Snare traps are the classic way to trap an animal in the wild. They are designed to work quickly and effectively. Typically, they will catch an animal around the neck or a leg and keep it in place awaiting your arrival.
Here are 5 basic snares that you can use to capture some food:
1) The round snare – This is the most basic snare. Use it for small game. You will tie a piece of parachute cord, sinew, or rope around a spring branch, a branch on a tree that will snap up when the snare is released. You will tie the line to a wooden hook that is designed to lock into another hook coming up the ground. The end will be a noose at head height on the trail. The two hooks are the key. The one on the line will face downward and there is another hook in the ground that faces upward. When the snare is pulled, the hooks will separate, the branch will snap into place, the noose will pull tight around the neck. This helps to ensure a faster and more humane kill and If the branch is off the ground high enough it will stop other predators from eating a free meal.
2) Deadfall –
The rule for a deadfall is to make the weight 5 times the weight of the creature you’re after. Basically, a stone will lean up, held in the air by a stick. If you use a stick at ground level that is bent and attached to the prop stick, it acts as the spring. Place a round stick lightly tied to a stick driven into the ground. This will be your trigger. Place some bait on the trigger. When an animal takes the bait, the trigger will release the spring. It will snap out and pull to prop stick and allow the stone to fall. This is ideal for small rodents, like squirrels and rabbits.
3) Simple snare – The simplest snare is a just a piece of rope or parachute cord set at head height on an animal trail. As the animal walks down the path its head gets caught in the snare. Because it will panic, it will pull the snare tight. This type of trap is unlikely to kill the animal, but it will hold it until you get there. Tie the line to a tree at or slightly above head height so that your catch can’t chew through the line and get away with the snare.
4) Bird trap –
This one is a bit difficult to explain, but it’s very simple. Put a large stick in the ground about five feet high. Drill a hole in it just below the top. Tie a piece of line to a rock that hangs about halfway down the post. Run the line through the hole. Tie the line around a small stick that’s slightly too large for the hole. Put a snare on the end of the line. The snare will sit on the small stick. When a bird lands on the small stick, its weight will make the stick fall away. The rock will drop pulling the snare around the bird’s legs and holding it to the post. Once you have created one, the simplicity is amazing and it’s a highly effective trap.
5) Fish trap – There are two parts to this trap. Firstly, using sticks, create a V in a stream. The bottom of the V will point downstream. The second part is a circular pen that will be placed at the bottom of the V. It needs to be tight enough to the keep the fish from getting out. They won’t be able to figure out how to get through the V. As the fish swim downstream, fish will swim into the pen, but won’t be able to get out. You can simply reach in and grab them.
These five traps are simple, but require a bit of practice to execute. All of them are designed to keep you fed and alive in the wild.
