Every day this week I have spent about 2 hours digging out muck (straw, pinecones, mud and sticks) that the beavers have stuffed/wrapped/wedged/piled in and around the pond drain. The debris field I've dug out are the two piles in the pic. The drain is the small pile in the water. The light dirt color around the drain is the mound/fortress the beavers have built in attempts of keeping the pond water from the drain.
I know that if I miss one day, then the work will pile up for me again. But so far this week I've managed to get a little ahead of them. The pond is down 4 inches, and if I can get it down 2 more tomorrow there might be small hope we can put a type of cover around the drain that will prevent them from stopping it up. Maybe. Then there will be the mess they make in other places to contend with. I am seriously contemplating hiring a trapper to deal with them. My few attempts at taking them out have not been successful.
Rain, especially at night, like our forecast tomorrow calls for, is not my ally. Beavers work at night, so they will once again gain the upper hand if we can't get a cover on tomorrow. I did find a store that sells the water pants so I can go out and dig up the fortress tomorrow if we get the water level down. I fear that time and muscles are not on my side. I really don't want to spend money on a trapper, but we're running out of options.
I no longer think beavers are fascinating.
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