Why I love opening day of crab....and the ongoing season!

[DoubleJ]

Gotcha

[FC]

Gotcha

With crab you want the bait fresh enough that you would eat it. With shrimp, if you involuntarily barf on your shrimp pot before you can get it over the side you got pretty good bait.

[DoubleJ]

24hr soak tied off to a dock is no good.  Pot got raided.  0 crabs in the pot and the bait was destroyed.  I know there were crabs in there eating.  No crabs tonight.  Sucks.

Going to spend the next 2 days figuring out the logistics of a buoy while still being able to pull the pot from the dock.  Either that or back to the 4hr soaks while the kids drive me crazy on the dock.

[magnanimous_j]

If you're going to freeze the meat, use this method:

http://wellpreserved.ca/2009/08/22/how-to-preserve-crab-meat/

Make sure to salt the water you're freezing in or you're going to end up with flavorless hunks of meat when you thaw them out.  This is something I remember vividly from my youth.

Good advice  I've never caught enough for leftovers, but if I do, that sounds like a great way to save it.

[wraithen]

24hr soak tied off to a dock is no good.  Pot got raided.  0 crabs in the pot and the bait was destroyed.  I know there were crabs in there eating.  No crabs tonight.  Sucks.

Going to spend the next 2 days figuring out the logistics of a buoy while still being able to pull the pot from the dock.  Either that or back to the 4hr soaks while the kids drive me crazy on the dock.

You're brave to let the pot get out of sight. I've seen people that got upset when their legally placed pot tied off to a dock disappeared. Can't trust people these days man!

[h20hunter]

Well.....plans are made to head back out on Saturday. My neighbor has been itching to get out and actually has a buddy coming in from the sandbox. They have a welcome home party for him Sat afternoon. We are going to hit it and any of our catch is being donated to the welcome home BBQ. Perfect. I get to catch more crab and get a weekend off from dealing with them. I've got a good supply frozen and some extra crab cakes made and put away. Time to start spreading it out. Each of the guys I work with all ate crab last night so at least they are happy. And the neigbors. And the other neighbors.

[Fishstiq]

Need some company?  The wife will be out of town, so It'll just be me and the boat and the dogs.  I also have 2 empty seats on the boat if anyone else wants to go.

[h20hunter]

Bring your boat out........we'll make a flotilla!!!

[206]

Fruck you guys.

I finally get to go fishin and crabbing thursday.  See ya at Shilshole at day light.

out

[johng]

Crabbing off the Shilshole Pier was good tonight.  I got 2 red rocks and one dungeness.  First time there to crab and I had a good experience....can't beat the view that is for sure.  Where were the flounder though is my question.  I only saw two get caught and I got zippo. 

Lots of sweet fishing boats coming into the launch at sundown.  I like the Smokercrafts and Alumawelds the best... then put a nice Yamaha on there and I would be styling!   

Maybe someday!   

[h20hunter]

Ok...........I'm a crabbing freaking fool. My neighbor and I got up and headed out on schedule this morning. Left the house dead on at six and had the boat in the water and on the way smooth as butter. I baited the pots while we putted out. One pot had a single turkey leg. Two pots had a leg and some herring in a bait bag with one cat of cat food as well. Fourth pot had a good sized gob of chicken that had been soaking in the Pautzes Fuel along with two cans of cat food. Pots in and motor over to shallower water to chase flunder. Half a dozen flounder and back to the pots. Half hour soak.

Four pots.

Ten keepers.

One soak.

Perfect. If you saw my previous post this morning the only purpose was to get crab for a homecoming bbq for my neighbors buddy. The crab gods knew this and shined their crabby goodness upon me. Well, we had dropped the pots back after checking them and decided to go ahead and let them soak prior to pulling. Needless to say the pots yielded 6 more keepers. They may or may not have found their way to a neighbor boat that had blanked so far. So I'm home, the boat is rinsed and I'll head back out tomorrow for a quick trip and grab my other two pots.

Hell of a morning. Best single trip so far.

[206]

8 keeper dungies on Thursday near Shilshole.  2 pots and a 3 hour fishin trip was all it took.  Caught 1 21inch jack.

[h20hunter]

First pull, two pots, eight keepers, threw bavk the smallest four.

[h20hunter]

Nice day out on the water. Ended up with two limits once I twisted my brother in laws arm..............about a 3 second converstation.......to come meet me at the dock. I had my five and took only two soaks with two pots to get his five. Had one crabzilla that was over seven....pics to follow.

[h20hunter]

Ok....for me....this evening was simply an abusrdly good evening. So I slow cooked a rack of ribs. My bro in law had two steaks. We had fresh crab. Some fried taters. Jameson and soda. A pool. Not just a little pool.....I'm talking 32 by like......15? Something like that. I can almost swim laps. Nice big fat pool. So we got my neighbor also. He went crabbing with me yesterday. We are having some beverages, enoying the water, and swapping lies. Nice. Very nice. Also, did I mention I'm batch'ing it right now? Yep, wife and kids are in the midwest. Sorry, back on topic. We fry up some taters and have the crab going and the grill smoking. I'm sunburned and soaked in Jameson and just relaxing. Perfect. Fast forward to now and I'm home, sucking down the Gatorarde, doing laundy, and wonder how the house got so damn hot. What a day.
Here are some pics from this mornings crabbing.