How do you catch Octopus

[Trapper John]

Hi Folks,   
I was watching a TV show last night (Life Below Zero next generation) and one of those guys made a home made Octopus trap out of a five gallon bucket.

How do we catch them here in Washington?  I never caught one.  My daughter caught one over at the Edmonds Piers a couple of years back jogging for squid.

So how do we or what is a legal way around here.  Is that home made trap legal here?
Is there a limit on size and how many you can have a day?
JC

[MADMAX]

Found this
Must be caught with hands or instrument which does not penetrate the Octopus, except that octopus taken while angling with a hook and line may be retained"
I don’t have a shellfish rule book though
Shellfish license needed
I think
It’s year round
limit one
Good luck

[Sundance]

Five gallon bucket, drill 15 3/8” holes in the bottom (to lessen drag). Drill two 3/8” holes across from each other in the rim, this is your bridle attachment. Tie your bridle long enough so when the bucket lays on its side the bridle is laying on the ground not interfering with the opening of the bucket. Put 5’ of 3/8” chain on the bridle end then attached your main line to the other end of the chain. Put a buoy on and good to go. Use sinking line, best when run on a long line set up and hauled with an electric or hydraulic block. I like to fish around sand flats with structure nearby. No bait, it’s just a cave they hide out in.

[wadu1]

Five-gallon bucket with holes drilled into it and a conibear in the bottom? 

[Alchase]

A coffee can will work. A very large octopus can fit in a small coffee can. Space coffee cans about 10 feet apart on a weighted line. Set it on the bottom over night. Our neighbor on Hood Cannel use to catch octopus like this back in the early 70s. He would lay 5 or 6 strings, each with between 15-25 cans each. On a good day every can would have an octopus in it.

[metlhead]

Go to Pillar Point and mooch for blackmouth. They will find you.

[Jpmiller]

Tagging

[Bareback]

Go halibut fishing. Have caught 6" to 6’. A 6’ octopus is a bad@ss……. The grip of death…..l

[fishngamereaper]

There are several protection zones in the PS so just be aware of your location.

[NRA4LIFE]

This is on my "bucket" list. Sorry. How deep and what kind of bottom?  We brought one up in a crab pot once but it slithered through before we got the pot in the boat.

[branches]

Of all the things to catch in our waters I would put Octopus at the bottom of my list. Just my 

[rainshadow1]

They use it for a shelter, so long soaks are the thing.

I don't even know if there's such a thing as sport pot fishing. I used to make them for my Dad, out of cedar fence boards (We'd load some rocks into them) or old tires (we'd load a few rocks in them too, just as toys). You're basically making a tiny cave. We'd soak for weeks and months at a time, but I do remember deciding to move gear and having octopus within a day or two, it was just pretty rare to work that quickly.

I can't guarantee it's legal - I think it is - but if you know of an area where lots of big rocks show up at big minus tides, you can fill a spray/squirt bottle up with super saturated salt water and squirt it into cubby holes under the rocks... if there's one in there, they evacuate post haste! That method is lots of fun!
     (The rule about 'nothing that penetrates' was written about that fishing style, only using gaff hooks and stuff. Sometimes they grip harder than the gaff can hang on, and they end up left in there all torn up. Unfortunate business.)

[Mech]

The ancient Greeks or whoever they were used ceramic vases.
Just a rope around the neck of the vase.
When pulled the octopus would just stay in there.
No bait need.


I like eating octopus and will that method this year.
They like crab so good crab grounds will produce.

I have seen monster sized ones on Vancouver Island while diving.
Ones head was the size of my torso w/about. 12’ span.

[Jpmiller]

Going to make me a couple PVC ones to try out in sequim bay, how deep are you guys setting them? Maybe I missed that

[h20hunter]

From a divers perspective depth is almost irrelevant.  You are looking for rocky areas that also are known for clams on the beaches and crabby. Troughs are good, edges of rocky areas etc.  I've seen them of all sizes from 20 feet of water down to 130 140....never dove deeper personal.

