Don Velasquez, Fish and Wildlife Biologist from the Mill Creek office of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, informed that there will be average crab season in the Whidbey and Camano island area. He also said that the WDFW has been getting reports from some people who haven’t been successful indicating that the tribal commercial fishermen have harvested all the crab.
Velasquez told that the have been getting mixed reports and complaints that there aren’t any crab to be caught due to the heavy tribal commercial fishing. He added that there are other people who have been getting crab. Velasquez said overall the WDFW has been getting better reports from the areas further north around Padilla Bay in Area 7 than they have from the San Juan Islands.
Velasquez explained that they have to do nothing but to wait for the catch report cards to come in and then it is hard to determine because if people are unsuccessful, they won’t file a card. Ryan Boersma and his friend, Joe Bucko, both from Marysville, were in early and had caught their limit. They said they dropped the pots the previous evening and they were out on the water for less than two hours Saturday morning.
Fishing buddy Jim Panknin from Anacortes said together they had caught five crab. Crabbing continues in areas 8-1 and 8-2 Wednesdays through Saturdays until Sept. 7, including the entire Labor Day weekend, when it will close for a catch count.
