WDFW Cracking down on crab catch recording!!!

1BADM6 · Jul-02-2009, 11:56 AM

So I went out on the opening day of crabbing. We splashed 6 pots off of Pigeon Creek in 60' to 120' of water netting only 3 keepers. We moved our pots to the SE side of Hat Island hoping for better results netting only 3 more keepers. The bummer part is while we moved after dropping our pots someone came in and stole two of them. I think I spotted the boat that was doing it but by the time we pulled 4 pots and started searching for the missing 2 he was long gone. We were very frustrated to say the least and it was NOT a case of our line being too short. I had 200' on each pot and the deepest one was dropped at only 134' with a crab float and a medium orange buoy as a marker that you can see from 1/4 of a mile away.

To add insult to injury, as we loaded the boat on the trailer, a fine officer with the WDFW asked if he could check our crab. I said it wouldn't be a problem as we had done nothing wrong, or so I thought. He notified me the the fine for not recording your catch immediatly was $91.00 per crab. I was shocked. I thought he would just let us go with a warning since he we told him our sob story about our stolen pots, boy was I wrong. He decided since we looked like nice folks that he would only fine us $80.00. This kind of pissed me off, talk about adding insult to injury. The guy was talking to us like he had memorized a script back at HQ. Don't these guys have personalities any more?

Well I told him what a bunch of bullshit it was that he was fining us at all and asked if I preferred the other fine. I told him I don't fucking care and stormed off. I did wind up getting the $80.00 but the officers attitude of as if he was doing me a favor but giving me the lesser fine really chapped my ass, I'm still pissed about. Anyway, my whole goal here is to make sure it doesn't happen to anyone else. Our state doesn't need to be fining good standing citizens like that. Yeah, I'm guilty I guess but if they start enforcing this a whole lot of people won't be able to afford to go crabbing if they forget to record their catch before they dock.
Peace out and happy independence day to all!

Dwight

KillerBeee · Jul-02-2009, 12:07 PM

Bummer but....
As in any species required to be recorded on a catch card, the rules specificly state that you MUST record your catch immediately upon retention.
Sorry about the lost gear.

Brewoz · Jul-02-2009, 12:09 PM

It's not weather you did anything wrong it's all about the MONEY.
City, County and state have to generate the own STIMULUS PACKAGE.

Tower Todd · Jul-02-2009, 12:23 PM

I didn't think the Gamies ever issue warnings, at least I've never heard of one. Thanks for the heads up and reminder. This has been a rule for a long time and for several of our fisheries like BEE said.

Happy 4th.

TT

Bigger Fish · Jul-02-2009, 12:37 PM

Yeah, like the first thing I'm going to do while juggling two kids, a wife, crab pots, line, slippery deck, and rough water, is to FIND a f-ing pen, FIND a quiet space on my small ride, and recapture the moment. F-that. What's the definition of "immediately" anyway? (No one actually answer that-it's rhetorical.)

Bigger Fish · Jul-02-2009, 12:39 PM

By the way, it's hard to record crab (immediately), when there aren't any to be found.

Slowleak · Jul-02-2009, 03:16 PM

My son got ticketed for not filling in his card while still crabbing. He and a couple of buddies were fishing 4 pots they were in the process of retrieving their pots, removing the crab, re-baiting and splashing them again. They were still dealing with pots and crab when WDFW came along side. Thinking they had nothing fear, they waited for the officers to check out the crabs and their licenses. No problem with the crab, but they wrote them up for not “immediately” filling in their catch cards. The officers told them they had to mark the card before redeploying the pot. My son is somewhat of a smartass (must have got that from his mother) so that may have helped determine his fate but I still think it is bullshit.

outtadablu · Jul-02-2009, 03:59 PM

Dwight - I hear ya brutha, last year when we came in around 9:30pm, WDFW was waiting on the float to check us when we came in at Possession Pk ramp. The wind was blowin and the tide was ebbing hard, you think he could take a line for us - NO FUCKIN WAY.

When we finally got tied up he asked permission to board and measure our catch. Sure no problem, we had measured all the crabs, get out his trusty measurer and find 3 crabs that we less than the limit. I called BS on him, and got out our measurer, all three were legal. He holds his up to ours and there was about 1/16th difference. He said a faulty measurer was not an excuse and taggedd me for $132.50 per crab. I told him to polish his shoes, I'd see him in court. Well court day rolls around and I brought my measurer, but he didn't. State asked for a continuance so he could bring it in, and I told the judge we were not talking rocket science, but about 1/16th of an inch, Judge denied and threw it out,

but what a pain in th ass. But Keith is right, the amount of ticket revenue they bring in is job security.

sealskinner · Jul-02-2009, 04:15 PM

Dwight, so you didn't fill out the card when you caught the crab. Or on your way in. And he got you at the launch ramp. So wheres the bullshit part?

DaKanati · Jul-02-2009, 09:53 PM

wheres the bullshit part?? what, do you work for fish and game or something? give me a break. I think its pretty obvious that fish and game has so many technicalities that unless youre a lawyer almost everybody out there is committing some kind of bullshit crime without even knowing it!

goatram · Jul-02-2009, 09:53 PM

Yup past the the reasonable time test here. Now pulling the pot, dumping the crab, and tossing it back the pot prior to recording the catch streaches the bull meter. Pulling another pot would have been beyond a reasonable time.

sealskinner · Jul-02-2009, 10:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaKanati

wheres the bullshit part?? what, do you work for fish and game or something? give me a break. I think its pretty obvious that fish and game has so many technicalities that unless youre a lawyer almost everybody out there is committing some kind of bullshit crime without even knowing it!

Heres a newsflash for ya. He wasn't going to fill it out. If he hadn't done it before putting it on the trailer. Do you think he was going home to do it? Or maybe in a week when he had more time?

Get fuckin real.