Oregon’s fishermen await the opening of the dungeness crab season in mid-December despite postponement in California and Washington.

Although only a portion of the Oregon coast will open, it is sufficient for seasoned fishermen who brave tough winters fishing.

Crabbers will also recover from the summer 2023 setback when Oregon had extended a fishing ban to preserve the right whale. 

Tell-tale crab pots already litter the commercially important coastal city of Newport in anticipation for the opening.

According to fishermen, the winter period alone can bring anywhere from a third to half a year’s earnings.  

Indeed, fisherman Kyle Retherford says that in winter 2023 it took him only four days to scoop 100,000 pounds of crabs. This according to a December 10, 2024 story by KREM-TV Spokane. 

Despite being a tough fishing time, the cold season brings the best of the crab, as the Oregon Dungeness Commission confirms. 

The commission, like the fishermen, hopes that 2024’s run will be as bountiful as last year’s. In 2023, Oregon came second of the Pacific tri-state in dungeness crab landings at 37,181,040 pounds worth $104,139,428.

One of the supporting factors for the substantial catches is the lengthy non-fishing interim for most of the year. The interim also plays apart to balance dungeness crab prices in Oregon but in other states.

California, Washington Off Limits

This non-fishing period will likely extend for Oregon’s neighbors, including California, which has postponed its season till possibly January 2025.

The decision owes to the presence of the endangered humpback whales, which often suffer entanglement in crabbers’ traps. 

California’s season was bound to have begun on November 15 and since then there have been three cancellations.

According to fisheries authorities here,  the next review will happen around December 20 to decide on a January 1 opening.

Further Northwest, Washington has also called off its season for similar reasons until the endangered whales roam far off.

It is therefore a short-changed Dungeness crab season this holiday timing on the West Coast, albeit with some window for Oregon. For extra bits about this crab species on the Pacific coast of the United States, read on the next statistics. 

West Coast Dungeness Crab Statistics 

The Pacific Coast from Washington in the north to California in the south is the richest source of American dungeness crabs. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Washington led both 2022 and 2023 landings at 19,915,388 and 36,122,333 pounds, respectively. This is even as Oregon finished second with 4,924,737 and 37,181,040 pounds in 2022 and 2023 respectively. California came third nationally with 3,657,024 pounds in 2022 and 21,006,888 pounds in 2023. 

How much dollar value is dungeness crab fishing on the West Coast? 

In 2023, the West Coast comprising Oregon, Washington and California generated $258,015,518 in commercial revenue from dungeness crab fishing. Oregon led the tally at $104,139,428 ahead of Washington’s $99,770,689.  California’s turnover in its part totaled  $54,105,401, per NOAA’s data.