Crab and Sea Cucumber wading and clamming day trip at Vashon
Details
Foraging on Vashon: A Tidal Treasure Hunt
As the tide retreats along the rugged shores of Vashon Island, a secret world awakens beneath the seaweed and stones. The salty breeze carries the scent of kelp and adventure as you step barefoot onto the glistening sand, eyes scanning for movement. Tiny crabs scuttle sideways between tide pools, their shells camouflaged against barnacle-covered rocks. With a gentle lift of a stone, you might spot a Dungeness or red rock crab, claws raised in defiance, ready to be scooped into your bucket.
Wade a little deeper, and the ocean floor becomes a living mosaic. Sea cucumbers—soft, squishy, and surprisingly elusive—nestle among eelgrass and anemones, their leathery bodies blending into the seafloor like sunken treasure. Each find feels like a small miracle, a reward for patience and curiosity.
The experience is meditative, primal, and oddly thrilling. It’s not just about the catch—it’s about reconnecting with the rhythms of nature, learning to read the language of the tides, and discovering the abundance hidden in plain sight.
How to rake crabs?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYM9hYx4Lj0
Equipment
- Rake/Net/Shovel for digging the crabs out of sand.
- Waders or water clothes
- Crab Traps
- Host will bring crab bait
- Dungeness Catch record card
- Shellfish license. You can get annual license or one of the temporary licenses
- Pudget Sound Crab endorsement.
- Cooler or bucket to store crabs
- Crab gauge
- Gloves
- Cooking equipment
You can get the dungeness catch record card, shellfish license, and pudget sound crab endorsement from https://wdfw.wa.gov/licenses/fishing
Info
Here are crabbing regulations info
https://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/shellfishing-regulations/crab
Here is info about sea cucumbers.
https://www.eregulations.com/washington/fishing/shellfish-seaweed-species-rules
Itinerary
- 9:20 AM Meetup with carpool
- 9:50 AM Get onto Vashon Ferry
- 11:00AM Start foraging for crabs and sea cucumbers
- 1:00PM Wrap up harvesting and begin cooking on Lisabeula
- 3:00PM Head back to Seattle
Cooking
Our default option is to have someone bring a portable stove or grill to Lisabeula beach so we can cook the crabs and sea cucumbers there. If anyone can volunteer a kitchen or indoor space, that would be even better.
Carpool
Find a carpool in the chat of meetup.
RSVP
Filling in the signup sheet is required to be moved from waitlist. I'll also try to prioritize new people who haven't joined my foraging events before.
https://forms.gle/EmD38ESGUqe5LSUa6
Crab and Sea Cucumber wading and clamming day trip at Vashon