Catch and Release Crabbing?????

Skipper · 03-09-2004, 07:36 PM

Here I am sitting at a costal resort surfing the web, and I strike up a conversation with the gentleman next to me who just told me how he was crabbing from the Newport Embarcadero dock a couple years ago.

He just wanted to try crabbing for fun, used rings, and caught a bunch of keepers just to let them go.

Don't let PETA find out about this.

Cheerio'
Skipper

crabbait · 03-09-2004, 08:05 PM

Ya know, most of the crabbing we do is catch and release. I like to think of it as little crab training sessions. We teach the undersized younguns that the crab pot means "FREE LUNCH!" They climb in over and over, have a good feed, then get tossed back into the briny every time.

Then, one day, the crab ruler does not quite fit over their shells and into the cooler they go. Ever look at them in there? They all hold their claws up in the air. Some people think that they are doing this as a threat gesture. Actually they are asking

"Whats up with this?"

All that training pays off in the long run.

Skipper · 03-09-2004, 08:21 PM

Ya Steve you are right.

The youngeons build up an ego till they are too big for thier britches and end up hot water.

I'm going to try the new crab catching devise for fishing rods tomorrow at Newport. It spring opens on the bottom with bait on a skewer, when a crab pulls on it the line twitches, then reel fast it clamps around the crab. The reports are good, I just have to try it since the boat is still in Winter storage.

Cheerio'
Skipper

Snapset · 03-09-2004, 08:23 PM

Thats a good one, Crabbait.

Time Off · 03-09-2004, 09:14 PM

Awe Jeeze thanks Crabbait, now I'm riddled with guilt. I've betrayed their trust!!!

Salmonator · 03-09-2004, 09:21 PM

Time off, if you want'sta regain their trust just butter 'em up a little...

buckleydux · 03-09-2004, 10:35 PM

[img]graemlins/applause.gif[/img]

Snapset · 03-10-2004, 06:18 AM

"Want'sta" ??

Salmonator · 03-10-2004, 06:37 AM

Yea, there's a difference Mark. You can expect that from a guy like me! :smile:

CATCH AND EAT · 03-10-2004, 06:58 AM

Crabbait, now that was funny stuff!

Ever think of doing comedy central?

:grin:

Smily · 03-10-2004, 07:32 AM

Don't forget to set the hook on that trap. :grin:

:smile: Smily :smile:

Jeremy · 03-10-2004, 07:38 AM

Are you talking about the infamous CRAB HAWK!!! With a name like that its gotta work

Salmon Stryker · 03-10-2004, 07:44 AM

Skipper,

What is wrong with the ol fella catching crab just for fun and throwing them back?

bllelk · 03-10-2004, 08:32 AM

Last Fall Slowpie and I were limited at Hammond before we completed our first pull of our six traps. We had to dump the remaining traps and go back and dump the ones we had re set. That was a good crabbing day.
Had some crab salad just Tuesday night.
Yum, yum.

Skipper · 03-10-2004, 09:46 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Jeremy:
Are you talking about the infamous CRAB HAWK!!!

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">Yes that's the one.

Salmon Stryker,
It was the first time I've heard of anyone tossing back keepers.

High tide is at 2:41, so I'll be out there shortly after 1:00.

I'll report later.

Cheerio'
Skipper

Salmon Stryker · 03-10-2004, 12:43 PM

The ol guy just doesn't know what he's missing out on. Crab salad, crabcakes, crab sandwich, crab enchilada's, crab with butter sauce, crab cocktail, crab with lemon butter, you can boil it, broil it, bake it, sautee it, they is babequed stuffed crab halibut, crab and linguine, seafood crab fettucine, crab and crackers, crab and cheese, crab omlettes, crab dip, steak and crab legs.....thats, thats about it.

FishBowl · 03-10-2004, 06:12 PM

That is too funny Crabbait, reminds me of a few years back went to Nehalem bay for some fall chinook fishing, the fishing was slow so my buddy and I decided to try our luck at the crabbing, but I forgot the measure thingy but I had a tape measure so I thought no problem. Now how big do they have to be???? [img]graemlins/idea.gif[/img] I says to Brian I think they have to be 7 1/4 "

So off we go and get ourselves about 15 "keepers", when we got to the dock at Wheeler to have them boiled up they were saying them are some dandy crab there? I say some of them are just barely legal? then they pull out the little yellow measure thingy :shocked:
Doh!! Jim from the marina there called us the first trophy crabbers he had ever met :grin:

crabbait · 03-10-2004, 06:27 PM

[img]graemlins/applause.gif[/img]

Hmmmmmm..........so what would happen if they made the size limit 7 1/4"? For awhile, catching keepers would be tough. Wouldn't the end result be trophy keepers and the same numbers we have now?

Skipper · 03-11-2004, 06:01 AM

The wife and I went to a fishing/crabbing pier on the North side of Newport Bay yesterday. Used 2 Crab Hawks with chicken drum sticks, and caught about 30 crab in 3 hours: Female, undersized, and rock crab. No keepers. Might have just been the wrong spot. I suppose if we tried in a spot where keepers lived then we might do better.

There was a 12 year old local boy next to us who was using 3 Crab Hawks with squid, and was keeping the rock crab (we gave him ours too). He did not catch any keepers either. He said there were mostly females there.

It was fun to see what would come up.

Cheerio'
Skipper