Winter Crabbing

[jbeaumont21]

All the months that end in "er" are the best for crabbing.  I have had some of my best days in November. As long as you can stand the cold its great.

[jackmaster]

has anyone here crabbed out at sequim during the winter? we have always done really good in the summer, after my boat got stolen i have been out. so its been a few years, i know right around the marina (john wayne) and the oyster house and the light house get pounded pretty hard.

[LndShrk]

Crabs Migrate in the winter months.

Not real far but they do move.
As mentioned the males will move off of the Females and be bunched up. Find them and you will have the best crabbing you have ever seen. 

There are more hours of darkness as well so lights / glowsticks etc can be your friend.

[jackmaster]

here is a little story for you, we know this guy that was a comercial geoy ducker, he would walk around on the bottom of the ocean, mostly out in the dungeness part, he had a line for air and a line for an air gun that he would use to dig the geoy ducks, well he noticed a orange glow off in the didtance while he was on the sea floor, he walks over and he comes over a rise, there was a huge underwater bowl like a bomb crater, the glow was coming from what he said was what seemed like millions of dungeness crab, he scampered out there got hoisted to the boat and never went in the water ever again, he said it flat scared the crap right out of him. he hasnt went diving since.... would be a great place to land a few pots if you ask me....

[lokidog]

Got four today, but the pots were in since Monday.  Lots of them 1/8 inch short and a few really big, but soft ones.

[LndShrk]

Got four today, but the pots were in since Monday.  Lots of them 1/8 inch short and a few really big, but soft ones.

The soft shells really have me baffled this year. They are all over the place. We always get a few but they are more the norm and have been since July.

[lokidog]

Got four today, but the pots were in since Monday.  Lots of them 1/8 inch short and a few really big, but soft ones.

The soft shells really have me baffled this year. They are all over the place. We always get a few but they are more the norm and have been since July.

It's a good sign, means they're out there growing.     The bay near our dock is known for having lots of softies in Nov. and, especially, December.  Last year, three out of four legal sized ones were soft in December.  Not quite as bad this year, though last week i had two that were over 7 inchea and both were really soft.

[Bronson]

I decided to out the pots out again today in south hood canal and got blanked! Tried deep, tried shallow.  Couldn't find them.