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Lost Shrimp Pots in PWS
Posted by jrogers on Nov 01 2005
On my last trip out setting pots this fall, I lost all my pots in one set. I think the problem was setting them too deep. around 500 feet with 600 feet of line. I imagine that they either went in a hole or slid down deeper, since it was on a side hill.
I have since gone back twice trying to recover them using a grappling hook. I have tried circling with 300-400 feet of line out and a chain with the grappling hook (trying to snag the sunken bouy) and I have made a couple of passes dragging the bottom, trying to catch the line between the pots, none of which worked.
I know pretty close to where they were, since I had trace mode on in my GPS, and I can see the drift where I started and ended my laying out of the pots. I have since marked these two endpoints with way points for future reference.
The pots were only out for about 6 hours on a fall day, so I am pretty sure they were not stolen. When I was investigating this, I spoke with the ADF&G, and then the Cordova Troopers, who do the enforcement in PWS. Although they were not doing enforcement the day I lost my pots (I was legal anyways) the officer (Sgt.) did say that they check pots in PWS, and that if they are illegal, the will confiscate them. This means if they find a bouy with no markings, or not everything required by the permit, they will take it and anything attached to it back to Cordova with them. He said that they took 40-50 sets of gear this summer. If you lost your pots, this may be were they are!
I hope this helps some of you recover your gear. In my case, I have a few lingering questions. I had 5 pots out, with 2 lbs of weight in each pot. The pots were strung together with poly line, then a 10lb lead weight, and a 600ft leaded line to the surface. I thought I was in 500 feet, but obviously I was wrong. This was in the area of Blackstone point, where it continues to slope to over 1200 feet. Has anyone been successful at grappling in this deep of water for anything? Is there any chance they will still be in the same spot in the spring, or will the winter storms move them? Does anyone have any suggestions on how to recover them? I currently plan on buying new pots in the spring. The total gear cost is not that big a deal to me, but I would like to get them back if possible, and I don't like the idea of them out there ghost fishing, although they have the regulation cotten twine, so I assume they will open up at some point.
Any comments or suggestions are appreciated.
Jim
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