The last Castle

[Pilar]

Apparently, shrimping and locations for same are a huge secret that cannot be shared with sport fishers. We had much the same problem with the information about commercial swordfishing.

'Puffin' has been trying to pry these secrets out of the ODFW biologists involved with the shrimp trawling and the video that was seen at the Halibut meeting.

Must be nice to have that whole ocean full of shrimp to yourself.

We will figure this deal out and I am betting on observant Salty Dogs who will notice where these boats are working and use the tools (GPS and charts) to figure out how to catch the prawns and shrimp.

There are no zipperlips on the ocean.

[Clamman]

ODFW employees are restricted to what information they can reveal. Commercial (i.e. businesses)confidentiality includes individual landings, area recorded on log entries as well as gear types. In some research projects, vessels hired request confidentiality on where and when they are fishing. Here is a link to ODFW personel policies Policies

Remember it might not be a case of the biologists not wanting to tell they most likely are not allowed to tell by state statute.

Clam

[Hummingbird]

John, I will ask a good friend that used to work for the commercial guys out of Astoria if he has any information on Prawns and other shrimpies. MMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!! Tom

[corrirod]

I wish we'd have marked the spot the year before last. It was the day that Puffin carked a shark while my boat and UG's boat were trying to find a halibut spot southeast of the 61 degree spot. We crossed pathes with a shrimp boat that was working the area.

Pink shrimp like muddy bottom Spots and Coonstripes like rocky drop offs. Look for habitat and you will find the Prawns :smile:

[corrirod]

John, I just checked the Maptech software and I "THINK" we were at or around:

44.42.731 N
124.09.869 W

There is a slight pinnacle there and I think that's the spot Puffin sent us to to try for hali's. No hali's at the time but who knows.

Maybe someone with access to better charting than maptech would post a picture of this area.
Nelson Island and the area around it looked like a place to try.

[corrirod]

I think I picked the wrong pinnacle as that one is too close in. I think it might have been:

44.44.253
124.15.384

I don't know. Maybe Puffin or UG can remember?

[rojo]

1 quick way to find those guys would be to do a flyover when they are out, get more than 1 location at a time that way.

[Mark Mc]

I may be mistaken about this....as Keta implies.... the shrimp trawlers (the boats with the real wide outriggers...remember Forrest Gump?) fish for the small, pink shrimp, over a flat bottom. The larger prawns are in rocky areas, and are caught with a trap. So finding a shrimp trawler will not help you find prawn habitat. Also, there are a number of different things targeted by a "bouy with a line on it" i.e. longline, hagfish trap, and maybe prawn trap. So just because you find a boat in the deep, working gear near a buoy, does not mean they're prawn fishing. I really think you're just going to have to go it yourself & do some exploring, unless you happen to befriend the right old-timer.

[id. painter]

Last summer on Vacouver Is. we did pretty well on the Prawns.
From what i gather ,,You have to traul for shrimp , they are a nonmeat eaters.
The Prawns on the other hand can be drawn into a trap with bait.
We were putting out three traps each day(230 ft of water) and we were getting anywhere from 30- 150 large Prawns.
They are soooo yummy. id. painter

[AuntyM]

Find the right habitat. I think you all will need to work as a team to do this. One thing that has intrigued me is the upwelling you look for with tuna. This might also apply to spotted shrimp. I think that is why they hang out near ledges.

Although there may not be all that many spotted ones right below you, if you have a scented oil slick from your bait, they will come in from several hundred yards. I use Mike's glo shrimp oil in my mixture. Is it the scent or is it because whatever light penetrates that deep seems to help them find the pot with the "glo"? I'm not sure, but I'm not taking any chances either. That "glo" powder they use in Mike's products is available somewhere. I forgot where, but I think it was a food coloring/candy supply company selling it.

I once read an article by a "shrimping expert" that claimed shrimp oil repels shrimp. I think he was deliberately misleading people. When I run out of Mike's shrimp oil, my bait doesn't attract nearly as good.

The "glo" just happens to be the same color as the shrimps eyes. Not sure if that means anything though.

If one of my pots is sitting in water surrounded by dozens of others and I pull a limit while the other folks get just a few, is it luck or the bait? It's the bait!

If you've have an abundance of canned tuna in oil from last year... use it in your mixture! Just make sure you mash it into fine particles.

[Birdnest]

Hey AuntyM,

Do you use that stuff in additon to the Puss n boots seafood platter or by itself? What is the consistancy of the glo stuff?

Thanks,

Joe

[Birdnest]

Found this...

Glow shrimp oil

Is this the stuff you are talking about??

[AuntyM]

Joe,

That's the stuff.

This is what I use in my mixture. I get about a 2 1/2 gallon bucket with lid and add....

Dry seafood flavor cat food. (shrimp bait pellets are a good substitute but spendy, for absorbing liquids.)

Canned cat food. (Puss n boots or any with seafood flavor with the same sticky consistancy. Just no gravy types) Acts as a binder more than bait.

Tuna in oil. The cheaper the better. At least 3 cans! Are we thinking oil slick yet?

Any other canned fish like mackeral or cook up some freezer burnt salmon or steelhead.

Mike's glo scent shrimp oil.

Mix it up really well so there are no large chunks, cover and freeze till ya need it.

I take a large spoon and stuff the bait into tennis ball tubes that have 1/4 inch holes randomly drilled. About every inch and a half. I use the really big pots so the tennis ball tube works well but it doesnt fit the smaller pots. Any plastic wide mouth container with lid works.

I have not listed the proportions as I never do it exactly the same anymore. I'm always messing with it. When we get home, I just toss the leftovers in the covered bucket in the freezer and add more ingredients next time.

I know this sounds like a lot of work. But using a tall can of puss n boots with holes punched in it just doesn't produce the best results.

[Birdnest]

I just cut and pasted that right into my ifish folder.

Thanks.