Bay Area Fishermen, Foodies Eye Crab Season Opening
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) - It's the news Bay Area crab lovers have been waiting for. Crab season is about to get crackin'.
At San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf, crab pots were stacked on boats and along the waterfront. Pots would be dropped Sunday, with the first pull on Monday.
Fishermen and buyers alike were expecting a hearty haul from the Bay.
KCBS' Margie Shafer Reports:
"You know, the reports from the sport fishermen, because they started last week, is that there's a lot of crab," explained longtime commercial fisherman Bob Maharry. "There's a lot of chance for some guys to get well."
Still, he worried about the price he would receive for his catch.
"This is nothing new, we've seen it before," he described the cyclical nature of crab pricing. "Every so many years there's a lot of crab, then some years there's not. But we just manage."
The mood was optimistic on shore.
"It looks good," declared Angela Cincotta, co-owner of The Alioto-Lazio Fish Company. "It looks better than last year is what all the predictions are saying and right now we're waiting for the first loads, and we're waiting to see what the price is going to be set at."
She described this as a busy and happy time of year.
"I know Monday morning, November 15 at 12:01 a.m. they can start pulling."
Still, she cautioned against price speculation.
"So last year actually turned out to be a good year. So we were all pleasantly surprised. This year looks to be even better," she offered. "Predictions are good. Anticipation is fabulous. The amount of people that have called or actually stopped by saying where's the crab has been amazing."
She was encouraged by the reports from recreational fishermen, who got the green light last week.
"They're getting their limit which I believe is 10 per person and they're good sized and they're meaty. Until I really see that for ourselves ... we always like to do it ourselves."
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