DUNGENESS CRAB SEASON STARTS SAT NOV 4
A couple of weeks ago my wife Joanna and I went to Fisherman's Wharf, San Francisco to meet her parents. Her parents, from Tracy, CA visit Joe's Crab Shack at the Wharf whenever they get a chance. We joined them for a meal at Joe's and I realized the draw. The meal is rich in protein, you can load up on butter, drink beers, and get messy. Mid-meal I stopped for a moment to observe the rest of the table - we were all working diligently to crack shells and extract crab meat, occasionally raising our gaze to chat, grasping for beer mugs with greasy mitts... AWESOME. I want to eat crab more often but Joe's is
spendy. $30 a head for appx 1.5 decent sized crabs. ??? I live in San Francisco. Why don't I try catching my own crabs?!?
And so it begins. Over the next couple of weeks I investigate crabbing in the San Francisco Bay Area.
First, I look
online. My favorite resource is
Jeff's Captivating Guide. He discusses the basics: net, license requirements, bait, method, etc. Licensing is straight forward - you don't need one if you are fishing from a pier, which is what I intend to do. There are however some
important regulations to keep in mind 1) you can only keep Dungeness crabs during Dungeness season (Saturday Nov 3 2012 - Sunday June 30 2013) 2) during season you can keep a max of 10 per person 3) they have to be at least 5.75 inches measured by the shortest distance. Be sure to have a measuring device with you just in case the game warden stops by. There are pre-measured plastic sticks but measuring tape will do. In off season you can keep up to 35 rock crabs per person as long as it is over 4 inches. Here is the official
CA Sport Fishing Guide for reference.
Before I can do anything I need a net. I considered buying my net online through Amazon. I have a prime membership so I tend to think everything is cheaper through them. In this instance, I could not learn enough about the quality of nets online so I found a proper
tackle shop,
88 Fishing & Tackle. The gentleman behind the counter was eager to help. I asked him about the bait box referenced in Jeff's Captivating Guide and he said "no need". My first use of the net at Fort Point introduced me to the one reason I would want to use the bait box: seals. Those menacing little bastards played tug-of-war with my net and made-off with my bait more than once. Word to the wise, they will steal your bait if it is not properly secured therefore I encourage the reader to spend $5-$8 on a bait box.
Next, I speak with
local fisherman about baiting and the best spots for crabbing. Living in the
Central Waterfront of San Francisco has exposed me to the characters at the
Public Pier. Many people use chicken - chicken legs, chicken wings, chicken necks, what ever is cheapest - but the crustiest of crusty old sea dogs (~5 interviews) have told me to use FISH HEADS. One gentlemen reasoned that crabs don't eat chicken. So bait the little bastards with what they want. FISH HEADS. I recently made my way to
Sun Fat on mission for some fish heads. The seafood technician offered salmon heads at $1 a pound. I left with two fish heads weighing a total of 4.5 pounds. Now those are some
big-ass fish heads, yo!
On location: I met a dude at Walmart in Oakland who said the further north you go, the better. I also heard from the guy at the tackle shop that it is best not to eat too much crab from the bay, but that once or twice a week is OK. This freaked me out a little so I investigated why - turns out mercury levels in fish in the bay can be dangerously high. I was reminded of this upon my first visit to the Central Waterfront Public Pier - there are signs that say which fish are OK to eat and which are not. The CA Sport Fishing Guide supports the claim. On safety, all sources say crab from the bay is OK except the dude in the tackle shop. Regardless, I plan on doing my crabbing from a pier on the coast or at the Golden Gate (Fort Point). The dude in Walmart told me his two favorite spots on the coast are Pacifica and Bodega Bay. Both seem far away for this provincial San Franciscan. But luckily, I married in to a car and I live in the Dogpatch district which has quick access to highway 280, a 15 minute drive to Pacifica Pier.
Opening day for Dungeness is this coming Saturday and I am hoping to bring home my limit! Wish me luck!