CrabbingInTheHood.com

One of my COTH readers, Jeff Pascoe, a resident up in Kingston WA, recently asked:

“Do you know of any other piers or places, for guys like me who don’t have a boat, to go crabbing?”

That’s a great question, Jeff. I remember when we first moved here to Kitsap County WA how desperately consumed my boys and I were to try our hands at crabbing. So desperate, in fact, that we settled on a 2-man inflatable we bought over at Wally-World (See ‘Stupid Human Boats Tricks’ Part One). But that’s another completely humiliating story….

Crabbing from piers and docks here in WA State used to be very common and usually netted enough of the snappy bottom feeders to give everyone a good taste. Unfortunately, as human populations have increased, the crab populations have decreased, making it difficult in certain areas for even boat owners to make their limits consistently.

Still, there are a couple of area fishing piers where you might find an occasional rogue dungy lurking about. A couple that I would recommend trying is the pier at Illahee State Park in Bremerton WA or the Harper pier down in Port Orchard WA. Your chances typically improve around the peak of high tide.

I would be curious if any of my other readers have had any success crabbing off of area piers, docks, or tidelands. If so, please feel free to comment and share your locations.

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Rich Jacobson is a licensed real estate professional providing knowledgeable empowerment and relentless representation for his clients of residential properties and vacant land throughout all of Kitsap County WA and portions of Pierce, Mason, and Jefferson Counties. You can also find him at KitsapLife.com, SOUNDBITEBLOG, ActiveRain, Everyday CK, Facebook, Twitter, or e-mail:  kitsapagent@gmail.com

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Well, perhaps it would be best to start with “How NOT to Launch Your Boat in Kitsap County WA”:

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Rich Jacobson is a licensed real estate professional providing knowledgeable empowerment and relentless representation for his clients of residential properties and vacant land throughout all of Kitsap County WA and portions of Pierce, Mason, and Jefferson Counties. You can also find him at KitsapLife.com, SOUNDBITEBLOG, ActiveRain, Everyday CK, Facebook, Twitter, or e-mail:  kitsapagent@gmail.com

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April 24th signals Opening Day for the 2010 Lake-Fishing Season here in Washington State where an estimated 300,000 anxious anglers will wet their lines in lakes and ponds stocked with millions of trout by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (or so they say!)

There are times when I’ve had the darnedest luck with catching any fish from freshwater lakes and streams. The WDFW could stock my bathtub at home and I’d still get skunked!

WDFW Inland Fish Program Manager Jim Uehara reports that more than 20.5 million trout will be stocked in lakes and streams for this year’s fishery. This includes fish planted in waters that opened earlier this Spring or are open year-round.

And don’t forget to purchase your new WA freshwater fishing license, valid April 1st 2010 thru March 31st 2011.

To obtain lots of really helpful info, including tips on where the best prospects are to fish, go to:

http://wdfw.wa.gov/do/newreal/release.php?id=apr0510a

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Rich Jacobson is a licensed real estate professional providing knowledgeable empowerment and relentless representation for his clients of residential properties and vacant land throughout all of Kitsap County WA and portions of Pierce, Mason, and Jefferson Counties. You can also find him at KitsapLife.com, SOUNDBITEBLOG, ActiveRain, Everyday CK, Facebook, Twitter, or e-mail:  kitsapagent@gmail.com

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FINALLY!!! After what seems like an eternity of waiting, construction is finally underway to rebuild the marina in Seabeck WA.

According to a recent article in the Kitsap Sun, 3 of the remaining partners of Olympic View Marina LLC have decided to ante up their own personal finances to fund the project.

The most recent delay occurred when the lender for the project pulled the financing plug in the 11th hour, even after the partners had successfully navigated a seemingly endless obstacle course of environmental red tape. Unfortunately, due to the recent economic downturn, the commercial lending pool has literally dried up, leaving Olympic View LLC with few viable options.

Hats off to these daring entrepreneurs for risking their own personal savings to make such a badly needed resource/improvement to the Seabeck area.

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Rich Jacobson is a licensed real estate professional providing knowledgeable empowerment and relentless representation for his clients of residential properties and vacant land throughout all of Kitsap County WA and portions of Pierce, Mason, and Jefferson Counties. You can also find him at KitsapLife.com, SOUNDBITEBLOG, ActiveRain, Everyday CK, Facebook, Twitter, or e-mail:  kitsapagent@gmail.com

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Just a friendly reminder….for local crabbing enthusiasts:

You have until January 15th 2010 to electronically submit your Dungeness Crab Catch Card numbers to the WA Dept of Fish & Wildlife

WA State law requires that ALL fishers record their catch of Dungeness Crab on their License Catch Record Card and return their cards by mail or report their catch numbers electronically on-line by the date printed on the Catch Card, even if you didn’t catch any crab.

To report your Dungeness Crab Catch Card amounts on-line, go HERE.

