2 Answers

Crabs.........hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.When you come to Ocean City, Maryland with your children, especially if its for their first trip, you just have to take them crabbing even if its just for a few hours. Crabbing in Ocean City is very simple task, it doesn't take any experience, and very little equipment. The most extravagant piece of equipment you'll need for some first time, and even veteran crabbing, is a net. You can buy a very inexpensive net, at the Roses Department Store in the 94th street mall. You could even rent one at one of the local tackle shops. I've seen nets for sale at most of the grocery stores in Ocean City like Foodlion and Superfresh. The type of net you are looking for has a long pole 3 to 5 feet long and a resembles a basketball hoop. The net is to swoop them out of the water after you pull the crab in. To catch crabs, one of the most common methods is a simple piece of string and chicken necks or chicken "backs", both very inexpensive, and sold obviously at grocery stores, but sometimes you can even find them at 7-11 stores. Often, some of the grocery stores will have nets and string, very close to where they are selling the chicken parts you will use as bait. This next note is very important, especially on hot days at the beach. We recommend that you place the bait in a cooler, although not particularly necessary. What we are trying to do is keep the bait from spoiling, and just like any other food product, it might spread disease and cause illness. So if you have children with you we suggest that a parent handle the bait in the process of crabbing.

The crab usually smells the bait in the water long before he sees it, and follows the scent trail in the water to find the bait. If the bait becomes old, which it does quickly, it won't give off a very good scent trail and the crabs won't find it or know it is there. Changing the bait often with fresh bait increases you chances... you'll figure this out as you crab because you'll notice only catching crabs on the freshest bait lines. Sometimes the bait will float because it has too much fat on it... either pull or cut the fat off or get another piece of bait. So you've got the bait, a net and string, and your keeping the bait fresh... cut off lengths of the string 8 to 10 feet long, and tie the string around the bait. That's about it except for tossing the bait into the water, and then tying the other end to something, or you can hold on to the string. Most people put more than one line in the water to increase their chances. How will you know if you've caught a crab.... sometime you won't know. Usually after you toss the bait in the water there will be some slack in the string... the crab will sneak up and start eating the bait, but usually the crab likes to take the bait back to his/her hiding spot because they don't like to share, or are afraid another bigger crab will come along and steal it away. Sometimes you will even catch two crabs on the same piece of bait, but usually those are only really small ones that you shouldn't keep. There is a legal size of crabs that you can keep, and they are measured "point to point", see below in the pictures.

Once you see the line moving away or becoming taught because the crab has the bait, start pulling the string in very slowly. Often there will not be any resistance to pulling the line in, but there will be a crab on the bait. The crabs don't really get caught on the bait, they just don't want to let go. As the bait with the crab comes into your vision in the water very carefully slip the net under the crab and swoop him/her up. A very good trick, and its good to have a helper for the net, is to put the net in the water first and below where the line is coming in with the crab, before you see the crab.. Using this technique the crab won't become scared when he sees you put the net in the water because it will already be there and he will think it is natural. Usually the crab will jump off if he gets too close to the surface of the water, so put the net as low as you can in the water, and pull the string in from as low an angle as you can. Remember, pull slowly on the string in a steady slow motion.

Where to crab.