Over the weekend the crabbing inside the bay stayed okay. It was a bit slower but people were still mostly catching some Dungeness. I talked to a guy that was snaring off the seawall and caught eight jumbos. I was a bit disappointed that I had to go to Ten Mile to do that. Some other folks went to Ten Mile on Friday and only caught a few. It can happen. The crabs aren't just piled up down there waiting for your hoop to drop. If it ain't happening where you are, run a mile farther, go 20' deeper, freshen your bait. Adding fresh bait between drops keeps the crab interested. Washed out bait can't attract as well as bloody, fatty fresh stuff. The world renowned Eddy Kim has made an appearance here and today he and his crew caught their three limits inside the bay in about four hours. Mr. Kim has several tricks for success but the one I'm privy to is his use of squid. He's almost trading squid for crab on a pound-per-pound ratio. It seems like a lot, but I bet adding a piece or two between each drop may work, too. 

    Brad Stompe emailed over a comment about last Thursday's report: "Hey Willie,

Just wanted to thank you for your last report.  I have had 2 trips down that way this season and done very well on the crabs.  We have picked up some rockfish too as well as a few lings.  What we did not look for was squid.  I had no idea they could be found up this way at this time of year.  Our last trip we saw lots of bird activity but did not think to investigate.  Come to think of it, my son ran into a school of juvenile black cod on the surface a couple years ago in the same area, so it pays to look.  I love squid and will be paying closer attention thanks to your report.

Regards,

Brad Stompe" Good to know that you're catching some crab down Ten Mile way. For the record, we weren't looking for squid, as we, too, had assumed that was all over. Gage thought the birds might be signs of bonito, as they're catching some as close as the San Francisco bar. Upon closer inspection we saw no signs of fish but the birds had squid in their beaks. It wasn't cleverness on our part, just monkey curiosity. I have seen squid eggs wash up here in February and March before, so it may be that they just don't leave, we just quit looking...

 

     Gage and I had a pretty good day today. We headed down to Ten Mile for rockfish and crab. The east wind was screaming between Tomales Point and McClure's, but dropped off there and was only unpleasant after that. We got hosed in the two miles between the Point and McClures. Hosed. But after braving the gauntlet of fricking cold spray, we arrived at Ten Mile, and there we saw multiple bird piles. Upon closer inspection we realized the birds were working squid. Balled up squid. So we pulled in and got some squid. Twice. Gage dip netted some and whooped it up, but I said not yet. We went back for seconds. Gage netted about 25 pounds of squid all told. They made for some good crab bait, as well as a brown rockcod we caught and parted out for our two hoops. The hoops provided nine Dungeness out of two pulls near Abbott's Lagoon in 80 feet of water. The reefs outside provided nineteen more nice rockfish, including a ten pound vermillion for Gage. There were some really nice blues in the mix as well. Lots and lots of tiny fish returned too, but they all swam back down without help in the shallow water. We ended up with nine mostly jumbo crab. We tried for some brant in the outer bay on the way back but we missed our birds. Good enough for today, as it took until well after 4:00 PM until fish were fileted, crabs were cooked and squid were bagged. It was a lot of work, but the squid (calamari?) and crab linguine for dinner was awesome. Lots of boats running back from Point Reyes (I'm guessing) so I'm guessing that there was some activity down there. 

 Here's a couple of Thanksgiving reports. First up, Steve Brott:

   "Hello Willy,

Some crab were caught on the beach during Thanksgiving, namely a nice 6.5” beauty from my son Justin Brott who caught 6 keeper dungeness from shore for Thanksgiving dinner.

Lots of people fishing in the nice weather.

Walking thru the crowd I saw a gentleman holding this crab, maybe a spider crab? His name was D, from Sacramento. The crab was released.

Steve Brott"  Six keepers from the shore is a good number. I don't think most people did that well. Nice work, Justin! I think the crab is a kelp crab, officially, but we all call them spider crabs. I've heard they're good to eat but it seems the only meat would be in the claws. Kind of a waste of critter, so good on the release.

