Article by Sue Foster
“I want to go crab fishing from the shore!”
Vacationers come to Ocean City to go to the beach and then… we get one of those cloudy, drizzly days that is just not good beach weather. What do we do with the kids besides go to the boardwalk? A lot of families decide to go crabbing but have no idea how or where to do it.
“Do we need a license?”
In 2009, in Maryland, you do not need a license to fish or crab. You need one in Delaware though, but in Ocean City you are fine. This could possibly change in 2010, so it is always a good idea to ask every year. Many people are confused in Ocean City because the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries require a license to fish and crab, but Ocean City waters are a tributary of the Atlantic Ocean and is free for at least another year!
“How do you crab? We’re only here for a couple days and don’t want to spend a fortune!”
Crabbing is a past time that can be done inexpensively. First and foremost, you have to decide if you want to use traps, hand lines or both. Hand lines give the kids more to do, but you may lose some of the crabs pulling them in. To make hand lines, simply buy a ball of string and a handful of small sinkers, or better yet, buy a half dozen of these gadgets called “crab throw lines” that cost around $2 each.
A crab throw line is a triangle of wire with a weight molded into it. It is wrapped with 25 feet of string and works like a huge safety pin. Unwrap the line to the desired depth, run the chicken neck onto the wire, and tie the line to the pier or bulkhead. Throw it into the water and wait for the tell tale sign of a tugging crab. Pull it in very, very slowly, and dip-net the crab when you see it beneath the water. Be sure not to hit the crab with the rim of the net!
Put your crabs in a bucket or cooler. It is not necessary to keep crabs in water, just be sure that they are cool, shaded, that their shells remain damp, and that they are right side up in the container.
When you are finished crabbing for the day, simply wind the line back on the crab throw line triangle, and be ready for another day. (Hint: When using crab throw lines, always make sure they are tied to the triangle if you are using the whole 25 feet of line. Sometimes the workers at the factory forget to tie the line to the triangle!)
“A dip net?”
Yes, you need a crab net to scoop up the crabs if you are using hand lines. The inexpensive variety costing around $5.00 has a wooden handle around 5-feet long with shallow green mesh netting. Longer 6-foot wooden nets are available for around $7 or $8. Metal nets are also available for around $20. You can even buy extension crab nets for around $25! Some families like to buy the nets with a fine mesh called shrimp nets so the kids can use them to catch little minnows, grass shrimp, or use them at home in fresh water. They will work OK for crabs and cost around $11.
“What is the least expensive trap I can buy?”
The 2-Ring Crab Net is also called a double ring crab net or simply a cloth crab ring.
The crabber simply ties the crab bait in the center of this cloth net, along with an ounce of two of sinker weight if he/she is crabbing in an area with tide or current. Simply throw or drop it into the water. Every five to 10 minutes, quickly pull the net up. These traps, which have the advantage of no assembly and no foul ups, are also available in wire. They cost around $4 in the cloth and $5 to $6 for the wire type. (Hint: If you use these crab traps you may want to invest in a pair of crab tongs.)
“How about the crab traps with sides and a top?”
Collapsible crab traps are great and easy to use. I stay away from the pyramid shaped crab traps because they foul up so easily. I like the box style traps. There are several of them on the market and many are locally made and come preassembled. All you have to do is add some extra rope and buy some bait. Some have bait holders or a strap in the bottom to hold in the bait so you don’t have to tie it into the bottom of the trap.
You drop the traps off a dock or pier and wait 5 or 10 minutes for the crabs to wander in. Pull up the trap and the crab will be trapped inside. Let one side fall down, while holding the other one closed. Simply drop the crab into a cooler if it is legal, or overboard if it is not.
“How do you measure a crab?”
Measure a crab from point to point of its shell. In Maryland, you cannot keep any female crabs. In 2009 the size of crabs in Ocean City is 5-inches from tip to tip of the shell.
“What kind of bait?”
Chicken necks are most popular for hand lines. Most tackle shops sell these. Use chicken or bunker for traps. Any kind of chicken or turkey will work as long as it is raw and not too meaty. Whole calamari squid or fish heads will also work.
“Where can we go?”
The fishing and crabbing pier behind Northside Park at 125th Street is very good on the higher tides. (Note: The city will close the area a few days around the 4th of July for the fireworks.) You can pull in at 127th Street and walk straight back to the pier or you can pull in at 125th Street, park on the side of the street, and walk towards the right across the field towards the pier.
The pier behind Convention Hall at 41st Street is another public crabbing area. Crabbing is best during the higher tides.
A few crabs are caught on 9th Street Pier on the bayside.
South Point Boat Ramp is another good spot. Go down Rt. 611 towards Assateague. Instead of turning left towards Assateague, go straight at the end of Rt. 611 and follow the signs for South Point Public Boat Ramp.
If you go to Assateague, there is a crabbing pier on the west side of the Verrazano Bridge with plenty of parking, or you can go into the National Seashore State Park, pay to get into the park, and follow the signs to two other crabbing areas. Be sure to take some bug spray when you go to the marshy areas such as these.
The Isle of Wight is an island in the middle of the Rt. 90 Bridge. Going west across the Rt. 90 Bridge make a left at the Isle of Wight. There is a sign there. You can park there and crab off the pier. It is a little high for regular nets, so traps or crab rings work best here. If you hand line, buy a long net, or tape a broom handle or piece of wood to your crab net, or buy an extension crab net.
Vacationers can crab any place there is an empty lot and access to the bay. Always be sure to clean up your trash when you leave. The lagoons in and around Ocean City all have some amount of crabs in them. There is a public area right on Jamestown Road behind Oyster Bay Tackle that is city property where crabbers can crab.
Creek areas always have good crabs. Crabbers can crab underneath the little bridge between Berlin and Ocean City called Herring Creek. Unfortunately, there is no parking area here so it is best for someone to drop you off. The same is true for Ayres Creek.
To get to Ayres Creek, go down 611 towards Assateague. Take a right on Route 376, and you will see a little bridge there. There is no parking anymore, so you have to be dropped off.
If you are in Delaware, there is Camp Barnes that has 3 crabbing piers. It is in the middle of nowhere, so I would suggest a stop at the Bethany-Fenwick Chamber of Commerce to get a map of the area. To get to Camp Barnes go west on Rt. 54 approximately 5 miles, take a right on Route 381 which is a small road next to a big gas station and car wash. You will pass over Derrickson Creek. Follow the signs for Camp Barnes. They aren’t very big or very many, so watch carefully. You can also get to Camp Barnes from Rt. 26.
Crabbing on a cloudy Ocean City day! Kids will have a ball!
Good crabbing….
Sue Foster is an outdoor writer and co-owner of Oyster Bay Tackle in Ocean City, MD and Fenwick Tackle in Fenwick, DE.