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#BLUE CRAB DIP LICENSE#
You will be taken to your state’s Department of Natural Resources website where you can apply for a license and see any rules and regulations regarding catching crabs. To apply for a license, simply go to Google’s search engine and type: “(your state) DNR”. Unless you are in a spot labeled otherwise, you will most likely need a recreational fishing license to catch crabs. It’s important to follow your state’s rules and regulations for catching crabs. Lastly, you will need a license and a crab gauge. Feel the towel after laying it over the ice packs, if the towel stops the cold air from seeping through, you might be fine without them. I recommend lining a towel on the ice to prevent any shock. Sometimes if you throw the crabs directly on a very cold surface, the shock can kill them. Thin towels come in handy to keep the crabs cool. When they’re asleep they are much easier to handle, and it’s a great way to avoid getting pinched.
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Most recreational crabbers use this trick to keep crabs alive until they’re thrown on the steamer. When crabs are exposed to cooler temperatures, they slow down and almost fall asleep. Ice packs come in handy to keep the crabs cool. Make sure there’s enough room in the container to evenly spread out the crabs so they aren’t stacked on each other as much, while still being light enough to easily carry around with you. I recommend a cooler if you plan on a longer crabbing trip on a hotter day to keep the crabs you catch alive and well. I recommend bringing a bucket and/or a cooler, as well as ice packs and thin towels.Ī bucket or a cooler will do just fine transporting crabs. You’ll also need some supplies to help transport the crabs. Click here to check its current price on Amazon. It’s a folding, lightweight, and affordable dip net that can come in handy out on the water. I use a MelkTemn Fishing Net on my crabbing trips. Something small enough that it’s easy to control, but large enough to have a better chance of catching crabs. Look for a net that has a handle at least 3 feet in length, and a net with a 1×1 ft opening for crabs. You can find one at any Bait & Tackle shop along with most stores selling fishing supplies. The bigger the opening to the net, the better. The first thing to look for is the right dip net (obviously). You’ll have better visibility and overall better time on a calm day. It’s inefficient and quite frankly embarrassing to trip over yourself trying to catch crabs in crashing waves. Just remember to pick a calm day to go dip net crabbing. They like to hop onto fishermen’s lines out in the crashing waves and eat their bait, so I’m sure you can scoop a few up with your dip net. The water may be a bit rougher, but Dungeness crabs are tougher than blue crabs found on the east coast.
#BLUE CRAB DIP FREE#
Feel free to check it out!įor you crabbers on the west coast, you can go dip net crabbing in bays and rivers that feed into the Pacific. Just keep an eye out for alligators!īill and Lauren made a video of their last crabbing trip to the Everglades using dip nets. To all you Florida readers, try the Everglades! Anywhere that’s shallow and has blue crabs will do just fine. A good place to start looking is tidal creeks, saltwater marshes, and shallow areas along rivers. Places like that are very rare in colder states north of Maryland, but not impossible to find. If you don’t have a spot in mind, it’s time to go exploring. A very good spot would have clear water all the way to the bottom where crabs like to hang out. You’re going to need shallow, relatively calm waters. Where to go Crabbingįirst, you’ll need to find a spot. Like I said before, the crabs taste a lot better knowing that you caught them. Sure, it’s a much easier way to go crabbing, but you miss out on the experience of wading out in the water on a warm summer day. This is a skill that’s being killed by the overuse of ring nets and crab pots.
#BLUE CRAB DIP HOW TO#
Let’s take a good look into how to go crabbing with a dip net. This skill takes a lot of patience, hand-eye coordination, and practice. The concept is simple: take a dip net and wade into a cove or shoreline, then simply scoop up crabs as they scurry by. The closest thing to going crabbing with your bare hands is using a dip net. It’s a more difficult time consuming, but they always taste better knowing you pulled that crab out of the water and onto your dinner plate. There’s nothing more fulfilling than ditching the traps and catching a crab dinner by hand.
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