Bay Crabbing in Oregon’s Bays Set to Improve

Recreational crabbing in the Ocean has been great since the season opened on 12/01 but rough ocean conditions have kept most crabbers at home. Dungeness Crabs are common to areas of the ocean with a sandy bottom and in areas with extensive eel grass beds.  Crabbing conditions inside of Oregon’s estuaries this spring have been less than ideal with the continuous rainfall keeping river levels high and the estuaries full of freshwater, but conditions are changing.   

Crabbing conditions in Oregon’s Bays have begun to improve with some keeper sized male Dungeness crabs moving into the bays, but the males have begun to molt. Crabs grow by molting and the crabs this spring that where just a little too short to keep this Spring will molt into the crabs you can keep this Fall.   Look for crabbing to continue to improve as we move through the summer months and with the arrival of fall we look forward to some great crabbing inside of Oregon’s estuaries. 

 I would like to take this opportunity to discuss the common practice of retaining softshell male crabs.  Even though the retention of legal sized softshell male crabs is allowed we ask you to be a better crabber and return softshell crabs to the water.  Keeper sized softshell crabs contain very little meat when compared to hard shelled crabs.  If every crabber released softshell crabs we all would have more hard shelled crabs to keep when it really counts in September, October and November.  Raise the bar and set the standard for all to fallow by releasing softshell crabs.  Thanks Bill