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Rich Jacobson is a licensed real estate professional providing knowledgeable empowerment and relentless representation for his clients of residential properties and vacant land throughout all of Kitsap County WA and portions of Pierce, Mason, and Jefferson Counties. You can also find him at KitsapLife.com, SOUNDBITEBLOG, ActiveRain, Everyday CK, Facebook, Twitter, or e-mail:  kitsapagent@gmail.com

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Seems like everyone has their own unique or special way of cleaning Dungeness Crab. Some people bring their catch back live and steam them up whole. My Dad prefers it that way, so he can scoop out the ‘butter’ from the outer edges of the shell. That’s a bit too hardcore for me though.

I prefer to clean the crabs before we head back to the launch. Of course, we’re careful to retain the shells in the event that the Fish & Wildlife guys show up. Otherwise, cleaning the crabs before we head home means there’s more room in the pot, and less hassle with clean-up afterward.

Here’s a short video that we shot out on Hood Canal during the summer of 2008. It shows our method of cleaning the Dungeness Crabs quickly and efficiently. We strike then in the center of their under-body with an axe. This kills them instantly. Then each side of the inner body, with legs and claws attached, is twisted and peeled away from the shell. All that remains is to remove the lungs and rinse off any guts. We transport the cleaned crabs back home in a bucket of sea water taken from Hood Canal, and that’s what we use to cook them in. Enjoy the video!

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Rich Jacobson is a licensed real estate professional providing knowledgeable empowerment and relentless representation for his clients of residential properties and vacant land throughout all of Kitsap County WA and portions of Pierce, Mason, and Jefferson Counties. You can also find him at KitsapLife.com and SOUNDBITEBLOG, or e-mail:  kitsapagent@gmail.com

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In years past, you had several local options on where you could purchase your crabbing gear supplies.

When we first moved here to Silverdale WA, I found some great bargains at a Pawn Shop over in downtown Poulsbo, just down from JJ’s Fish Restaurant. Unfortunately, they went out of business a few years back.

Kitsap Sports (just behind Macy’s Furniture store and Home Depot) has historically maintained a somewhat limited inventory, with typically higher prices.

Big Five Sports (located in the strip mall with Arby’s and Emerald City Smoothie) is known for their bargain prices, but their inventory of crabbing gear is extremely minimal.

As I had reported previously, in the face of bankruptcy proceedings, our local Sportsman Warehouse was recently purchased by UFA Cooperative Ltd., a company based out of Calgary, Canada, which currently operates 35 farm and ranch stores, 7 sporting goods stores, and 120 gas stations, mostly in western Canada. They operate under the name of Wholesale Sports.

I took a brief visit to Wholesale Sports here in Silverdale the other day (just one block east of Costco) and was pleasantly surprised to find an even greater selection of products than what had been previously inventoried by Sportsman’s Warehouse.

They carry the full range of Danielson products, including the most popular inexpensive collapsible crab trap for under $25.  You can outfit a complete crabbing rig for about $75 – which would include the trap, buoy kit w/ 100 ft. of poly rope, bait cage, weight kit, and 4-point harness kit.

The low end Danielson collapsible trap will usually last approximately 3 seasons, but Wholesale Sports also offers several other brands/styles that are more durable and naturally more expensive.

With the recreational crabbing season quickly approaching here in the Puget Sound, I would highly recommend a visit to Wholesale Sports in Silverdale WA, and stock up on all your crabbing gear needs!

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Okay, so  it was my wife’s birthday last week and I had planned on grilling steak and chicken. But the guest list started to grow, so I needed some additional filler to round out the main dishes.

No sweat, this is the Pacific Northwest! We always have an abundance of yummy foodstuff hanging around the waters of Hood Canal. For this occasion, I thought a big pot of freshly steamed native Littleneck Clams would fit the bill nicely.

Fortunately, we have a number of easily accessible beaches in which to find our delicious bounty.

First thing, you’ll want to select which beach you plan to dig at. The WA Dept. of Fish & Wildlife has a nice mapping program that identifies area beaches and their relevant regulations. Be mindful of the appropriate ‘season’ or time of year that each beach is open and clamming is allowed. Also be aware of beaches that are closed due to health concerns.

Second, check your local tide schedule. The best clamming is always during low tide, preferably a minus tide. I use the tide tables at SaltwaterTides.com. Just scroll down to the specific area within the Puget Sound, then enter the particular date you’re going to go dig. I usually try to get out to the beach about an hour before the peak of low tide.

Personally I prefer the Littleneck Clams. They steam up easily and taste incredible dipped in drawn butter. When you steam your clams, throw in some butter, parsley, chopped garlic, and white wine. The broth is almost as good as the clams!

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Rich Jacobson is a licensed real estate professional providing empowerment and relentless representation for his clients of residential properties and vacant land throughout all of Kitsap County WA and portions of Pierce, Mason, and Jefferson Counties. You can also find him at KitsapLife.com and SOUNDBITEBLOG, or email at rich@windermere.com

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