking traps is like a full time job,
so I'll do my best to ease Tom's workload.
That way he can spend more time preparing furs and getting
them to the trading post.
NARRATOR: Tom's return to the trap line
is putting him to the test.
TOM OAR: Well, it's a little different with no snow on it,
doesn't it?
NARRATOR: His most reliable beaver trapping grounds
sit just over the hill.
It's a humpback in here on foot, isn't it, mister?
Yep.
NARRATOR: But it's a treacherous climb he
hasn't made on foot in decades.
TOM OAR: Normally, we got two foot of snow on the ground
by this time of year and we're running
the snowmobiles back in here.
We're pulling equipment on sleds.
And this year, we're afoot, and we're getting older too,
so it makes it harder.
Watch your step there.
Loose rocks.
Yep.
NARRATOR: While Tom is still one of the toughest
men on the mountain, every step is
a reminder of long ago injuries that never quite healed.
In nearly 30 years as a champion rodeo rider,
Tom's knees took a beating and have never been the same since.
[swoosh]
Good job, man.
TOM OAR: Phew.
NARRATOR: And even though Tom can still make the climb.
We're just about there, aren't we?
We're getting closer.
NARRATOR: It can be extra disappointing
if the effort doesn't pay off.
[music playing]
Let's just move our way down there.
There's got to be a beaver in here somewhere.
All right, man.
TOM OAR: These ponds stretch for several miles, north
to the south, so we just got to go further downstream
to find them.
NARRATOR: While there's no obvious sign of beaver here,
Tom reads the land with an expert's eye
and knows which clues to follow.
Well, here's the beaver sign right here, Sean.
Oh yeah.
TOM OAR: That's fresh too.
Good and fresh.
SEAN MCAFEE: That's encouraging.
TOM OAR: Yeah.
Well, by god, Sean.
Here's the dam.
Look at that.
Ah.
Ah?
I bet that's been here a while.
There's the lodge on the island--
on the end of the island up there.
Can you see it over there? - Yeah.
I wonder how deep that is.
It'd probably be a good place to set a trap
if you can make it out there.
SEAN MCAFEE: It's--
But don't-- don't go in over your waders.
That water's cold.
Yeah.
Why don't I at least try.
NARRATOR: Once the frost finally sets in,
the pond will freeze over, making the lodge
easily accessible by foot.
But as long as it's warm, Sean will have to take
his chances with the deep.
Hard bottom here, Tom.
Yeah.
A little bit darker out here though.
Pretty tricky to see the bottom.
Making sure you don't fall in some sort of trench
and go up over your head, and next thing you know,
your waders are filling up.
Well, you're getting in there deep, buddy.
Where's a canoe when you need it, Tom?
TOM OAR: Yeah. Really.
I think we're going to make it.
Oh, yeah.
Oh, look at this little spot.
Nice looking slide over here.
All right.
This little beaver slide here where these guys
are going in and out of this pond,
this is a feed bed right here.
Even though it's a slide, I can just put a nice Caster
mound there anyway, eh? - Yeah.
Great.
NARRATOR: Placing the pungent Caster glands on a mound of mud
tricks the beaver into thinking there is a competitor moving in
on its turf.
When it comes to investigate, it'll trip the foothold.
Tom will tell you he's going to catch him
by the right rear foot, but I'm just
hoping I'm going to catch them.
I like it.
NARRATOR: With one trap rigged by the lodge,
the next place to lay a snare is smack in the middle
of the dam itself.
[music playing]
TOM OAR: It should work.
NARRATOR: All in all, Tom and Sean
have opened up six miles of trap line
today, which they hope will start producing fast.
We got a bit of a hump back to that pickup tonight there.
Yeah.
Really.
We got a bunch of stuff done, though, huh?
NARRATOR: It's only half the job.
But it's a solid start and the best
they can hope for until the snows come to lend a hand.
We've got a long ways to walk out of there,
but at least now we've got light packs.
We don't have a bunch of weight on our backs.
It's almost like just being free.
SEAN MCAFEE: Let's do it.
TOM OAR: Call it a day.