By Clark Stork

Trappers converge on Humboldt for annual convention

Mar 16, 2018 | 8:00 AM

Fur entrepreneurs from across the province are meeting in Humboldt this weekend for the Saskatchewan Trappers Association’s (STA) yearly convention.

The event will feature demonstrations, skinning competitions, raffles, an awards banquet and their annual general meeting. STA Spokesperson Ryan Demchynski said beavers have grown into a nuisance for the industry, and solutions will be sought.

“We’re trying to figure out different ways of implementing bounties to harvest beavers and make it worthwhile,” Demchynski told northeastNOW. “Trapping beavers is like buying 12 beer and pouring them on the ground and selling the empties for money.”

Coyotes are also an issue for the almost 5,000 registered trappers in the province. Demchynski said the organization hopes to encourage more trapping of coyotes rather than open hunting season. He said the future population would benefit from more controlled regulations, and noted coyotes can be targeted at any time of the year.

The annual convention usually draws roughly 200 attendees, but the organization is predicting 300 this weekend. Demchynski said the industry is strong, despite soft prices for skins.

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“Wearing fur in general is coming back; we’re optimistic that it’s a good time to be a trapper,” he said. “The prices aren’t really there to make us rich, but we don’t get into this to make ourselves rich, but we get into it because we enjoy it. It helps the other animals population and we enjoy it.”

Clark.stork@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @ClarkStork