Amelia Island Fishing Articles

This year seems to have been a bumper crop year for blue crabs in Amelia Island. Which can be a bad thing if you're fishing because the crabs won't leave the bait alone. I've had days where my baits were gone two minutes after they hit the bottom; the fish never had a chance. But if you like to eat blue crabs, it can be a good thing because there are plenty of them around to catch.

Crabs aren't only good to eat, they're fun to catch, so if you're having a bad fishing day (because of the crabs) you can always get out the crab traps or the net and catch a few crabs. I am by no means a crabbing expert, but I'll do my best to explain what I know about putting crabs into the bucket.

Baits – I guess there are a bunch of different kinds of baits that can be used to catch crabs. Somewhere I read that crabs smell the bait, so logic would deem that the bait should be as stinky as possible.

I prefer fish (dead ones of course), or a carcass of a fish that I've filleted. I pitch a few Whiting I've cleaned into a gallon sized freezer bag and stick them in the freezer for the next time I go crabbing. The oilier the better for fish, I think. When I use a Whiting for crab bait, I slice him up a bit to release more oil into the water.

For some reason, why I really don't know, raw chicken seems to be preferred bait for weekend crabbers. Nothing makes me happier than to see a four-year-old kid running around on the pier with a raw chicken leg dangling from the end of a string. I guess if you have a four year old that washes his hand regularly or never puts his fingers in his mouth, it's not a problem. I think you'd be better off to stop by the fish market and buy some Whiting or ask for some fish heads instead of stopping at the grocery store for raw chicken, but that call is up to you. I'm don't know why crabs like chicken; I've never seen one crawling around on land looking for a chicken to eat, but for some strange reason, they do.

I've heard that cat food works too, but it's pretty hard to tie cat food to a string or in a trap. I've been meaning to try a can of SPAM for crab bait, but I just hate to waste a good can of SPAM feeding crabs.

Where to catch crabs - A good place to catch crabs is off of piers, docks, low bridges and in canals and creeks. They've been so thick around Amelia Island this fall, it seems like if you can find the water, you can find the crabs. People have been catching them off the Fort Clinch pier regularly. Anywhere you find a boat ramp would be a good place to try also.

How to catch crabs - From a dock, a pier, or the edge of a creek there are basically two methods of catching blue crabs; using bait on a piece of string, and using a trap. There's a third method, called scaping (or scraping, depending on who you ask), which involves just walking around in the water and grabbing the crabs you see with a net. I've never tried that method, but my friend, Alligator Joe, the guy with one leg, used to do it all the time before he lost his other leg.

The bait-on-a-line method is simple; just tie a bait to the end of a string and toss it into the water. Check the line every few minutes to see if there is a crab tugging on it. If there is, slowly pull the line up until you can see the crab just under the surface of the water, and then scoop him up in a net.

The other method is to use a crab trap, which come in various different types and sizes. I use two types; a ring net type and a wire folding star trap which looks like a pyramid when closed. Different types of wire box traps are also available.

The ring net is very inexpensive, a couple dollars, and easy to use. If you're only going crabbing occasionally with the kids, this is a good type to buy. Just tie bait in the bottom of the center of the net, and drop it into the water. Pull it out occasionally and remove the crabs. I use a six ounce sinker on the bottom of my ring nets which makes them sink faster and straighter, especially when the tide is moving.

Wire traps are designed to open when they hit the bottom, and close when they are pulled up out of the water. They are inexpensive, six to eight dollars, and they work better if you are crabbing high above the water from a bridge or a pier as the crabs can't get out on the way up. The traps come rigged with pretty flimsy line, and I replace the lines on mine with a heavier cord before using them.

Handling the crabs you catch - Never put your crabs in a five gallon bucket full of water; they will suffocate when the dissolved oxygen is diminished and die. Put the crabs you catch in an empty bucket, and cover them with a wet towel. Keep the bucket in the shade, or as cool as possible.

Crabbing Tips – Crabs don't bite, they pinch with their claws. They don't pinch hard; they pinch VERY hard. Don't get pinched. You can use a pair of cooking tongs, or crab tongs, to handle live crabs, or a thick pair of gloves. If you're careful, you can pick up a live crab by holding him by the back fin, very close to the body or shell. When held in this fashion, the crab cannot reach around to pinch you.

If you have a crab tangled in a net or trap, just hold the net upside down over your bucket, and he well usually magically untangle himself and jump right into the bucket.

When you place a new crab in the bucket with the other ones, do it quickly and cover them up immediately with the wet towel, which will keep them from getting excited. When they get excited, they have a tendency to grab things with their claws, and if you stir them up they'll pull each other's legs out and you'll wind up with a bucket full of legless crabs.

Cooking blue crabs - I'm not a chef, but there are two basic methods for cooking blue crabs, boiling or steaming. I grew up in Maryland, and the Chesapeake Bay crabs were all steamed. I boil my Florida crabs, it easier (not to mention I don't have a big steamer). Boil your crabs for at least 15 minutes, or steam them for at least 30 minutes. Don't forget the Old Bay seasoning.

Crabs that have been dead for a while spoil very rapidly, and its best to discard crabs that are dead. I don't discard the dead ones, I stick them in the freezer to use as fishing bait at a later date. Never cook and eat a dead crab, cook only the live ones.

Florida crabbing laws - There is no minimum size limit and no closed season. A recreational crabber is allowed to keep 10 gallons of crabs per day. You may not keep egg bearing female crabs. If you catch an egg bearing female, she'll have a spongy looking mass of orange colored eggs on the outside of the bottom of her shell, which is why the females are sometimes called sponge crabs. You can use a maximum of five traps while crabbing. (As of 11/2005)

Do You Need A Fishing License When Crabbing? - The FWC Web site present some confusing, conflicting information on this subject. If you go to this page and click "Blue Crab" under regulations, you'll find a sentence that says: "A Florida recreational fishing license is required to harvest blue crabs under the recreational fishing regulations".

If you click the "Contact" link at the top of the page, you'll get FWC's "Question and Answer" applet. Click "Do I need a freshwater or saltwater fishing license?" and then click "Do I need a saltwater fishing license?". One of the answers is "Saltwater fishing or crabbing from shore or pier (license requirement)". That says:

"When fishing or crabbing from the shore or a pier, a saltwater fishing license is not required for the following: A Florida resident saltwater fishing or crabbing for recreational purposes from land or a structure fixed to the land- a pier, bridge, dock, floating dock, jetty or similar structure."

A telephone call to the FWC office in Jacksonville clarified the above. They told me that a Florida resident crabbing from land does not need a license, but if crabbing from a boat they do need a license. Out of state residents will need a license for crabbing unless they are crabbing from a pier or boat that has a license that covers the pier or boat.

Same as the fishing license rules; if you need a license in a particular situation for fishing, you'll need one for crabbing in that same situation.

If you are a Florida resident, there's an easy way to fix the "Do I need one to do this or don't I need one to do that" dilema regarding saltwater fishing licenses. Just go buy one every year. They're not expensive, and the money is used by FWC to benefit us all.

Article By Amelia-Island-Fishing.Com Staff