# Catching CrawFish in streams/rivers



## bchfan

Looking into starting to trap some crayfish in the black water rivers and creeks the next coming months and was wondering if anyone has any insight i live in crestview from pensacola so milton area and Black water river and all its streams are quiet familiar to me. Here in crestview we have alot of creeks and rivers aswell. Have not found much info on crayfish in our area but i have seen them and like to have something to do until blue crab season is ready to go any info would be appreciated. Thankyou for your time:yes:

Planning on making 3 traps with 1 1/2 in openings using fresh fish parts for bait.


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## jaster

Good luck. I dont know how well they do in our creeks. I have caught them out of some ponds locally before, and when I had a Bass for a pet, I would turn over logs in coldwater creek and find a handfull to feed him whole while we were swimming. Keep us updated, be intresting to know!


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## barefoot

When I was a kid, me and dad used to trap crawdads on yellow river...started catching them in fish/minnow traps so we started baiting different and caught craydads.

The best baits I found are...not kidding you..Ivory soap & raw chicken parts.
The soap melts and back then (not sure now) it was made using animal fats...so it left a chum stream...fish, minnows and craydads followed it to the trap.

You can also trap them using a piece of screen tied on all 4 corners, meat tied to the middle, tied to a long pole. Sat the pole on the side of a deep ditch w/ slow or non-moving water...check every few hrs. for dads..Saw some cajun's catchng them this way back in the 80's.


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## Charlie2

*Catching Crawdads*

Something for the kids to do:

Give them a pole with a string(line) baited with a piece of fat meat or bacon. You don't need a hook. The crawdad will hold on until it reaches the water surface. You need a 'landing net' of some kind to keep from losing them. 

Some of those 'bull' crawdads can inflict pain with those big claws, so be careful handling them.

Well worth the effort.

Keep them in a porous bag to keep them alive until you get home. C2


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## skiff89_jr

This is my catch from monday night. I've put my trap in creeks everywhere around my house with about everything as bait with nothing but about a 3ft eel to show for it. I placed my trap in a ditch baited with mustard sardines and got about 30 decent sized crawfish and 1 eel. Good luck to ya. It took me awhile to find them :thumbsup:


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## Gnwdad

Wirelessly posted (Razr Maxx)

Escambia River is full of them but their normally small.


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## MULLET HUNTER

Just about any road ditch that holds water south of I110 on garçon, or robInson pt. I have caught them there for years for bass bait in my parents lake...


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## tips n tails

skiff89_jr said:


> This is my catch from monday night. I've put my trap in creeks everywhere around my house with about everything as bait with nothing but about a 3ft eel to show for it. I placed my trap in a ditch baited with mustard sardines and got about 30 decent sized crawfish and 1 eel. Good luck to ya. It took me awhile to find them :thumbsup:


Whatca going to do with that eel? Don't tell me FH bait lol. Nice batch of crawdads. Use to catch them snorkeling down to boulders in the local creek. May have to get me a trap and start trying to catch some to eat.


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## skiff89_jr

tips n tails said:


> Whatca going to do with that eel? Don't tell me FH bait lol. Nice batch of crawdads. Use to catch them snorkeling down to boulders in the local creek. May have to get me a trap and start trying to catch some to eat.


You know me too well! Haha actually i'll probably use him as cut bait. I've heard that if you use them live they will wrap there tails around structure on the bottom and won't let go. Word on the street is that they make good cut bait. Guess i'll have to try that out :thumbup:


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## tips n tails

skiff89_jr said:


> This is my catch from monday night. I've put my trap in creeks everywhere around my house with about everything as bait with nothing but about a 3ft eel to show for it. I placed my trap in a ditch baited with mustard sardines and got about 30 decent sized crawfish and 1 eel. Good luck to ya. It took me awhile to find them :thumbsup:





skiff89_jr said:


> You know me too well! Haha actually i'll probably use him as cut bait. I've heard that if you use them live they will wrap there tails around structure on the bottom and won't let go. Word on the street is that they make good cut bait. Guess i'll have to try that out :thumbup:


Ya I knew he'd become FH bait lol. Decent size looking eel. Saw one last yr in YR shocked the hell outta me. Never seen a freshwater eel before. How do you go about hooking a crawdad? The meaty part of the tail I'm assuming?


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## tips n tails

To the OP I'd try that swampy roadside over by Avalon or Garçon MH was talking about or down by shoal river that's close to Cview. Post a report on how you do.


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## jcoss15

skiff89_jr said:


> This is my catch from monday night. I've put my trap in creeks everywhere around my house with about everything as bait with nothing but about a 3ft eel to show for it. I placed my trap in a ditch baited with mustard sardines and got about 30 decent sized crawfish and 1 eel. Good luck to ya. It took me awhile to find them :thumbsup:


That eel is some awesome bush hook bait...


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## skiff89_jr

tips n tails said:


> Ya I knew he'd become FH bait lol. Decent size looking eel. Saw one last yr in YR shocked the hell outta me. Never seen a freshwater eel before. How do you go about hooking a crawdad? The meaty part of the tail I'm assuming?


I've never used a crawdad before. I'm experimenting since the bream are too hard to find right now. But i've read that through the tail is good or between the horns on their face.


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## BlueH20Fisher

If any of you that catch the eels want to keep them alive, i'd be interested in them....might could work something out. They'll live in a bucket for a while.


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