Help a beginner: how to fish without gear

[ikuta]

Friends,
My fishing knowledge is almost zero.
I am a bushwalker, have done two solos of 2 & 3 weeks in the Kimberley (Drysdale River NP and Prince Regent River headwaters areas; --warning: don't do this at home, kids--) where I supported the 500g/day of food carried in by fishing with a handline. I had only a few metres of line (half of which I lost to fish more clever than I) and a number of small hooks (May/June; too far away from the sea for barra).
Fishing in the creeks was easy: 1 minute per fish, mostly Sooty Grunters which taste lovely, especially in coconut curry. At night, under my headlamp's beam, I could see the cherabun (river prawn) walk about along the rocks, and once I caught one; but mostly, the Sooty Grunters were much quicker to take the bait (freeze-dried mutton chops).
My question to you experts: how can I catch cherabun (or other kinds of river prawns), i.e. how do I prevent *fish* from taking the bait "away"?
Given the fact that I am struggling to keep my pack weight down (the Kimberley gorges are very hard work), I do not want to carry any additional equipment that is not multi-purpose, or that is heavier than, say, 200 g.
Looking forward to your hints with bated and baited breath,
ikuta

[Feral]

Best bet would be to make yourself a trap out of light weight material. Model it on one of the square spring out style traps normally used for catching shrimp. Just make it smaller and lighter to suit your needs.

[rando]

A packet of prerigged soft plastic lures would probably work. a hand line on a medium spool is one option . another is a 'break down rod'/telescopic rod and small spin reel. 5 or 6 hard body lures could be fun as well .
Your best bet is to go to a quality tackle store and ask them to help you solve your special fishing gear requirements.

[Poodroo]

I used to catch freshwater shrimp as a food source for my aquarium fish. The method I used to get them was simple. I used collapsable bait traps which are available almost everywhere in most bait and tackle shops. The traps flat pack so are easy to stow away. For bait I just used a bit of bread in the pocket of the trap or sometimes a little bit of minced meat. They work wonders. The little rainbow fish (native) get themselves trapped in there also and display some intense colours. Hope this helps.

Poodroo

[Ausfish]

Yep, the collapsable traps would be the way to go. They are about 9 inches square, expand out to about 16 inches and flat pack to about an inch.

[ikuta]

Thank you, thank you all! What prompt and useful advice! Now to find a *lightweight* collapsible bait trap...
As to actual fish-fishing: my fishing in Kimberley creeks has always been so easy that, on my next big walk, I may well use the same equipment as before: line and hook and dried meat and nothing else. But being an awkward beginner, I admit my line got often badly tangled. Thus, the idea of a very light reel and collapsible rod is attractive and might be justifiable extra baggage...
I must think. (4 weeks to go)