how do you catch turtles?

[PROVANTAGE]

my new fur fish and game has an article on skinning and eating them but how do you catch them?

[normanvin]

Don't you trap them?..........

[brian]

what kind?
snapping? you go fishing for them.....

uhhmmm snapper soup.

[XUSNORDY]

You can trap 'em. Or catch them.....we use slit bluegills, chicken liver and greasy grimey groundhog guts on a large treble hook. Great with beer batter and fried like chicken.

Need a frog giggin lesson or recipe?

[toadyoforangeville]

Ah, snapper fishing it combines my two favorite things. Shooting gophers and fishing .First, shoot you some gophers. then get some bottles (three liters and milk jugs work well) find some strong line we used parachute cord attach some 1" gap hooks add sun baked gopher and toss in water (only if you have a boat!) if not tie line to a stout branch and check every two or three hour. when you get one don't let it get close to you , ya might loose a finger and if you have a boat and using the jugs youre in for some fun if you catch a channel cat,boy can they move!

[Pukindog]

First you need to dig a deep pit about 6 feet accross. Fill the pit with ashes. Next string peas all the way around the hole. Now for the hard part; when the turtle comes to take a pea you kick it in the ash hole.

Jeff

[Mensur]

When I was a kid I used to catch them often. I would have a 1" gap hook, I think it legally has to be at least 1" in PA, attach that to a foot or two of chain and then maybe 10 or 20 feet of nylon rope. This is tied to a steak and hammered in the ground. Just put whever meat you want on the end, snappers will eat anything. Chicken livers seem to get the fastest results but it's a pain to wrap them up on the hook to prevent fish from nibbling them off. I primarly used dead sunfish as bait. Anyway, attach the sunfish to the end of the hook, pound the steak in the ground and come back the next morning.

One I caught this way was over 20 lbs; I still have the shell. I was sure something had wrapped my line around an underwater tree or rock because no matter how hard I pulled it wasn't coming in. After many minutes of pulling I finally made some progress and got it to land.

Just as a caution, snappers are almost immortal. For that big one I even crushed it's head with a framing hamming and the jaw was still moving and could still bite objects I'd put in front of it. It takes them a very long time to die and are dangerous for a lot longer than you may think. BE CAREFUL!

[WitsBusa]

Originally Posted by Mensur

When I was a kid I used to catch them often. I would have a 1" gap hook, I think it legally has to be at least 1" in PA, attach that to a foot or two of chain and then maybe 10 or 20 feet of nylon rope. This is tied to a steak and hammered in the ground. Just put whever meat you want on the end, snappers will eat anything. Chicken livers seem to get the fastest results but it's a pain to wrap them up on the hook to prevent fish from nibbling them off. I primarly used dead sunfish as bait. Anyway, attach the sunfish to the end of the hook, pound the steak in the ground and come back the next morning.

One I caught this way was over 20 lbs; I still have the shell. I was sure something had wrapped my line around an underwater tree or rock because no matter how hard I pulled it wasn't coming in. After many minutes of pulling I finally made some progress and got it to land.

Just as a caution, snappers are almost immortal. For that big one I even crushed it's head with a framing hamming and the jaw was still moving and could still bite objects I'd put in front of it. It takes them a very long time to die and are dangerous for a lot longer than you may think. BE CAREFUL!

jeez man.. crushed it's head with a framing hammer. You're a sensitive dude, huh? That sounds awful and a little bit sick. Nothing quicker and more humane? Sorry, I'll get out of this forum. ha.

[Gary in Pennsylvania]

Originally Posted by WitsBusa

Nothing quicker and more humane?

Can't get much quicker than smashing its head with a hammer!
I wouldn't do it.....but ya gotta admit - that's quick!

[Mensur]

Originally Posted by WitsBusa

jeez man.. crushed it's head with a framing hammer. You're a sensitive dude, huh? That sounds awful and a little bit sick. Nothing quicker and more humane? Sorry, I'll get out of this forum. ha.

As gory as it sounds I was maybe 16 years old and that was the most humane thing I could think of at the time, not sure if I could think of a better way now. For anything but a snapper that should have meant an instant kill. It's not like I was able to politely ask it to stick it neck out so I could chop it's head off. I really don't think shooting it would have anything either, at least not without using something high powered that would have totally obliterated it.

I just did what I could to try to end it's life as quickly as possible without me getting hurt. What more humane thing would you have done?