Talking about obstruction of the water way, has anyone been down on the Ashepoo off of 17. You could walk two hundred yards down river on the crab trap bouys. When passing over the bridge the other week I couldn’t figure out how even the crabber got to his pot without taking out another’s or his own.
As for what happened to Bonzo…I was there. It had to be a commerical crabber!! Took Bonzo’s pots so he could set his out right where they were. This happened more than one time. I must say Bonzo is the bigger man, I wanted an eye for an eye or pot for pot and they were even my to begin with. Bonzo, you remember the number? I do!!!
I watched a commercial guy intentionally run over a competitors styrofoam bouy and blow it to pieces. He was looking over his shoulder to admire his work. As easy as he did it, it was obvious he had practice.
Talking about obstruction of the water way, has anyone been down on the Ashepoo off of 17. You could walk two hundred yards down river on the crab trap bouys. When passing over the bridge the other week I couldn’t figure out how even the crabber got to his pot without taking out another’s or his own.
Could those have been eel pots instead of crab pots:question: That would make more sense to me.
maybe some of ya’ll can rig a game camera up in the area without it being seen. take the flash off so it can’t be seen at night. Obviously you won’t catch them if they are robbing you at night but if they are coming during the day then you might stand a chance at catching the culprit. I know it’s a long shot, just a thought.
Maybe about 60 feet of line on the traps.The point is i support the crabbers but wish they would not block a creek with pots.I have snagged many pots and pulled them up to get my grub out.I put them right back.A few years back I had a crabber run up on me and start yelling until he saw I had a rig hooked up.I got it loose and he apologized.Three jobs I never wanted,Crabber,Shrimper and fishing guide.Way to much time on the water in all kinds of bad weather.Takes the excitement out of loading up your rig for a day on the water.
I’ve been having the same problem East of the Cooper. The kids and I like crabbing so we thought we would try one of the big pots. I knew I was taking a chance setting it off the neighborhood dock and sure enough, a few times it was moved, the trap was unlatched, bait unlatched and empty. I added more weight to be sure it was not drifting and secured it this time with tie wraps.
Went to check it Friday - gone. Later saw my buoy up in the grass. Brand new pot, new line, I had retied the knots so I know they were secure. 50 bucks gone and two disappointed kids. Ticks me off! I’m making it personal to catch this thief. Anyone know much about the automatic game cameras?
I will tell those of you who visit Mc’Ville to be courteous to the crabbers. One morning early, launching first light, sumbeach got all hoytie toytie when I had the inside lane occupied while the outside was wide open. Needles to say, let the truck sit there while I took my time.
As far as the buoys, can help you out sometimes if yer not sure of the channel. All in all good bunch of folks. For those who don’t know, most of those guys will give you 5-10 crabs if you ask or even sell you 15-20 if you just ask.
That game camera seems like a good idea, but you should know with most of these cameras the target has to be within about 50 ft (depending on the camera) for the motion sensor to trigger. If you are in a narrow creek it might work, but then you have the possibility of getting the camera stolen too. If you put it back in the grass, every time grass sways in front of the camera it will trigger. I think you would do better to try and recognize the pattern, then just watch the pots for a couple days from a distance w/ binocs.
When I was in the USCG we would often move the pots if too close to the channel. We could have confiscated them because, by law, the pots or bouys are not suppose to obstruct navigation. If you are a private citizen you shouldn’t try to move one or you could be charged with larceny. If you notice the waterway being obstructed you should just report it.
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