# crabbing



## ascirwin (Jul 31, 2010)

anyone have any info on crabbing ?wanted to take my son on a day trip.


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## oldenred (Jul 31, 2010)

buy some round ring crab traps and some chicken necks (sold at food lion) then find a public pier , drop em and check em every 10-20 minutes. you can have 6 per person. you might want to add some weight to them so they stay where you want em. a small brick works fine. check the regs on sizes ect....


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## ascirwin (Jul 31, 2010)

what areas are better?


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## Mweathers (Aug 2, 2010)

This time of year, you can catch crabs in most places, even on the beach (though that is not like it used to be).  If you have a boat, go in the marsh, find a small creek and crab there until you catch no more then move to the next one.  I use traps, but have caught a ton on handlines.   Small stick with cord wrapped around it, sinker for weight, use about 4-5 oz and a chicken neck. Slowly pull the line up and dip them with a crab net.  Cheap and easy.

Bottom part of low tide up, I usually go the last two hrs of outgoing and quit the first two hrs at incoming.

Crabs have to be 5" tip to tip, you can buy an official stick to measure them, or just make one out of a piece of wood.

Try not to keep the females, and females with sponge (eggs) are illegal.

Mike


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## bnew17 (Aug 4, 2010)

ive always had good luck with the round traps. ive noticed alot of yankees use the string method, which can and will work, just not as effective IMO. Like MWeathers said, low tide on up is the best.  I usually let the traps sit a few minutes each time before checking.


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## Fletch_W (Aug 4, 2010)

All the basics have been covered, but I'll add more info..

If you are serious about quantity and quality, upgrade your bait from chicken necks to actual dead fish, and not rotten fish either. I crabbed alot on the SC coast and the difference in quality and quantity of crab was consistently better with fish for bait instead of chicken parts. Granted, I've caught my share with turkey necks, particularly hand-lining. But if you can find any kind of seafood distributor in the area that has whiting/croaker/spots that are basically by-catch from the shrimp boats, they'll usually sell them to you dirt cheap before they get sold for ground fishmeal. Cut a big slit down the belly of each bait before you drop it. And make sure to replace "worn out" baits regularly. It will make a world of difference.


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## Mweathers (Aug 5, 2010)

bnew17 said:


> . ive noticed alot of yankees [/COLOR]use the string method, which can and will work, just not as effective IMO. .



Suh, I resent that remark.  Native Savannahian.

Mike


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## bnew17 (Aug 6, 2010)

Mweathers said:


> Suh, I resent that remark.  Native Savannahian.
> 
> Mike



no ill will intended. if your from savannah your far from a yankee!


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## ascirwin (Aug 14, 2010)

anybody crab at blythe island pier?


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## mformica (Aug 14, 2010)

> Try not to keep the females, and females with sponge (eggs) are illegal.



how can you tell?


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## georgia_home (Aug 14, 2010)

Female: if pouch or sack on bottom of crab and it kinda looks like a sponge, it's FEM. OR if not pregnant, look at bottom of crab and there will be a pyramid shaped part of the shell.

Male: look on bottom, a male will have a part of the bottom shell shaped kinda like a penis, sort of. Elongated and pointy.

The area on male or non pregnant female is a smooth part of the shell, not a protrusion.


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## bigstew (Aug 15, 2010)

I just got back from St. Simons and the crab are not running like they normally are down there. Most of what was caught were females, but they were few and far between. I heard there was a big crab kill last winter in the marshes, and it will take a couple of years to get them back.  But the fish are biting pretty well....


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