Spider Crab

[donkeydawe]

now the spider crab season is all but apoun us, can anyone shed some light on how to prepare them for bait as i have never used them before? is it the same pricipal as peeler crab?

[RottenBottomRob]

I am told that since spider crabs ready to moult continue to feed they are often peelers that you haul in. My problem is that the ones I seem to get are enormous! And none to date have been peelers anyhow....watching your replies with interest.

[billynobassman]

Donkey me old mate,

Yes same thing as normal, go down to Westward Ho! rocks on a spring tide and you will find loads. I find the legs are better.

Leigh.

[philtherod]

Westward Ho! rocks spider softies...break a leg off, thread it on, job done as BNB says. If you find a just-out-of-the-shell crab, take the legs home & fry in butter. Nice!

philtherod

[Jamie Donnelly]

yep i use spiders all the time!!

just shell them and cut in to about 4 peices. then use bait thread to put it on the hook. greta for smoothies and bass!!!

Jamie

[Devon_fisher]

Donkey me old mate,

Yes same thing as normal, go down to Westward Ho! rocks on a spring tide and you will find loads. I find the legs are better.

Leigh.

ha reminds me of a time i was "rock pool jumping " down w ho on a very low tide and jumped in one and there were absoulutely millions of them i swere.
very scary lol
got out as quick as i could.

[Kingfish81]

Bait??!? Surely the best thing to do with them is boil them and have them with a bit of chilli sauce?! Does anyone know a site where I can find out tide heights etc for the next big springs as I'd like to collect a few!

[crazyplums]

Westward Ho! rocks spider softies...break a leg off, thread it on, job done as BNB says. If you find a just-out-of-the-shell crab, take the legs home & fry in butter. Nice!

philtherod

lol, i found a just peeled one last year while looking for velvet peelers, it weighed in at over 1lb ! i never thought to eat it, it did make 6 huge baits though, funny thing was, none caught a fish, so i put my last velvet peeler on and caught my pb smoothy (last cast !)

[donkeydawe]

Bait??!? Surely the best thing to do with them is boil them and have them with a bit of chilli sauce?! Does anyone know a site where I can find out tide heights etc for the next big springs as I'd like to collect a few!

wed 18th apr 9.8m low water is 2.06pm

[fishyrob]

lol, i found a just peeled one last year while looking for velvet peelers, it weighed in at over 1lb ! i never thought to eat it, it did make 6 huge baits though, funny thing was, none caught a fish, so i put my last velvet peeler on and caught my pb smoothy (last cast !)

I've found the same Hugh. Just popped spiders are too full of water and not a lot else. A just about to pop spider is full of gooey juicy bloody yellowy eurgh, and the fish seem to like that a lot, especially eels and smoothies!

I am suprised that Spiders still eat when they are moulting, and not sure if that is actually the case. I wonder if people think that, because they enter a baited trap? The truth is, they will also enter an unbaited trap when they are thick on the ground, and I wonder if that is where the idea that you can bait them in came from. I have never caught a peeler spider on a baited hook, whereas I have caught hundreds of non-peelers.