Turtles on the line

Fishing Report

Turtles on the line

Nub: Snappers aren’t the only turtles that bite

Fishing for turtles offers a reprieve for those who are tired of chasing catfish.

“It’s nice taking pictures of catfish but I’d like to take a picture of something else,” Nub Ronnei, owner of Nub’s Bait, Tackle and More in Nashua, said.

Nub’s grandson, Fischer, obliged and brought in a leatherback turtle. After posing for a quick photo, the turtle was released.

“I grew up eating snapping turtles, and we never gave much thought of the leatherbacks,” Nub said. “You have to have a really big (leatherback) to clean.”

According to Nub, leatherbacks are fairly difficult to clean and prepare, whereas snapping turtles are a much easier to harvest.

Fishing for turtles is not as common as it once was.

“There ain’t a lot of fisherman that do it anymore,” Nub said. “The ones that do still fish them use a fishing pole, preferably with a good steady rod.”

Nub recommends people looking to fish turtles find calm areas like the backwaters and channels of a river or on a pond. “We used to just go to local ponds,” he said. “If you was really lucky you go by a pond with a creek running by it.”

Once in the right location,

By Amie Johansen amie@charlescitypress.com