i have a lake about 5 blocks away from my house but no tackle shops for at least a mile i am 13 so therefor i cant drive since i can barly ever go to the tackle shop to buy bait i would like to know were to set minnow/crawfish traps

A good place to start would be looking up the regulations about bait traps in your state. Most states require that any unattended device be labeled with the owners name and address and also may require that they be checked at a specified interval. If a minnow trap is legal, try setting it near an inlet to the lake where there is a mild current. White bread makes a good bait. For crayfish, I would set your trap near or on a rocky area. I don't know what to use for bait. Good luck. Tom

Good advice, checking regulations. You also need to identify and release any endangered species of minnow or crawdad.

Scout the shoreline until you find a place where minnows come around most of the day. They prefer places where they have protective cover, like weedbeds. If your lake water cools way down in winter the minnows move deeper out of sight, but often close to their warm water home, staying with cover as deep as it will grow.

A can (or out of a bag of dry) of cheap dog food containing grains listed in the first line of Ingredients will draw minnows and crayfish. Puncture one end of the can with a can opener. It might also attract big catfish until they move out in open water to feast on winter killed baitfish, so be sure to anchor the trap to stay put. Catfish can push a minnow trap around and even crush it to get at what's inside. A less troublesome bait for minnows is a non-cotton sock that can hold a handful of cornmeal. Old meal containing mealy bugs is far better. Knot it loosely enough you can refill it. It will last for days. Bread works for minnows while you are tending the trap, but soon dissolves or is eaten too quickly, leaving the trap unbaited until you return.

The very best crayfish bait is dead fish. Use some of the dead minnows for that, tied up in the sock. The sock prevents them from eating up the bait, but will draw them in very effectively. Jim

Ralphrox, if your talking about Prospect Park Lake...forget about setting traps. There illegal. NYC is catch and release only. Artificial lures only, and the hooks have to barbless...I know it's abit much on the hooks, but thats the rules. I know you said your only 13 and cannot go to a tackle shop. Try ordering some lures on the internet with your parents permission. Bassproshop.com or something. How about any pet shops where you live??? Petland or Petco?? Buy worms there, bloodworms, waxworms, mealworms, crickets etc, etc, or the feeder fish...use them as bait...Good luck!

I just looked it up on the D.E.C. website...don't use feeder fish as bait, such as goldfish...thats illegal too. But the worms are good to go.

thanks but im not talking about prospect park i have a lake near my summer house

Another thing to be aware of is Rusty Crayfish. Most states consider them either invasive or undesireable and possesion is illegal. It's easier to live with the regs than deal with a violation! Tom

what do the rusty crayfish look like

Rusty Crayfish have a dark rust colored spot on each side of the carapace (body shell) and a rusty colored band followed by a dark stripe on the pinchers. Sorry, couldn't find a picture. Tom

I don't know diddly about crawfish but:

 http://iz.carnegiemnh.org/index.htm

The people from this link does.  They have pictures too.


Rusty Crayfish

I don't know diddly about crawfish but:

 http://iz.carnegiemnh.org/index.htm

The people from this link does.  They have pictures too.


Rusty Crayfish

pegsguy, since there invasive do i kill them or set them free

I would kill them. Often possesion of live invasives is a violation. Tom

In New York minnows can only be trapped and used in the water they are caught in. The minnows can't be transported either. The traps must be tagged with the name and address of the trapper. But those regs are suppose to be changing. There is talk that the trapper be registered and the traps have a registration number. The alternative is certified bait and since you can't get to a bait shop that is out.

the outlet end of a culvert.

Live bait regs in my state are much eisier to fallow. No live bait at all only worms.

If you can't take them home alive then kill without destroying, then flash freeze until you have enough to boil. Put some Tony Chachere's Creole seasoning in boiling water, enough to turn it a bit red, then boil the dads till they curl. Don't overcook or they will be to tough. Reds are a real delicacy. You will do the fishery a real favor eating the invasive as fast as possible.

Jim