Brentwood Prawners Beware
- Thread starter kingspring
- Start date
was very spotty off bamberton, we had some traps with 150+ after 4 hour soaks and some 50 yards away with nada. seems like you had to drop a trap right on top of a colony to get anything or be at the perfect depth. didnt see anything suspicious but hung around our gear the whole time
Set my traps up near the beginning of the month, I've come to expect them to get checked occasionally in the saanich inlet. But this year was a joke and made me lose a bit of faith in humanity, I started using zap straps on my traps after about week of Prawning as I was lucky to get 10 prawns per trap with a few sets having 20-40per trap. Once I started using the zap straps after 8 trips out there 1 of my strings was missing the zap straps 7 times, the other one 5 times, often I only got a handful of prawns from both strings. But the few times that the zaps weren't missing I did get quite a few more maybe between 20-40per trap. Then I head out there and I can't find one of my buoys and I generally set them within easy eye shot of each other. I boated around the area for 20 minutes hoping someone just checked it and floated and reset it further away, but nope I gave up and headed in, the next day I got a call from a nice lady who found my buoy washed up on her beachfront property and called me to go pick it up, picked it up and it had been cut off. Sad sad day... It was a set of 2 of the Bauer style traps with green rope between the 2 traps and 300feet of leaded to the buoy both traps had weights zap strapped to the bottom of them. I know it's a Long shot but if you've somehow come across this set of traps no questions asked on there return, would just like them back.
Cuba Libre
Well-Known Member
jaymasta...... Its been pointed out MANY times on this board...DONT leave your traps unattended. As far as "Humanity".. I am afraid that just isnt on the perps radar when it comes to pulling traps.
Franko Manini
Well-Known Member
With all this pirating going on, I want to know why nobody has ever been caught red handed. Has anyone ever caught one of these prawn pirates? If so, what happens to them? I know what I would LIKE to see happen to them, but what really happens?
Silent knots
Member
We've had good luck in the Chemainus area... watch your traps - too many on shore with boats making runs back and forth. I'm certain most are legit, but I would also wager a bet that the thieves are amongst us and learn from this forum as well!
I know it's just doesn't really work for us to sit on top of our traps, I tried
It a few times last year for a couple hours and had next to no prawns being
In a smaller 14ft boat doesn't really help either with being comfortable
Sitting around for 2-3 hours.
I know it's just doesn't really work for us to sit on top of our traps, I tried
It a few times last year for a couple hours and had next to no prawns being
In a smaller 14ft boat doesn't really help either with being comfortable
Sitting around for 2-3 hours.
Roberth
Crew Member
You should try a little deeper then. we have been prawning the the south entrance to Pat Bay at 235 to 275 with 8 traps. In four overnights we got 22 lbs of tails,heads off.
Rum Buddies
Well-Known Member
not anymore now that you've told everybody your spot. Hope you like company!
Franko Manini
Well-Known Member
geeze... go and edit your post to take out the location buddy. You're going to have lots of friends to chat with this weekend.
Cuba Libre
Well-Known Member
Some guys just have to learn the hard way!!!!
Tugcapitan
Well-Known Member
FYI, barge zincs have grabbed 4 traps off of Hatch pt / Saanich area in the last 2 weeks. 1 commie, 3 sporty, no traps made the trip back. Lines shredded, floats finally come free after the traps get chafed off.
Deckhands tried to free them from the below waterline zincs with pipe poles, but they get jammed in there too tight. We try to slalom around them as best we can, but on final approach or near boatswain bank shallows, there are no options. I have called numerous numbers from floats over the years to give owners the bad news, but often the floats get dragged under close to the zincs making even that impossible.
Makes me sad thinking about all those poor bugs doomed to death in a trap that probably attracts more and more until it's stuffed. What a waste.
Anyways, sorry about the low life thieves, but just thought I'd let someone from the past 2 weeks know, it's not always them.
Deckhands tried to free them from the below waterline zincs with pipe poles, but they get jammed in there too tight. We try to slalom around them as best we can, but on final approach or near boatswain bank shallows, there are no options. I have called numerous numbers from floats over the years to give owners the bad news, but often the floats get dragged under close to the zincs making even that impossible.
Makes me sad thinking about all those poor bugs doomed to death in a trap that probably attracts more and more until it's stuffed. What a waste.
Anyways, sorry about the low life thieves, but just thought I'd let someone from the past 2 weeks know, it's not always them.
Last edited by a moderator:
Tugcapitan
Well-Known Member
If you value your traps...
This was posted years ago by a senior Captain on this coast known as "The Commander", he asked me to post it again.
The tracks represent a small example of the possible approach and departure routes out of Hatch Pt Saanich Inlet.
Any traps around here are vulnerable to tugs and barges.
It's clearly a popular spot!
This was posted years ago by a senior Captain on this coast known as "The Commander", he asked me to post it again.
The tracks represent a small example of the possible approach and departure routes out of Hatch Pt Saanich Inlet.
Any traps around here are vulnerable to tugs and barges.
It's clearly a popular spot!
Cannonball
Active Member
Thankful commercial closes. Went to my usual spot in Saanich Inlet. Normally there is 8-10 or so other traps in the area. There was none a couple days ago. I thought I may of read the regs wrong, so I called DFO. They strongly recommended I wait until commercial closes because there has been several "conflicts" between commercial and recreational fishermen in the Saanich Inlet. Understand Commercial Fisherman need to earn a living, but the prawn situation was demolished last year after the commercial season was over.