[rainshadow1]

Going to make me a couple PVC ones to try out in sequim bay, how deep are you guys setting them? Maybe I missed that

Got a few in Sequim Bay, over in the deep towards the base of Travis Spit. Not near as productive as the inside of the middle of the spit... out in 120 ish. Sequim Bay State Park beach is actually a spot for the rock technique, just walk North to the mud ball bluff on a big minus tide.

[Alchase]

The ancient Greeks or whoever they were used ceramic vases.
Just a rope around the neck of the vase.
When pulled the octopus would just stay in there.
No bait need.


I like eating octopus and will that method this year.
They like crab so good crab grounds will produce.

I have seen monster sized ones on Vancouver Island while diving.
Ones head was the size of my torso w/about. 12’ span.

 

Yep, my neighbor on Hood Canal was an old Greek man. Would kill them by biting them between the eyes where one of their brains is located. Killed them instantly, not even breaking the skin.

[Alchase]

This is on my "bucket" list. Sorry. How deep and what kind of bottom?  We brought one up in a crab pot once but it slithered through before we got the pot in the boat.

Both sandy and rocky will work (or use to work in Hood canal).
My neighbor would have at least one set off Octopus beach near Hood Sport. It is pretty sandy there, with no huge rock outcroppings. And a couple sets of Ball point in deeper water, the has a fairly rocky bottom.
The way he described it, octopus are extremely curious. They will move into the cans, and take possession of it. If you leave you cans longer then a day (or two tide cycles) they loose interest and go back to their home lair.
But if they are in the can, they will hold tight until brought out of the water before letting go.

He use to give me the small ones to play with in the tide pool in front of our bulkhead. High Tide would allow them to return.

[NRA4LIFE]

The closest we have come to catching one (sort of) was when my wife caught a giant ling cod off Neah Bay and it barfed one up on deck.  It must have just eaten it too as it wasn't hardly digested at all. Pretty good sized too. We ended up using it for bait the next few days.

[Stein]

They hide in rock piles during the day and patrol around the sandy flats at night, at least from what I have seen diving.  I don't know how far they will travel away from the rocks, but I wouldn't set them too far or you are basically in a wasteland.

[Jpmiller]

So my buddy who we visit pretty often has a dock, would it be worth just throwing a few traps out along the dock or should we take the boat out and throw them a little farther? We've caught crab throwing off the dock but had better luck going a little farther out too. It sounds like they're all over from low tide out.

[HntnFsh]

We've got a few in and on our pots while shrimping Jackson cove.

[Stein]

So my buddy who we visit pretty often has a dock, would it be worth just throwing a few traps out along the dock or should we take the boat out and throw them a little farther? We've caught crab throwing off the dock but had better luck going a little farther out too. It sounds like they're all over from low tide out.

I've seen them in 20' on out.  Plenty in the 50-60' range.  I would guess they are willing to go where the food is.

[Jake Dogfish]

I don’t think trapping them is legal in this over-regulated state.  I caught one squid jigging and see them caught once in a while off the piers.  These are red octopus, not pacific giants.

[Mech]

I would see then hunting on large sandy areas on night dives in Monterey and on Vancouver Island.
Depth doesn’t matter.
When diving near rocks you will see a pile of crab shells just outside their lair.

Ogden point in Victoria BC is a great easy shore dive.
Just walk down the square blocked jetty for 10 or so minutes.
Great place to see Giant Pacific Octopus, wolf eels and monster lings because it’s a protected no take zone.

Octopus taste great if done properly not so much if not.
Grilled or thinly sliced with lime and spices are my favorite.

I will post up during the summer crab season after I learn if there are any special rules.
Just dropping a trap and floating a bouy when it’s not season seems like a violation or unwanted attention at best.
No thank you .

[Stein]

Puget Sound does have giant pacific octopus as well as red ruby although the reds only get maybe 15-20" long max stretched out.  Only giant pacific may be retained.  They are available for harvest year round with a shellfish/seaweed license except in the areas designated closed to octopus harvest.

They must be caught either with hands or an instrument that does not penetrate or while angling with a hook and line.  Whether a trap/pot is an "instrument that does not penetrate" is not clarified in the regulations.

