as others have said,  cut slits in the ground and step on area or a straight tunnel for setting this trap.  I push a hole in the tunnel to see if the mole repairs it.  I found the mole was going under the trap without triggering it---- so I checked the sensitivity of the trigger and it was too hard.  to fix this, take a file or dremel and smoothen the end of the rod and the plate's lip--- you need a hair trigger--if you can lift the trap by the trigger while it's on the ground, then it's not sensitive enough (test by setting and using the safety, then use a stick to lift on the trigger) .after doing this I had that mole the next morning