Can I get some advice on dropping my Prawn Trap

[ILHG]

Ok, I will be up at Hippa insland in a couple of weeks & on my bucket list is to drop a prawn trap. Something I have wanted to do since I was a boy & still haven't done. Being able to bring a couple dozen prawns home would be a treat. Anything more than that would be a gift. WCR is now only fully guided, however I am allowed to take a boat out when im not with the guide. I picked up one of the "Flex Fold" Prawn traps & 600' of orange trap rope to bring up with me. I have spent months reading through forums & reading anything I could find on catching prawns. From what I have read I think that "NESTO INLET" where the lodge is located might be a good place to drop a trap. I have studied it on my Navionics app & have a couple spots I would like to get advice on. Or even better if anyone could take a look at the app & with there experience tell me where they would drop a trap.

It seems to have everything you would need. Fresh water flowing in & steep & Deep! Plus it should have little to no pressure from other fishermen. I know some folks will say why bother dropping traps & wasting time when you are in great salmon grounds. The answer to that is because its something I really want to do... It would just be awesome to pull a trap full of bugs!



Below is a picture with more detail. I have highlighted in YELLOW where I was thinking may be good spots to try?




I appreciate your feed back!

 

[Old Blue]

I like the look off the south west side of Hippa. Talk to the guides, they probably have the best insight

 

[Scorpiofisher]

Deep spots look good. Don't forget to bring bait and bait containers. I like to drill out even bigger holes if using the scotty bait containers. Really get that scent out there.

 

[Scorpiofisher]

The 300 foot hole between Hippa and Graham might be good. Good water movement there maybe.

 

[Chasin' Dreams]

I'm a firm believer that fresh water input really does help attract them. Have found that up Indian Arm, Howe Sound, on the West Coast and up Malaspina. The traps I put near the fresh water usually do noticeably better. Is it a fluke? Who knows but I don't think so.

Personally I like the look of the spot you marked left of center a bit on the lower map on the edge of the very steep cliff where it meets the other less steep contour. And you have fresh water input there. Two great combinations; a steep cliff that ends in a bit of a ledge that will support your traps without falling off the cliff and fresh water input.

Another tip I think helps is that I chop a large percentage of my prawn pellets up so that some of them are accessible for the prawns to eat, not just get attracted to. Full pellets take a long time to break down. You can use a food processor, blender, hammer, whatever.
Who knows if the prawns come and go from the traps? I've never seen any under water footage to support either theory if they come and go or can't get out at all once they are in. So my theory is; if they can come and go why not keep them busy with the small chopped up pellets that can make their way out of the bait jars a bit for them to eat. I also drill some additional holes in my jars to let the bait escape a bit and lets the prawns access the food. I also pre soak my chopped up pellets and full pellets in sardine oil then freeze it before use.
When I look at the prawns after I catch them I can see the prawn pellet food in their gullets that they have been eating in my traps so I know they are in there being content and eating away.

 

[hippaisland]

I'll PM you after work today. Nothing in Nesto though, have tried. Have to go north.

 

[ILHG]

I'll PM you after work today. Nothing in Nesto though, have tried. Have to go north.

I'll PM you after work today. Nothing in Nesto though, have tried. Have to go north.

Thanks Man!

 

[ILHG]

Have any of you ever added fresh bait with the pellets? I thought about adding a fish head or even filling up a bait jar with herring.

 

[Chasin' Dreams]

Have any of you ever added fresh bait with the pellets? I thought about adding a fish head or even filling up a bait jar with herring.

The commercial guys just use the pellets with sardine oil if that says anything. I've tried adding other baits to my jars and haven't noticed any difference. Another tip is to not fill your jars too full. The pellets expand when wet and if your jars are too full the bait doesn't move around in the jar with the current hitting it so the scent may not get dispersed as well. Also lets some of the bait escape for the bugs to eat as the water swashes it around. If too packed that doesn't happen.

 

[agentaqua]

I'm a firm believer that fresh water input really does help attract them. Have found that up Indian Arm, Howe Sound, on the West Coast and up Malaspina. The traps I put near the fresh water usually do noticeably better. Is it a fluke? Who knows but I don't think so...

Thanks for sharing your experience, CD. Personally, I don't think it is the freshwater - per se - that "attracts" them. I noticed that once I left prawns in a trap tied to a boat tied-up in a harbour that had freshwater at the surface - that likely killed the prawns. I believe they have low tolerance for freshwater. At depths greater than 30 feet, though - there normally is much more salty water - down where the prawns live. It may be the dead fish and detritus that gets ejected from a river - and settles down deep where the prawns can get at it - that instead attracts them.

You'll want to fish deeper than 160 feet - in the 240 to 400 foot range - if you can. After 400 - it's a long haul to the surface if you have no hydraulics to help. I've also noticed that prawns tend to rise up the channel sides as dusk approaches - and back down to the bottom as day breaks. If you pull traps in the lower depths as dark descends - I'd recommend dropping them again at a shallower depth to hit them again - and pull them the next morning.

 

[mayday]

One other comment (I have one of those flex traps) - add weight!!!! The trap alone is nowhere near enough weight - especially if by "orange rope" you mean floating poly - I'd have a minimum 10# cannonball in there, and that's probably not even enough. When in doubt, add weight - it's like anchor sizes on boats - you know it's big enough when people point and laugh.

 

[michael_reiber]

In my experiences I would look for something thats rocky and then turns to a sandy bottom around 230-400 feet of water. Looks good to me just a little north of hippa point in the 260 feet area, as well as just on the outside of hippa island around the 300 ft mark. Ive never been up there in my life though so I have no first hand experience up there but if I were prawning in a new area those are the spots I'd look for and try, its all you can do. Good Luck!

 

[Capt_Ed]

ILHG. I ran CQA in Nesto for 10 years and I can confirm that there are no prawns in Nesto Inlet

 

[ILHG]

Gents thanks for all the replays. I love this forum & appreciate the info people share.

 

[Waterwolf2230]

The old fellas that I know use the following recipe and swear by it. I haven't yet gotten into prawning but much like you am looking forward to it!

1 scoop of pellets, 2 cans of Carlyle cat food (in a can) a shot of herring oil and that pink Crab and Shrimp Fuel (it's rank). Let sit overnight so that the pellets soak up all the juice and fill the jars just over half full.

Again, I can't speak from experience but these old fellas always come back with full traps...When are you leaving?

 

[ILHG]

The old fellas that I know use the following recipe and swear by it. I haven't yet gotten into prawning but much like you am looking forward to it!

1 scoop of pellets, 2 cans of Carlyle cat food (in a can) a shot of herring oil and that pink Crab and Shrimp Fuel (it's rank). Let sit overnight so that the pellets soak up all the juice and fill the jars just over half full.

Again, I can't speak from experience but these old fellas always come back with full traps...When are you leaving?

Thanks man, that sounds like it would catch prawns. I will be up there June 14th. Looking forward to exploring the area (weather permitting).

 

[ryanb]

I once forgot my bait jars and just poked holes in cans of tuna cat food with a screw driver then tossed the cans in the traps and did extremely well. Anything fishy and oily will work great for bait.

Rocky slopes in the 250-350 range are ideal, but not every spot that meets this description is going to be good.