North Australian FISH FINDER TM forums

And no its not what your thinking im talking about walking through the mangroves getting eaten to death by sand flies and mozzies and using a stick to poke around in holes looking for crabs.

Yeah sounds like fun doesnt it. Well I'm just wondering if any of you have had a go at it and if you have any pointers eg best moon phases, tides and what not ...

Cheers
Kp

Pots are a lot more easy but now where near as much fun Kel try on the bigger tides close to the bottom of the tide follow it out.Be preperd to get cut up by the barnacles and oysters hanging off the mangrove roots.

A couple of apprentices where i use to work a few years ago were hooking a few along the mangroves where the east arm boat ramp is today.
Use to go down at lunch at low tide and usualy got a few.
Low spring tides were best for them
They had the place well sussed
Look for rocky areas in the mangroves.

Kp NT wrote:And no its not what your thinking im talking about walking through the mangroves getting eaten to death by sand flies and mozzies and using a stick to poke around in holes looking for crabs.

Yeah sounds like fun doesnt it. Well I'm just wondering if any of you have had a go at it and if you have any pointers eg best moon phases, tides and what not ...

Cheers
Kp

yer done fair bit of it over broome way, no expert but here few my tips .

Big tides better and do it on the low, as on the low it exposes all the rocks and creek beds with the big crab holes your likely to hook them out of. And on the big fast moving tides a lot the time the crabs will not make it back to there holes in time and you find them lying in greek beds etc, easy pickings
I had most my luck finding them in deep muddy gutters with plenty mangroves. If you find a good hole and pull crab from it try not to damage hole to much, as a lot the time a new one will move in after ya pulled the previous owner out so it can become like collecting chook eggs
Crab hook should be at least 1.5 metres long and have sum room for bending etc as sum times the holes are not straight. And get ya self sum bootys.
Hard work but good fun in the same sence, watch ya back if ya doing it in nt

Cheers fellas, ive been told how yolngu do it but im not gona be putting my feet down a crab hole for anything

I knew a fella ...went to school with him...he knew some hookers...got crabs off em too but seriously

Haha interesting read.

I have done this twice over on the tiwi islands with a few of the locals. It was good fun until you didn't get a bucket to a crab intime and were stuck in mud with one angry crab near your legs... Plaster yourself in mangrove mud and it keeps the sandflys off you, your car will be a nightmare afterwards though. Everything PonyPlay said is the go. We used 2m condue pipe withstrong but pliable wire to get into the lairs and also used the other end of the pipe without the wire to go into the hole and knock around to see if anything was home first.

And on the big fast moving tides a lot the time the crabs will not make it back to there holes in time and you find them lying in greek beds etc

I knew the greeks love there seafood BUT that is going to far.
Good pics PP ditto on saving the holes.
The two lads I mentioned had 6 or so in an area and checked them a couple of thies a month and always got a few.

Is there any truth in that the crabs are facing inwards in their holes?

I have heard something like that smed, I know of some guys in Exmouth WA that reach their hand in the hole and grab them. I use the hook, not taking the chance that they are facing fwd. When you bend the 4 or 5mm steel rod bend each end in an opposite direction so you know where your hook is when your hook is deep in the hole

Ive done it most of my life always end up with a heap of good muddies big rocky bays on low tide are good too. over couburg the locals pull them out by hand never been game enough to try it.

Crazy bast#rds......
what its not hot enough so you gotta get into the magroves?
Its not dirty enough so you gotta slop around in the mud?
Theres not enough midges so you gotta go in to where they live?
Its not challenging enough so you gotta go one on one with a small angry tank thats got a bolt cutter on each arm?
Its not dangerous enough you gotta hang out wit da crocs with your feet glued to the floor?
Crazy effing bast#rds......

I heard that on a real low tide you can walk across Buff Ck and its a smorgassboard in the mangroves on the other side.....

We used to walk the creek up from Gunn Pt and the shallow flats. Neap tides were actually better out there for water clarity and you have a larger window as they are not in a rush.

john d wrote:And on the big fast moving tides a lot the time the crabs will not make it back to there holes in time and you find them lying in greek beds etc

I knew the greeks love there seafood BUT that is going to far.
Good pics PP ditto on saving the holes.
The two lads I mentioned had 6 or so in an area and checked them a couple of thies a month and always got a few.

ha ha hope no greek people think i mean you find crabs in there bed , can happen to any one nothing bit sheep drench wont fix

Take something to get a bit of creek water to pour down the hole. It makes it easier to move the hook around and the crab easier to pull through the mud and out of the entrance.

Holes with freshly churned grey/blue mud at the door are more likely to have a crab in it. Ones that look plain and dry usually dont. Can usually see the scratch marks at the entrance as well.

It will take some serious practice and it aint easy to pull the crabs out of the proper holes as they can be longer then 10 feet and full of tree roots but it can be a good way to get a feed when there arent many crabs in the water.