Crabbing T-Bay

[DiveR]

Hope the new kid can ask a few stupid questions to start. [img]graemlins/1zhelp.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/1zhelp.gif[/img] Any suggestions for bait for winter crabbing on Tillamook Bay ??

[TundraIII]

Shad Shad Shad....get out there and catch a bunch of those stinkers next year and freeze em up for the fall. You'll have a good time catching them and they cant be beat for bait. I froze up about 70 of them this year and havent had to buy bait. I've heard a lot of people use chicken but I'm not impressed with the results. A few weeks ago me and a buddy took our boats out to the CR. He used chicken and I used shad. On the first day in 2 1/2 hrs I had 37 crab and he had 2 (sorry Norm!). :grin:

[skrimmy]

OK, so it's long after Shad season for this year's Winter Crabbing....what to do: Turkey Drumsticks. I know a particular guide who throws pots out before he takes his clients fishing and does very well (in T-Bay) with them. I can attest to this because I was in the boat! ( this was two years ago, but I doubt it's changed!)

[Up-4-Air]

I don't doubt shad would be a better bait, but I don't have freezer space for 70 of them. I would rather let Safeway or Albertson store my bait. I normally use trukey legs. Be sure to slice into the legs several times to increase the amount of scent. It may take a little longer to get a limit but I usually do.

[DiveR]

Thanks
Will go for the drumsticks and keep a corner of the freezer open for Shad for next year.

[Big Dog]

For me chicken seems to work better than turkey.

I put turkey in one trap and chicken in another and the chicken traps out produced the turkey traps by far.

Thats just me though.

[DiveR]

Follow Up
The turkey legs worked great
Really cheap at Freddy's
Beware Shad - space available in freezer for next year !!

[Bobby Ray]

DiveR,

I don't do a lot of crabbing so I wouldn't know if salmon carcasses work but if they do I have a couple of hefty bags full, your welcomed to them if you'd like, just let me know.

BnB

[1pump]

Shad does rule, but mink works pretty well if you can find it. So do tuna carks. And I can't tell any difference between turkey and chicken. I used both today at Hammond and both produced fat crabs.
Some grocery stores along the coast will keep outdated poultry and meat to sell for bait. The IGA near Siletz Bay sold me a pile of turkey and a whole frozen goose for cheap once. That @$#%&$# goose was about the size and shape of a bowling ball and just as hard. And it sucks for bait. Won't do that again!

[crazyinoregon]

I crabbed t-bay yesterday 11-24 and we started at the bottom of the low tide up to the high slack and had to leave. I thought that the 4 foot tide exchange would give us our best bet at a limit but was wrong. we only got three keepers. However, the crabbing did start picking up at the top of high tide but I had to get home for the honey doooo list. We were crabbing across from lysters and the other crabbers were having simillar luck. If you do go there, bring some sand shrimp and catch a mess of sea trout. we limited on them rather quickly in between running pots

tight lines

[Big Dave]

Take some Turkey drum sticks a sharp knife and cut a bunch of slits in the sticks, Put the sticks in a container the night before and let them soak up some shrimp oil.
Works like a charm !
Have fun.............Big Dave.