We arrived home the evening of the opening day of a 5-day personal-use king crab fishery. One pot per vessel allowed. Limit of one crab per household. If you thought these restrictions would limit the number of participants, you would be wrong. Everybody and his brother goes out, especially this time of year when deer hunting is mostly over and salmon fishing is six months away.
The fishery is usually a group affair. Since the limit is one per household, the skipper calls friends, and each boat often has members of several households in hopes of sharing the catch. Many of us also take proxy permits for friends 65 years or older, allowing us to keep a crab for them if they can’t join.
I got my permit and a proxy permit for Jeff and Terry right away. I went with my friend Nick to check his pot. Strong winds were forecast, but luckily Nick had set his pot near town in calm waters. There were three crabs in the pot—enough for each of us. I then set my own pot near Nick’s for another chance at crab.
Later, I delivered Jeff and Terry’s crab. Jeff was thrilled. Last year, he hesitated to let me take his proxy permit, but this year, there was no argument. He even brought crab to his son Nick in Seattle, leading to a hilarious text about Jeff’s shucking skills needing improvement.
The next day, Bob, Chris M., and Kurt joined me. I set a pot Jeff had given me but didn’t check the line thoroughly. It snapped, and the pot sank. Thankfully, biodegradable twine ensures the pot will stop ghost fishing eventually. Still, it was a frustrating mistake.
On the final day, Bob, Kurt, Andrew, Sam, and Dorothy joined me. We set another pot in a promising spot. However, the pot was configured for shrimp, with covers over the crab gates. Needless to say, no crab could enter. A snail and hermit crab were the only catches, which Dorothy enjoyed examining before releasing them.
The adults on the boat know me well and weren’t surprised by the outcome. They seemed to enjoy the experience regardless, adding another story to share during our next gathering.