      Here's another crab report from Mike Parker: "Hello Mr. Vogler:

I've been reading your reports for a few years now. I just wanted to send you a message to say "thank you". Your reports are fun to read, very informative, and help my son and I as we try to navigate the greater Tomales Bay area. We have a small 16' boat and fish the area when the conditions allow. My son struggles with OCD and other issues but fishing/hunting keep him grounded. I've found the more time I get him outdoors the better he does. Fast forward a few years and we've done fairly well catching halibut in Tomales Bay and rockfish/ling cod out off Bird Rock and even caught a few salmon when we are able to fish them. This Thanksgiving, we tried Dungeness Crab after being given some hoops gifted to us from a cousin who passed away after a battle with a long illness. So, out in the boat that my Dad left me when he passed and with a few hoops from my cousin, we hit limits of large crabs outside the bay off Dillon Beach on Thanksgiving day. It was our first attempt. Anyway, I just felt you deserved a thank you for posting the information that you do. We aren't locals, amazing fisherman, or diehards. But getting out there has improved my sons health, improved our relationship, and provided us some pretty awesome meals. And you've played a part in that. So, thank you. I appreciate your work and appreciate you providing information when others might keep it to themselves. I wish you a happy 2026 and please keep posting. We appreciate you.

Mike "  Well, thank you back, Mike. I think your dad and cousin may have had a lot more to do with your crabbing success than I did, but hopefully I encouraged you to try it. It sounds like you did better than I did the previous week. You don't need to be a local, an amazing fisherman, or a diehard, but those guys are all good guys to talk to for information, so I try to get what I can share from them. It really is all about getting out into nature and spending time with people you love (or tolerate, I'm looking at you, Gage) , but if you can increase your odds with a little knowledge, why not increase your chance for dinner and a good story later? Good onya for getting the boy on the water. Less screens, more saltwater spray. 

     What a month it's been. The crabbing has been better than it has been in a couple of years. It's not awesome, but probably about 40 to 50% of peak crab. That's better than the 10 to 20% we've had the last couple of years. Lots of 4" crab in the hoops would seem to indicate a really good season in a couple of years. There's a cycle and we're finally off of the wrong end of it. That said, not everywhere is good. That's peak crab, and we aren't there. We still gotta work for 'em, and the work can be very difficult. The outer bay has been pretty good but the numbers are dropping off. I didn't hear of any skunks from there but numbers for some have dropped to single digits. There's still some guys killing it, but if you're like me you need lots of crab around to catch a few, and the outer bay has many less crab now than a month ago. Ten Mile has been lightly crabbed, so far, but even there you better work your gear if you're looking for limits. There's blank spots even in the promised land. Points north of Bodega Bay have been very productive for some but still require a test before just leaving your gear for rockfish. Trust, but verify. Inside Tomales Bay they're still catching crab but again, the numbers are dropping. I didn't hear of any boater skunks this week but a lot of single digit catches. Shore snarers a lot of non-catching of Dungeness but there were still quite a few happy casters. The few that ventured farther from the parking lot seemed to have better results, go figure. I generally do better with less competition, as I only need to attract the thing I'm trying to catch, not out-attract critters from somebody else. I'm just not that pretty. 

    The east wind this week made rockfishing hard in the Ten Mile to Carmet gap as the wind made productive drifts very short at best. It eased around noon most days and let a dedicated few catch some out front, although the guys that went and fished in the lee of the coastal mountains had much better success. Locally, a few guys caught a few fish. Sam Winglewich caught a nice pair of lingcod right off Tomales Point yesterday. Gage caught a nice limits of rockfish on Wednesday but he was snapshot fishing where he'd find a school of blacks/blues and drop on them, hooking one (or occasionally two) before drifting off the school as he reeled up. 

      

      Holiday weeks are sure busy but hard on free time to post but here's an attempt at it. We've had lots of people trying for Dungeness. The boaters have mostly caught, maybe not many, but something to show foe their time on the water. For sure the crabbing is slowing down inside and outside the bay as pressure, well, pressures the crab, as it does. The numbers I heard from inside the bay today ranged from zero to eight Dungeness. Outside was much better but not a slam dunk. Even Ten Mile (yesterday report) required a bit of moving gear and chasing the sweet spot. Limits for the Ten Mile crabbers but not on the first pull. Run that gear. Move the non-productive hoops. Repeat until limited. Also, keep that bait fresh. If it's the scent that draws them in, have bait that sending that seductive smell. Bait washed out? Replace it. 

