Snagging the Buoy.

Time is money ... especially in the fishing industry. The largest expenditure of time is pulling pots. And, the greatest expenditure of fuel is consumed traveling between pots. A seasoned fisherman knows how far apart to place his pots to minimize the distance between while maximizing the amount of crabs caught. Not too far ...  not too close.

Crab fishing is a fuel economy nightmare. Up on plane to the next pot. Then drop into the hole and idle. Then back on top to the next pot. Up and Down. Full throttle, then idle. Back and forth. All day. A good crabber can pull as many as 400 pots a day.

Establishing a rhythm aids the process:  1) Drop in the hole aside the buoy.  2) Hook the buoy.  3) Retrieve the line.  4) Pull the pots on board.  5) Harvest and cull crab.  6) Re-bait.  7) Set the pot back.

Now, an important trick is hooking or snagging the buoy. As we have mentioned before, we approach the buoy from the downstream side so that the line is stretched out up stream of the buoy. That keeps us from running over the line which could tangle the line in the propeller or cutting it. Right when the boat reaches the buoy, we pull back on the throttle, put the engine in neutral, and glide forward up the line. That way there is the maximum amount of slack line to readily bring aboard.

So, what happens if a buoy is missed? Missing that buoy as it come by wastes time, energy, fuel, .... money! So on our crab boat, if you miss a buoy and the boat has to be turned around ... you owe the captain ... a root beer!

So Capt. Dad is employing a Missed Buoy, Root Beer Count. If a SCK misses a buoy, that kid owes Capt. Dad a root beer. If Capt. Dad makes a bad approach and causes the miss, then he owes the whole crew a root beer.

This could get .... sud-sy !!!

'Dirt Claw'd' is home !!!

Josiah and I got up at 4:00AM Saturday morning and drove to New Bern, NC to pick up the BIG boat ... christened ... Dirt Claw'd !

We spent Saturday and Sunday learning about fiberglass and gelcoat work. Frankie spent extra time with Josiah making sure he was up to speed. And, he sent me to the store for materials. I am starting to suspect Frankie thinks I'm ... worthless. Naaaay! I'm just a safe driver.

There is still a lot of aesthetic work to do. But, we have to remember .... this is a crab boat.  And, they are going to be scraping pots up the sides.


The new floor was put in the cuddy cabin and the first coat of gelcoat applied. The seals in the hydraulic steering were changed. Chips and nicks patched and painted. New bow rail to be mounted. Lots of sanding and buffing. Hubs greased, gas'd up, and we're ready to head back.

And after a weary six hour drive back to Charleston SC,  Dirt Claw'd  was home and getting a much needed bath.

Now let's get this engine rebuilt and get on the crab !!!

Cracking Crab Claws - AnnahBelle

A plate full of cooked stone crab claws is a 'beautiful thing to behold'. But once they're cooked ... how do you get to the sweet, white meat?

AnnahBelle ( 10 years old ) is going to show you a technique we use in our house for cracking crabs.  Works get. Especially with kids

Editor's Note: She's going to show you how to "eat" them as well !!! 

Determining Male or Female - by Sarah

Part of the data that the SKC's need to collect is a count of how many crabs are males and how many are females.

Females with the blazing orange egg sponges are easy to recognized.

 But how do you determine the difference if there is no sponge. Sarah ( age 8 ) explains.

Father's Day Interview

Kelly Golden of WSC 94.3FM did another interview with Capt.Dad on the Carolina Now radio program.


 " Father's Day Interview"


It is no stretch to say, that these three precious children, along with their lovely mother, provide daily blessings to my life beyond any ability for words or hugs to express.

SCK's get a new DNR representative.

Those that have been following the SCK's for some time now may remember our SCDNR contact, Jason Powers.  Well, Jason was offered some fancy, smancy job in some far away land called Washington DC.  He will be assisting states in the development of renewable energy resources.  Jason was a great help and a friend to us.  He will certainly be missed by all.  However the SCK's are now blessed to have Kim Counts working with us. And, the kids already thinks she's terrific.

Kim went for her first ride along with the SCK's as we pulled prospect pots in our continuing effort to find stone crabs along the inland waterways. And for the first time in weeks .... we had stone crabs in our traps.

Now comes the opportunity to figure out why they are hanging out in this particular area.

Possibilities may be:
1. Food Sources
2. Water Temperature
3. Saturated Oxygen Levels
4. Salinity
5. ?

If you have an idea we would love to add it to our list. stonecrabkids@comcast.net

The area in which we found them was a large open shoal along the ICW ( Intracoastal Waterway ) called Wadmalaw Sound. There are loads of oyster banks and the bottom is muddy but fairly hard. Interesting note: the first prospect pot we pulled was right up against an oyster flat and not a single crab. We thought we were going to have to search out another area. Then just across the sound up against another flat .... booyah!  Harvestable size stone crabs.  Big males like the one AnnahBelle is holding as well as females with egg sponges.  No apparent difference in habitat ... just opposite sides of the sound.  Why? That question will drive us nuts!

But not as nuts as pulling empty pots.  Booyah!