Sunday, October 14, 2012

Road Trip Part Ten: FRESH CRABS


When you live a thousand miles from the ocean like we do, fresh seafood is almost impossible to come by.  Sure, we can get the frozen stuff and we pay ridiculous prices for it.  So when Jeffrey got out their crab pot and prepared to catch the entrée for dinner we were delighted.

He used canned cat food for bait.  He opened holes in the aluminum can with a triangle punch, put the can in the trap with a weight and tossed it overboard.

The next morning we were right there to see what would be in the crab pot.

One big guy had taken the bait.

He’d used his claws to rip open the can and had helped himself to the cat chow.  Big mistake.

He was full of fight.  He was ready to take the fingers off anyone who came near.

Too bad for him.  Jeffrey cleaned out their cooking pot.

Christine put the best part of him on top of her tasty tomato bisque.  
(Not an actual photo of the dish.  We ate it long before I thought to bring out my camera so I stole this picture from the internet)

Fast forward a few days.  We were in Bandon, Oregon going for yet another photo of another lighthouse.
 
Crab country

We happened to be on the dock just as some non-commercial crab fishermen were bringing in their pots.

This lady had only one, but it looked good to me.

Just a few yards away a guy had made quite a haul. He brought in five Dungeness Crabs in one trap and they were all pretty big.

He was using a salmon head for bait and these crabs still wanted to continue with their feast, not knowing they were next on the menu.  Note the shocked look in their beady eyes. I kinda felt sad for them.

Using a special crab ruler (there’s probably a logical name for the thing) the successful fisherman said these crabs certainly measured up.

To keep them from escaping when they were out of the crab traps they were turned on their backs and left to flail their legs until they were stashed in a cooler and invited home for dinner.


Although crabs are on my list of delicacies, I also consider them food for thought.  They are fascinating creatures.  In a "petting zoo" at the Seaside Aquarium I was given the opportunity to hold this little guy. It decided it would prefer to hide away from the light and under my hand.

8 comments:

laurak/ForestWalkArt :) said...

those are some BIG (yummy) crabs. we have blue crabs here...and a few times we've caught them by using a fishing line & piece of hot dog on the end! they're not as big as those u have there, but not as small as the little spider one either!

Carla said...

Cool! I've never been a fan of crab--too sweet for me. Glad you enjoyed your extremely fresh catch, though. :)

Anonymous said...

Fascinating creatures. Never been a big fan of the water bugs on my plate though.

Alica said...

Crab meat is one of the few seafood entree's that I enjoy. Yummm...and fresh even better!

joeh said...

My mom lived on the Eastern Shore Md. and we caught blue claws by the bushel (some years) every August the family (brlthers, in-laws and cousins) crabbed all day on the dock and by boat for our annual "Md. Crab Fest."

Now you've got me missing those days.

Brian King said...

Cool shots! I love all kinds of seafood. Those crabs are very interesting looking and I'm impressed the way the first one got into the cat food can.

Terry and Linda said...

Your trip is delightful! I'm so enjoying it. I am also sure it is a place I will never get to see except through a blog...

Thank you for the trip!!!

Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com
http://deltacountyhistoricalsociety.wordpress.com

Buttons Thoughts said...

Oh I am loving this trip and your photos are awesome. B