trotlines

[dennismayt]

i keep seeing trotlines for crabs. i sort of grew up on the bay but have never seen a crab trotline . ive seen a catfish one so i was just wondering how it works.

[rgminer]

A long line attached to anchors at both ends, with marker floats attached to the anchors. baits every 5-10 feet from one end to the other. A hook or roller is attached to the side of the boat. the boat approaches the line on one side and the trotline is placed on the hook or roller. The boat is steered very slowly along the line while the hook or roller gently lifts the trotline off the bottom. As the baits approach the hook, s netter nets the crabs attached. When the boat reaches the end of the line, it heads back to the other end to repeat the process. Some commercial guys have a basket type device attached to their hooks that permits capturing the crabs without the use of a net...but essentially thats about it...

[dennismayt]

thanks for the info in other words its like i used to do when i was a kid[a long time ago] but commercially

[rgminer]

Lots of recreational crabbers use trotlines too. Maryland allows for a 1200 foot trotline for rec use. I use 1000 foot and several times last summer I had my 2 bushel limit within 2-3 hours...

[rock n crab]

go to http://www.blue-crab.org all the info you could ever want on trotlines....