- 1). Consult the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife for recommendations on local spots where you might be able to find octopus, and the best times of year to fish for them. The Southern Oregon coast is known to have a considerable presence of the Pacific red octopus. A shellfish license is not required in the trapping of octopus, however the Oregon Department of fish and game has put a limit of one octopus per day caught by either angling, net, fish trap or hand.
- 2). Buy a submarine funnel trap from a local bait shop. Tomahawk live traps lists these cages between $55 and $75, as of 2011. These traps are placed on the ocean floor, with bait inside that lure fish through a small funnel and trap them inside of a larger cage space.
- 3). Look for a rocky spot: Once you have picked out your octopus fishing locale, find a craggy spot -- the more out of the way, the better. Octopus tend to live in "hiding places" such as small caves and hard to access areas of rocks and crags. They also live in seaweed beds and tide pools.
- 4). Place bait through the funnel in the submarine funnel trap: An octopus's diet consists heavily of shellfish such as abalone, rock lobsters and small crabs. These are purchased in local aquarium and fish stores or simply found on the beach.
- 5). Lower the trap with a thick braided rope to the ocean floor. Tie a small buoy to the end of the rope to mark the surface. This ensures that you know exactly where your trap is set when you come back to check it. Provide a couple of feet slack on the rope to allow for tidal changes.
- 6). Check the trap by pulling up the rope. Some octopus trappers recommend placing multiple pots, fish traps or funnel traps in various locations in order to increase the probabilities of landing a catch.
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