   There was a halibut caught in front of Bird Rock last weekend and another, 31"er caught inside Tomales Bay today. So, halibut fishing isn't dead, it's only mostly dead. Cameron sent me this meme to post. Princess Bride watchers will know:

   And now a roller coaster of press releases from CDFW and CDPH. It's yin and yang all at once! Yes, it's two different things, but a clearance and an avoidance in the same area at the same time, even for two different reasons, is pretty fricking funny. Now I'm not sure if I'm coming or going. Anyhoo,....

CDPH Warns Consumers Not to Eat Sport-Harvested Bivalve Shellfish from Sonoma County

The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) is advising consumers not to eat sport-harvested mussels, clams, scallops, or oysters from Sonoma County.   

Dangerous levels of paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) toxins have been detected in mussels from Sonoma County. The naturally occurring PSP toxins can cause illness or death in humans. Cooking does not destroy the toxin. 

Paralytic shellfish poisoning toxins affect the nervous system, producing a tingling around the mouth and fingertips within a few minutes to a few hours after eating toxic shellfish. These symptoms are typically followed by loss of balance, lack of muscular coordination, slurred speech and difficulty swallowing. In severe poisonings, complete muscular paralysis and death from asphyxiation can occur. 

This warning does not apply to commercially sold mussels, clams, scallops, and oysters from approved sources. State law permits only state-certified commercial shellfish harvesters or dealers to sell these products. Shellfish sold by certified harvesters and dealers are subject to frequent mandatory testing to monitor for toxins. 

Please view the most current information on shellfish advisories and quarantines by calling CDPH's toll-free Shellfish Information Line at (800) 553-4133 or by viewing the recreational bivalve shellfish advisory interactive map. For additional information, please visit the CDPH Marine Biotoxin Monitoring web page.  

That's foor PSP. Here's the report on domoic acid:

CDPH Lifts Warning About Consuming the Internal Organs of Sport-Harvested Dungeness Crab from One Area of the Northern California Coast

The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) has lifted the shellfish safety notification for sport-harvested Dungeness crab internal organs (viscera) caught in state waters located at: 

Sonoma/Mendocino County line (38° 46.125' N. Latitude) to Point Reyes (37⁰ 59.73' N. Latitude) 

CDPH has lifted its Dungeness Crab Internal Organs Advisory dated October 24, 2025, where consumers were warned against eating Dungeness crab viscera. Recent laboratory analyses show that the domoic acid levels in Dungeness crab harvested along the coastal area of Northern California have declined to low or undetectable levels. There have been no reported illnesses associated with this event.  

Consumers are advised to always discard the viscera and cooking liquids and adhere to the following best preparation practices to avoid any inadvertent exposure to domoic acid that may be sporadically found in the crab’s viscera. It is always best to remove the viscera and rinse out the body cavity prior to cooking (i.e., before boiling, steaming, or frying). If whole crab is cooked in liquid, domoic acid may leach into the cooking liquid. The cooking water or broth should be discarded and not used to prepare dishes such as sauces, broth, soups, or stews (for example, cioppino or gumbo), stocks, roux, dressings, or dips. 

Symptoms of domoic acid poisoning can occur within 30 minutes to 24 hours after eating toxic seafood. In mild cases, symptoms may include vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, headache, and dizziness. These symptoms disappear within several days. In severe cases, the consumer may experience trouble breathing, confusion, cardiovascular instability, seizures, excessive bronchial secretions, permanent loss of short-term memory, coma, or death. 

Test results are updated as laboratory results become available and can be viewed on the CDPH Domoic Acid web page. Please visit CDPH’s Domoic Acid FAQ for more information. To receive updated information about shellfish poisoning and quarantines, call CDPH’s toll-free “Shellfish Information Line” at (800) 553-4133. 

    So domoic acid is low and you can eat the guts of crab again (ew) but unsurprisingly, CDPH recommends that you don't eat the gooey stuff. That's what I do. I always have some hanging bait in my hoops or traps to keep the crab inside until I pull them. When you clean them ahead of cooking you get to see how much of the stuff you put in for bait is now in the crab. If you're gonna eat it it, bait with stuff you want to eat, 'cause you're gonna eat it. For the record, yuck on my part, but if you like it, good for you. Also, I sell bait, so.....