Catches are often better on a moving tide. Some fishermen prefer to fish the last few hours of a falling tide because crabs move out of flooded shoreline vegetation into open water. Blue crabs can be caught throughout the Louisiana coastal zone as they inhabit a wide variety of habitats from the high saline Gulf beaches to the low salinity marshes. Boat-based fishermen can crab throughout the estuary in lakes, bays, bayous, canals, and marsh. Areas suitable for shoreline crabbing are more limited due to the soft nature of the marsh and restricted highway access into the coastal marshes.
Most effort expended by land-based crabbers is adjacent to roads.
Productive crabbing areas can easily be located by looking for other crabbers, although experienced crabbers can quickly locate the more productive spots even if they are unfamiliar with the area. Favorite sites for land-based crabbers include weirs and water control structures, jetties and seawalls, wharfs, docks, bridges, and roadside bayous and canals. In general, areas with stagnant water are less productive than areas with tidal movement. 624 below Yscloskey and Hopedale Hwy. 300 to Delacroix Central Coast Culverts and Bayous Crossing Hwy.