Page 138 of the regulations.

[Mech]

Yeah I’m going to contact them for the specs.
An instrument that penetrates is probably a pole spear or something of that nature.

When I hunted the Channel Islands I was told no spearguns or knives, hands only from our charter.
That was a while ago and in a different state.

I’ve seen YouTube vids where they kept them if they were in crab traps.
That doesn’t make it legal though.

I also don’t know if there is a season.
Even if there wasn’t I wouldn’t trap (if legal) out of crab season.
My area/community is very small I and wouldn’t want to be known as “that guy” even if they were wrong.

[EmeraldBullet]

You just put a clay pot in the ocean and hope an octopus thinks its a nice safe space to crawl insde.

[Alchase]

Tacu Poke is an amazing Hawaiian baby octopus dish. And grilled teriyaki octopus is to die for.

[Angry Perch]

I received this today from WDFW.

"It would be illegal to run octopus traps in Washington State waters.  Per page 138 of the current pamphlet, octopus can only be caught by hand or with an instrument that does not penetrate the octopus (unless one is hooked incidentally while fishing with hook and line).  The only shellfish that are allowed to be taken with pot/trap gear are crab, shrimp, and crawfish."

[NRA4LIFE]

That statement seems to contradict itself.  "with an instrument that does not penetrate the octopus".  Wouldn't a bucket fit that definition?

[Angry Perch]

That statement seems to contradict itself.  "with an instrument that does not penetrate the octopus".  Wouldn't a bucket fit that definition?

I replied with that exact comment, and a little drawing. Still awaiting a response.
I would say that this certainly fits that definition.

[Angry Perch]

Apparently it comes down to WDFW's definition of "instrument".

 

"I get where you are coming from, but throughout the pamphlet (and the WACs which it reflects), an instrument is considered to be a hand-operated implement such as a knife or rake.  These would be distinct from pots or traps that, as you have described, are set on the bottom and function independently of the operator.  The use of pots/traps is only specifically allowed for crab, shrimp, and crawfish."

[NRA4LIFE]

I don't think that's correct.  If you go to the definitions section, there are no such definitions.  This sounds like someone's opinion.

[Jake Dogfish]

Puget Sound does have giant pacific octopus as well as red ruby although the reds only get maybe 15-20" long max stretched out.  Only giant pacific may be retained.  They are available for harvest year round with a shellfish/seaweed license except in the areas designated closed to octopus harvest.

They must be caught either with hands or an instrument that does not penetrate or while angling with a hook and line.  Whether a trap/pot is an "instrument that does not penetrate" is not clarified in the regulations.

Page 138 of the regulations.

That’s interesting they no longer allow harvest of red octopus.  They take away anything they can get away with.

[Stein]

Yeah, it doesn't say you can't retain it just doesn't list a season.  For the average guy like me, identifying the species of a smaller one that could be either would be challenging.

[GWP]

Isn't there a statement in the pamphlet that states basically 'anything not listed may not be harvested'? Like green crab. At this point, even though it is invasive, you are not allowed to keep them .

[trophyhunt]

Someone mentioned when diving to look for crab shells, this works, diving one time I found there home that way.  held up one of the crab legs and the octopus came out, put its leg on my arm, I could feel all his suctions cups through my wet suit.  Pretty cool experience.

[Jake Dogfish]

Isn't there a statement in the pamphlet that states basically 'anything not listed may not be harvested'? Like green crab. At this point, even though it is invasive, you are not allowed to keep them .

Yes they made a rule that all unclassified invertebrates can’t be harvested.  One of the worst rules the commission ever made that slid under the radar.  This includes things like graceful crab, spider crab, limpets, chitons, snails etc.  They could never have one of those survival shows like “alone” in this state.
Also includes things used for bait like sand worms, tube worms and shore crabs. 

[Jake Dogfish]

Yeah, it doesn't say you can't retain it just doesn't list a season.  For the average guy like me, identifying the species of a smaller one that could be either would be challenging.

Me neither, I heard the only way to tell them apart is the shape of the eyelids.