Alaska’s king crab season kicks off on October 15, crab fishermen in Alaska will begin harvesting wild and sustainable Alaska king crab. The Alaska king crab harvest season is open through mid-January, yet the high-quality crab is available year round thanks to flash freezing technology. The Alaska Department of Fish & Game (ADF&G) has not yet announced the 2008-2009 harvest quotas but preliminary work suggests that the health of the stock is good.
ADF&G fisheries biologist Forrest Bowers told that ADF&G manages the various Alaska king crab stocks using a conservative harvest strategy that is designed to promote stability and sustainability in the fishery. He added that this harvest strategy has resulted in recent biomass and harvest levels that are among the largest we’ve seen since the early 1980s.
Alaska Crab Coalition board member and owner of the FV Arctic Hunter, Jim Stone informed that harvesting the treasured king crab Alaska crab fishermen endure tremendous challenges, including 40-foot swells, 20-hour workdays and biting cold, all while maneuvering the 700-pound pots required for commercial king crab fishing. According to Stone bringing up pot after pot loaded with big beautiful white-bellied soakers is what its all about. He added that waking up in the calm waters of Dutch Harbor after a grueling week of work, with a big load aboard and thoughts of a good pay-day, make it all worthwhile.
