Lunchtime crayfishing

I had a good little trip yesterday during lunchtime catching crayfish. I caught released 5 of them in a 20 foot section of the stream I like to play in. I also got to see some very small larval stage salamanders but they were too fast for a picture. The crayfish weren't cooperating for pictures on land so I got my better pictures after I released them

Caught on bait, or just turning rocks?

Turning rocks. I've never tried catching crayfish on bait. do you mean putting some bait on a line and waiting for a crayfish to come out and grab it?

Turning rocks. I've never tried catching crayfish on bait. do you mean putting some bait on a line and waiting for a crayfish to come out and grab it?

I used to do that in deeper rocky holes to catch crays for bait. I'd use a bit of fish (cutlip minnow or trimming from larger fish I was keeping for dinner) and drop it down by the rocks. The crays would grab it & ride up. usually they hang on well even after leaving the water.

In my experience they rarely hang on out of the water but they will hang on as you bring them gently toward the surface and scoop a net under them. You don't need a hook or anything, just a piece of string, which is safer for the river than monofilament line. Tie the bait on and drop it in an area with as little current as possible, and you'll find that crayfish are very good at finding the direction of the spreading scent. I've even seen them follow an eddy in the wrong direction, tracking back downstream and then circling around to find my line.

The best baits are oily meats like liver, and a can of wet catfood with the top punctured can work well as chum, but people have also had reasonable results with chicken necks, feet, or whatever is cheap.