stray-line n Cp OED ~ 4 'submerged or floating line fastened at one end only' (1888 quot); EDD stray a 1 (1) ~ line 'line attached to anything which is let down into the sea' Do. A length of line attached to various types of fishnets, traps, etc.
C 66-5 [A] pryor is a pole about thirty feet long which is fastened to the buoy-rope (strayline) in winter time. Q 67-7 Stray lines fare] ropes that you haul net up with. P 241-68 There is also a stray line which keeps the headin' in the [lobster] pot by tying it onto the inside of the pot. M 69-27 Where gill nets were used, they were fastened to the land by a rope called a strayline; at the other end of the net, an anchor was dropped to prevent the net from drifting around. P 127-77 ~ On a trawl, the rope attached to the trawl anchor and the running-line.
