Leipsic Bridge questions-please help!

[danielmancari]

Ok, so I'm new to the crabbing world and I've read decent reports about crabbing from the bridge in Leipsic.  Unfortunately I don't have a boat.  I'm wondering if this is my best case scenario or is there any spots closer to me.  I would be coming from West Chester, PA and would go into both DE and MD.  I just have no boat and I'll have six of the ez catch style two door traps.  Any suggestions?  When is best to crab Leipsic bridge, incoming or outgoing tide?  Thanks in advance!

[elsmere ed]

try the rt.9 bridges right after Augustine Beach,they are doing good there now.

[danielmancari]

Thanks much, Ed.  Have you crabbed there before?

[elsmere ed]

yeah about a little over a month ago I did good at Silver run bridge,first bridge south of augustine on rt.9.It's posted in the reports.There is a safe walkway on the bridge to crab from that has a rail to tie your traps to.there are also two more bridges below that one.

[danielmancari]

Nice, I'll check the logs.  How much line per trap is necessary?  I'm not 100% familiar with the area.

[elsmere ed]

I use about 25 ft.

[danielmancari]

Got outta work early & I'm heading there now!

[danielmancari]

2.5 hours, 7 keepers with only two traps I got last minute.  Chicken necks.  Threw about 3 dozen back, including several large females.  I went to the bridge on silver run road.  Nice spot!  Have my traps in for another 5 mins then I'm rolling on home.  Thanks for the info.

[elsmere ed]

no problem.FYI,fish heads work great there.Also it is a lot better there in the early a.m.

[danielmancari]

See, I stopped at shooters in new castle to get bait and the guy talked me outts bunker due to it being easier for the eels & turtles to steal the bait.  I saw a guy fishing & he caught a small croaker & he was throwing it back out...  Everytime he brought it in he had keeper crabs on it, so I saw that fish worked well there firsthand!

[muleman88]

lesson #1 - NEVER listen to the bait stores  .

[danielmancari]

Being more of a fisherman in the past, I know that to be the case, but I'm very new to crabbing & figured I'd get input.  On top of that, I see a lot of people use the chicken necks based off of the reports I've read, so I suppose it wasn't completely blind.  The first few times I went crabbing, I used bunker and it seemed to work.  With at least 8 traps in the water the next time, I'm figuring on bringing both.

[Grizzly36]

I used bunker for the first time this year it does go a little quicker than necks but at $1.50 a lb where i get its not that bad if your using afew handlines or traps. I was cutting it and getting about 4-6 peices out of each fish. I think it definatley puts off more scent thatn necks therefore drawing the crabs in faster.  If crabbing from bridges or peirs i would go with bunker over necks if i had to buy bait before going. Probabaly buy some even if i had necks and i was ridin buy the baitshop.  If you feel like riding farther south I've not done it before cuz i go out on the boat but just about any bridge on rt 9 should have crabs near it.

Good luck next time