Hi Jock
It sounds like you're cooking your Redclaw before you catch them

Hans

I do it this way; grab the body of the red/blue claw in left hand avoiding, naturally, the claws with the right hand and litterally screw the head off! The other end has 5 flappers; grab the middle one, bend it upwards until it sounds/feels like it is broken and pull out the gut which is a thin long tube as in a prawn. You can cook/boil it as is or cut through the back of the shell and marinate or remove it completely for cooking in garlic butter etc as described above.
glanyard

G'day Jock,

Are you aware of the NSW fishing rules & regs re: yabby traps?

They are banned in all waters east of the Newell Highway.

http://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/fisheries/rec ... e-drowning

Two blokes I know of had their gear (including kayaks) seized by Fisheries on the Gwyder River at Bingara in early January for using opera house traps.

diesel

There is a toal ban of opera house nets in Victoria and you can only use soap as bait in WA.
glanyard

People should be alert to the traps also being banned from three stretches of river west of the Newell Highway otherwise a pleasant day's fishing could turn into an expensive outting.
http://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets ... in-NSW.pdf

Grumps

Let's keep this hot line open.!!
Love catching Red Claw and enjoying the thrill of the catch.
Jay&Dee

By using Sunlight soap for the red claw, is it so that they will clean themselves?

It is so that they slip straight into the hot water for cooking. Also, small fish and turtles are not attracted.
glanyard

I can not find an regulations in Queensland re restricted areas for Red claw.
So NSW & Vic's and the rest of AUSSIE, come on north for all the fun. What am I saying, of course you will all come north to God's Country. Beautiful one day, but could be bush fires and flooding the next, but still a perfect place to Red Claw, and relax.

Jay&Dee

we spent a week at Lake Dyer just outside Laidley, arriving home last Tuesday week and then headed to Hong Kong for Easter.
Now I had 4 nets out in a very isolated region of the lake and I lost 1 net and the following day another net. Each time I checked the nets there were no Red claw. Some dirty B@#$%&d knocked off my nets and probably my catch.
I will purchase another 2 nets at $8 when we get back home for our winter trip to Cania Gorge etc.

Some really low life on the lake that week.

Jay&Dee