Rising water temperature means an easy catch of crabs in Lake Pontchartrain.
Last weekend my son, Hunter, and I ventured out into Lake Pontchartrain and caught seven dozen medium to large crabs. We used our traditional drop nets baited with chicken leg quarters.
Launching out of the Kenner boat launch, next to the Treasure Chest Casino at the end of Williams Boulevard, I cut each leg quarter into two pieces and baited each net during the 2-mile boat ride. We targeted the Parish Line Canal for our crabbing trip.
The canal is two miles west of the Kenner boat launch. Once there, we set out three drop nets 50 yards apart. We quickly went back to the first drop net to check the direction of the current flow in the canal. The current was pushing water into the canal from the lake.
Our first drop net produced four nice crabs in less than 10 minutes.
“This looks good and this is only our first net!” Hunter said excitedly.
We decided to run up the canal and set the drop nets back to the lake. It didn’t take us long to set out 24 nets. Once we were through, we ventured back to the first net and began raising them.
“Now when we raise the drop net, each net will come up on the side of the boat without losing a crab,” Hunter said. “Always run the nets with cork line leaning into the direction you are going.”
We made quick work to catch seven dozen blue claw crabs, making it back home just three hours after we had left.
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