NIGHT CRABBING 8-6-21 OLD LYME

I finally had a chance to get out and do some night scooping and handlining. I ended up on the water at around 9pm just towards the end of low tide. With the headlight on I was able to scoop up some real nice jimmies but had to do a lot of stand paddling to get to the mudflats where the water was shallow. For the first hour or so the wind was OK, but for the next three hours, the wind picked up and made visibility a lot more difficult. I was till able to net about 40 nice sized crab. The largest being just over 7 inches. As a note I was seeing a lot of swimmers on both the outgoing and incoming tides. Once the water started ripping through where I was crabbing I handlined with some chicken legs and ended up getting about 10 more nice crabs with twice as many shorts thrown back. The males are starting to hook up with the ladies so I'm hoping to get out this Friday to check on my regular spots. I ended up with 4 softies in the mix which ended up in their own container so I'd be able to enjoy them later. I flash froze all of them and packed them up in 2.5 gallon bags and later separated them into gallon bags for my waiting friends. The sofites went to my friend who had some family over from MD (they crab the heck out of the bay) and were happy to take them. Going out this Friday with my friend and his wife to give them the nighttime crash course in scooping and handlining. I'll tell you all how it goes. Sorry for the late report, WORK (another 4 letter word) happens