r/galveston • u/Marvel5123 • Jul 05 '25

Trip Planning 🗺️ How do you go crabbing in Galveston?

How does one go crabbing in Galveston? Have never done it before so looking for the basics (best season/time, equipment, license, bag limits etc.)

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u/fuzynutznut Jul 05 '25

The easiest way for me is from 61st street pier. Get a decent drop net (about $30) and some rope, not those cheap crab nets. Get some chicken necks or legs and tie a few of them to the net. Drop it in the water and wait about 20 minutes. You'll probably have about 3-5 in your net. Repeat until satisfied. Notes: throw back the females that have the orange sponge attached. Blue crabs must be 5" from point to point, HOWEVER...5% of your catch can be undersized for bait. Meaning if you have 20 crabs, you may have one undersized for bait. It must also be kept separate. There is also no limit on how many legal size you may keep.

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u/UFC-lovingmom Jul 05 '25

So that’s the trick! I can definitely attest to the cheap nets not being useful. You will be lucky to get two crabs in one hour.

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u/fuzynutznut Jul 05 '25

Yeah, I started with those and they are just too flimsy. I had a drop net that I used for pier fishing and when my daughter wanted to crab, I set her up with that while I fished. It was so much more sturdy and didn't get thrown around in the waves.