Has anyone used a crawfish trap?

[Ohioguy25]

8 hours ago, Mbirdsley said:

Try wet  cat food or canned shrimp in a women’s nylon Nylon than put a knot in it.  Dam craw fish you are feeding eat better than most people haha or I guess put the bacon in nylon 

Is it possible the bacon disintegrated or do you think it just got eaten? Would a raw chicken drumstick work better you think and stay intact in the bait cage? Lastly, should I not be leaving this trap in current even if it’s slow moving, should I opt instead for still water?

[J Francho]

Anything.  Just stop wasting bacon!

 

[Ohioguy25]

11 minutes ago, J Francho said:

Anything.  Just stop wasting bacon!

 

Ok you’ve made that point clear, lol can you please advise me on any of the following?

 

1. How do you supposed the bacon got eaten, is the bait cage too exposed? If so would a stocking actually work? I thought they had to be able to feed on it for them to stay in the trap?

 

2.  Would a raw chicken drumstick stay in the bait cage or would small minnows and other creatures eventually pick it apart too? If so should I stick it in a stocking inside the bait cage or just a stocking by itself? I really am pleased with how snug the bait cage sits suspended right in the middle of the trap, I’m pretty proud of myself ? it was a lot of Mcgyver work.

 

3. Placement - I have been leaving in a shallow current with lots of rocks where I have had great success catching crawdads by hand. However, I have lost a trap there. This time I put heavy rocks all around and on top of it and the trap was still there but the rocks were gone, not sure if canoes hit them or what.  Is it just as effective in still water, what kind of conditions should I look for?  Thanks! 

 

 

[TnRiver46]

48 minutes ago, Ohioguy25 said:

Is it possible the bacon disintegrated or do you think it just got eaten? Would a raw chicken drumstick work better you think and stay intact in the bait cage? Lastly, should I not be leaving this trap in current even if it’s slow moving, should I opt instead for still water?

Buddy you’ve put more effort and thought into this than anyone I’ve ever heard. I would just keep flipping rocks 

[Ohioguy25]

5 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

Buddy you’ve put more effort and thought into this than anyone I’ve ever heard. I would just keep flipping rocks 

I can’t my heel is broken, otherwise I would lol

[TnRiver46]

3 minutes ago, Ohioguy25 said:

I can’t my heel is broken, otherwise I would lol

Ouch. A seine also works well but you might need to be healthy first 

[Ohioguy25]

Just now, TnRiver46 said:

Ouch. A seine also works well but you might need to be healthy first 

Yup that’s my plan once I can walk. Could you possibly address the questions I asked J Francho in the post above yours?

[TnRiver46]

6 minutes ago, Ohioguy25 said:

Yup that’s my plan once I can walk. Could you possibly address the questions I asked J Francho in the post above yours?

No clue man, sorry. I had a buddy take a deep dive into crawfish trapping and he got next to nothing. You need a marsh in Louisiana or Mississippi to have great results . If you leave bacon in the river, something will surely steal it! Crawfish are scavengers and aren’t picky about what they eat 

[Ohioguy25]

5 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

No clue man, sorry. I had a buddy take a deep dive into crawfish trapping and he got next to nothing. You need a marsh in Louisiana or Mississippi to have great results . If you leave bacon in the river, something will surely steal it! Crawfish are scavengers and aren’t picky about what they eat 

Your buddy tried it in creeks/rivers with a variety of bait and no success??

[J Francho]

1. I have no idea

2. Maybe

3. Crawfish like slack water

[TnRiver46]

6 minutes ago, Ohioguy25 said:

Your buddy tried it in creeks/rivers with a variety of bait and no success??

Some success but not nearly enough. Easier to grab or net. The most I ever saw at once was washing dishes in a creek after dark. I had plenty of craws this weekend and the fish didn’t much care for them. soft plastic grubs , live shad, and live or dead helgrammites worked way better. More juicy meat, less exoskeleton . I would try trapping minnows, better bait and easier to catch. And there’s always a crawdad or two in a minnow trap 

[Ohioguy25]

10 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

Some success but not nearly enough. Easier to grab or net. The most I ever saw at once was washing dishes in a creek after dark. I had plenty of craws this weekend and the fish didn’t much care for them. soft plastic grubs , live shad, and live or dead helgrammites worked way better. More juicy meat, less exoskeleton . I would try trapping minnows, better bait and easier to catch. And there’s always a crawdad or two in a minnow trap 

Now how do I catch minnows?

[TnRiver46]

Just now, Ohioguy25 said:

Now how do I catch minnows?

Minnow trap, available at wal mart 

[Catt]

Again y'all are over complaining a simple process ?

 

https://thefishsite.com/articles/crawfish-harvesting

[Ohioguy25]

8 minutes ago, Catt said:

Again y'all are over complaining a simple process ?

 

https://thefishsite.com/articles/crawfish-harvesting

Lol obviously not simple if it’s not working 

[TnRiver46]

2 minutes ago, Ohioguy25 said:

Lol obviously not simple if it’s not working 

Like I said, simpler in a marsh down south 

[Spankey]

Thread is getting real good. Certainly makes for a good read. 
 

What happens to all the leftover live bait?

[Catt]

1 minute ago, Ohioguy25 said:

Lol obviously not simple if it’s not working 

 

Read article for what bait to use.

 

1 minute ago, TnRiver46 said:

Like I said, simpler in a marsh down south 

 

Actually not, you still gotta know what to use & where.

[TnRiver46]

4 minutes ago, Catt said:

 

Read article for what bait to use.

 

 

Actually not, you still gotta know what to use & where.

Well yeah but it works better elsewhere 

[Catt]

3 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

Well yeah but it works better elsewhere 

 

It's like bass fishing ?

 

Right location + right bait = crawfish 

 

As for why @Ohioguy25 ain't catching might be because like bass, crawfish move. 

 

Just like with bass fishing ya gotta know a little bit about the crawfish.

[Hook2Jaw]

This thread has finally convinced me to open up my new website.

 

Www.crawfishresource.com coming soon!

[Ohioguy25]

2 hours ago, Catt said:

 

Read article for what bait to use.

 

 

Actually not, you still gotta know what to use & where.

I’ve now tried bacon, hot dogs, cat food and tuna. 

[Spankey]

It’s a shame we live so far apart. I’d like to go on one of these crawdad expeditions. 

[Smells like fish]

I love hand catching crawdads even at 38 ? the last time I did it for bait was about 15 years ago and my buddy and me caught near 40 in a couple hours.  That was in a creek. Now in the river they are in the swift rocky water that is from 1 to 3 feet deep. I can put a piece of meat on a hook and throw out on bottom and have a real monster hanging on with his claws. I have always wanted one of the square craw cages but haven't yet bought one. I bet chicken gizzards would be good to bait with along with some liver.

[Ohioguy25]

2 minutes ago, Smells like fish said:

I love hand catching crawdads even at 38 ? the last time I did it for bait was about 15 years ago and my buddy and me caught near 40 in a couple hours.  That was in a creek. Now in the river they are in the swift rocky water that is from 1 to 3 feet deep. I can put a piece of meat on a hook and throw out on bottom and have a real monster hanging on with his claws. I have always wanted one of the square craw cages but haven't yet bought one. I bet chicken gizzards would be good to bait with along with some liver.

You think they’re easier to catch in the creek?