Maritime Injury Law BlogWashington’s Dungeness Crab Season Opens South of Klipsan Beach
Washington’s commercial Dungeness crab season is set to begin January 15th, 2025 for coastal areas from Klipsan Beach on the Long Beach Peninsula south to Cape Falcon, Oregon, including the Columbia River and Willapa Bay. However, the opening date for the remainder of Washington’s Pacific Coast remains undecided.
The Dungeness crab fishery represents the state’s most lucrative commercial fishery. The 2023-24 season brought in $66.8 million, second only to the record $88.2 million catch during the 2021-22 season.
The annual start of the season is determined collaboratively by fish and wildlife departments in Washington, Oregon, and California as part of a tri-state agreement to manage the West Coast Dungeness crab fishery. Opening dates depend on test fishing results, which assess the condition of the crab population. Detailed results can be found at psmfc.org/crab.
Each year, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) fisheries experts conduct sampling from October to January in key areas like Westport and Long Beach. Crab meat recovery must meet a threshold of at least 23% of the crab’s total body weight before the season can begin, ensuring that the crabs have molted, hardened their shells, and reached a marketable condition with optimal meat quality.
“Meat recovery is closely tied to the crabs’ molting cycle,” said WDFW Coastal Shellfish Manager Matthew George. “In recent years, crabs along Washington’s coast have been molting later, delaying the season. This year, crabs sampled in Westport met the 23% meat recovery standard by mid-December, while those in Long Beach didn’t reach it until early January.”
WDFW is exploring potential links between shifting molting cycles and climate trends. These efforts align with updates to the state’s Coastal Dungeness Crab Policy, approved by the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission in October. The policy emphasizes building the fishery’s resilience to climate change and mitigating risks of marine life entanglement in crabbing gear. Current conservation efforts focus on species such as humpback and blue whales and leatherback sea turtles, with WDFW developing a conservation plan and pursuing an Incidental Take Permit under the Endangered Species Act.
Negotiations are ongoing with co-managing tribes to establish a season opening date for areas north of Klipsan Beach to the U.S.-Canada border. WDFW collaborates annually with tribal co-managers to develop harvest management plans that balance resource sharing goals. Provisions include earlier openings for smaller tribal fleets and restricted areas designated for tribal fishers. For example, the Quinault Indian Nation began its season on December 29th 2025, typically starting 45-49 days ahead of the state’s season based on crab abundance. Under agreements with the Quileute Tribe, state crabbing in areas north of Destruction Island is prohibited before January 15th.
State crabbers are reminded to adhere to current regulations, including rules on line marking, buoy registration, and electronic monitoring, and to avoid setting gear in towboat lanes.