One recommendation as a part of the great SAO crab performance audit is to put enough weight in a pot to keep it from drifting off.

But if we put enough weight in the pot to MAYBE keep it from migrating and the wind/tide overcome our best estimates the pot will probably pull the floats under. That may not be a problem for some folks in low tidal flow areas but it sure is where I crab. Last season two drifting pots were dragged into shallow water and the owner's were called; edging on the illegal but done in good faith.

(That brings up a point that each pot should also have a current telephone number.)

If we put in enough weight to try and keep it in place but have enough flotation to allow for a migrated pot to be recovered by someone "downstream" we may not have a derelict pot and may even get the pot back but it may come with a ticket if we failed to call and report the pot lost. Did I mention that the reason to go to the beach is to get away from the phone???

Ah, the dilemma. More weight? More floats? More line? Bigger skiff?

Geez, this is crabbing..... its supposed to be simple!

By the way, if you are into sport crab value this report cites a study which attributed a $43/day value for shellfish activity and a WDFW report that the average daily crab catch is 2.35 kg or 5.17 pounds. At an average per crab weight of 1.75 pounds (it does vary catch area) that works out to a value of $8.32/pound or $14.58 per crab. This is just one of several versions of valuing the sport catch.

LarryB