My Aunt lived in Corpus Christi, Tx when I was a boy and we used to go visit. We caught bait and shrimp with a cast net, but the BEST way by far was to use a push net or seine in shallow water during low tide. In one 10 yard push, you could fill the siene net so full you couldn't lift it out of the water. Two people could push that net and catch more shrimp than you could use. Definitely include me. My Dad is a master at the push net and findig the areas to fish. BigFishGuide taught me how to use a cast net last year and I honed my skill at the NC coast last fall on a trip where we threw for mullet for bait. Can you imagine how many shrimp are in 40lbs???? Per Day!?!?!?! Glad I have a chest freezer in the garage. I'm game.... Makes me think of Bubba from Forrest Gump... "Fried shrimp, BBQ Shrimp, Shrimp scampi, stuffed shrmip...." Nice post. GREAT idea Spur.
Another skill we were taught as kids was to tie a fish head on some fishing line. Get a little pot net and mount it on a hoe handle. Sit on the end of the dock in the rivers and coastal tide water areas, and drop down your line right off the end. This of course after walking the dock and plucking the crabs off the dock posts. Pull up the crabs when you feel them grab on, slowly pull them up and scoop them up. Used to have the fun job of filling a 5 gal wash basin as a kid in NC. Blue crabs are the BEST in my opinion.