Crayfishing this time of year ?worth dropping pots out

Just wondering how the crays are going at the moment. I thought i read there is another "run" of crays around this time of year around April / May is that right? just wondering if its worth putting the pots out of Mindarie or Two Rocks  cheers Dave 


hezzy's picture

Posts: 1519

Date Joined: 27/11/09

personaly im surprised more

Tue, 2016-04-05 13:02

personaly im surprised more blokes dont fish for crays this time of the year

the onset of autumm/winter weather & the swell that comes with it gives good results without as much competition from ''others ''

in the shallows say 15 metres & under our best results come in april/may & june , in between bad weather
make sure your pots are heavy !!!! anything underweighted or poorly made will move and get damaged badly if not lost or tornm apart
dirty weather /water and consistent swells are great for catches
just dont set your pots right on heavy reef breaks or gnarly lumps ,because if the swell does come up , its likly the pots can walk & get jammed up, damaged etc or your ropes will get snagged with kelp/weed and get dragged around bommies & reef , so the pot may be fine but the rope is stuck ,

with dirty water getting them off becomes more difficult as you cant ''see '' them
diving on them is also problematic in dirty water for lots of blokes

the main negatives are , its colder , sunrise/sunset is later & earlier , so its not so easy to go before work or after ,
take spare battens, nails , bait baskets , lids out with you in case of minor damage

but if trips are staggered every 3-4 days you should go alright , i usually watch the weather sat images and bait up big before a blow and set them where they will be safe but catch well , as soon as the weather eases , check em as they often are chockers if set right

hezzy

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OFW 11

evil flourishes when good men do nothing

 

Posts: 52

Date Joined: 27/05/14

7m water dive

Tue, 2016-04-05 13:08

We were diving over the weekend, vis was about 1m with the swell but we still got quota on 1 tank, all well over legal, they've definitely moved back in. We were on the same spot about 2 weeks ago and only got 9.

Posts: 729

Date Joined: 22/08/12

OK sounds like its worth a go

Tue, 2016-04-05 13:16

I went for a demersal fish out of two rocks Sunday arvo and was surprised to see alot of pots out there - couldnt believe how many are set right ON the lead line out of two rocks  bloody stupid spot to set them - asking to have em cut off by boaters  

bradz's picture

Posts: 693

Date Joined: 29/10/07

On reef or sand

Tue, 2016-04-05 13:27

So, do you set them on hard flat reef, or just on the sand like during the run of whites. 

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I did then the best that I knew how. When I knew better, I did better.

sandbar's picture

Posts: 704

Date Joined: 25/10/09

Watching this with interest

Tue, 2016-04-05 19:25

 I am about to put mine back out. Had them out for 2 weeks due to absolute laziness. Had some good crays so far after reading on this site about craying during winter.

little johnny's picture

Posts: 5320

Date Joined: 04/12/11

Heaps in close ( sandbar)

Tue, 2016-04-05 20:46

 Well inside 5 fathom . Also heaps on back edge of 5 . Some ledges are full 

catchalittle's picture

Posts: 1875

Date Joined: 04/09/08

 We pulled out pots Saturday

Tue, 2016-04-05 19:57

 We pulled out pots Saturday and brother and I both got our bag limit and put the excess back 9 went back to davy jones locker and they were all sized and 1 other was a tar spot female

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Nathan

Posts: 101

Date Joined: 07/01/15

 Have had great results off

Wed, 2016-04-06 09:33

 Have had great results off tbe beach right up til end of season. Was up the mid wesr coast last week and a few boats working within 500m of beach. 

Was chatting with a mate who used to work in the cray game. He spoke to a few that were about to put pots back in.

 

Couple of boats back working out of freo the other day also