The Lonesome Crab Cage

When I recently walked along the mostly deserted beach I came upon a crab cage or crab pot that was standing upright beneath a huge piece of driftwood. I first saw it from further away and couldn't quite make out what it actually was, but it became clear when I approached it. It must have been deposited here during a very high tide. Of course I took a closer look and put my camera to use.

Here on the West Coast crab cages are mainly used for catching Dungeness crab, both commerically and recreationally. Dungeness crab season starts on November 2nd, but over the past two years it had been delayed because of too few or too small crabs. The last full season we had was in 2017-2018. This season only started in December, a whole month late, and most of the commercial fishermen have already stopped since there were fewer crabs. There are still some very hardy fishermen who hold on and will try to catch crab until April. It's a hard way to make a living.

Crab of course is the main food at a crab feed of which we used to have quite a lot all over the county in the first few months of the year. Crab feeds are fundraisers, and we once were invited by our neighbors in our old neighborhood to join them. It was a lot of fun, albeit a bit messy.

Then I remembered that I had my lensball with me - I had fun playing around with it.

I wonder whether the crab cage will still be there when I go to the beach the next time.