Tuesday, January 22, 2013

TreasureS From the Deep.

 
These crustaceans were just too beautiful to eat.
I don't buy them too often because it just doesn't seem worth it to throw so much of the lobster away.
With a crab, there is always so much more to eat and the shell is not as hard.
Given a choice, crab is always first on my list.

However for New Year, this time we decided to buy lobster.
We shopped around for the specials and we found so many lobster tails for 8.99.
Some were frozen and some were fresh.
No one told you that for 8.99 you could get the whole thing as is , alive, from the store aquarium.
Only my husband could sniff this out because he is the professional
seafood man in our family. lol

I have to admit, they sure look good on a plate though and if the tables were turned,
I am sure nothing would hinder them from taking a good chunk out of you either.
Their claws are willing and eager to clasp onto anything.

The kids used to go crab fishing with nets . From the pier we could see all these crabs walking around under water. We didn't even need nets. All we had to do was walk or dive under water and pick them up by hand.They were all over the place. The only thing that spoiled the fun were all these RCMP Officers who constantly walked around bothering you for licences and making sure you only took males which had to be a certain size or larger and did not exceed your quota.
My boys would lower these nets with a chunk of meat tied to them and watch the crabs crawl onto it, and begin to rip off pieces to digest.
Sometimes you'd have two three crabs all feeding off the same small piece of meat.
The kids found it fascinating to watch.
We went often to the White Rock Pier cause we could put our chairs out and sit to take in some sun while the kids played jumping off the pier and crabbing.
I decided to pack it up and was pulling in this empty crab net when two police officers came to ask me for my license to crab. I told them I wasn't crabbing, just getting ready to go home. They asked who the crabbers were and I told them they were jumping off the pier. lol
They had already checked them for licenses many times.
After they put up parking meters you had to feed on the hour, we lost taste going there because it was too much of a chore to shop, go to restaurants, sun and worry about the meter.

When my Dad came to visit, we took him fishing to White Rock, BC on a boat.
We didn't expect to catch much cause there isn't much out there to catch except maybe some
bony little mud fish we used for crab bait. It was just for the fun of it to sit on the boat and who knows
what ,if anything, would hook onto a hook.

Imagine his (and our) surprise when he pulled out a  4 foot bonnet head shark onto the boat.
His eyes grew sooo big seeing he caught a shark.
This was simply unimaginable to him and to us.
I got this photo from google images to relate the size of the shark he pulled overboard.

IGFA Hot Catches Angler Capt. Jay Wright Jr., Hollywood, Fla., USA, landed a bonnethead shark (Sphyrna tiburo) on September 5, weighing 10.21 kg (22 lb 8 oz) on 6 kg (12 lb) class line. Wright, an IGFA Lifetime Achievement award winner made the catch using crab for bait while fishing Sebastian, Florida, USA. It took him 10 minutes to land. The current men’s IGFA 12 lb line class record is 22 lb 0 oz (9.98 kg) caught two years ago off McClellanville,SC, USA. Jay released the shark after documenting. (Photo – bonnethead shark – 33895)
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These sharks are found in California , in warmer waters but since they eat crabs , BC
could be an enticing place for it to come visit, higher up the coast.
We couldn't get over , how tough the outer layer of the skin was.
Strangely enough, no one worried about being bit by it as we all tried  to examine it.

After taking a few pics, which I still have to find, of a really happy old man
who just experienced a small thrill of a lifetime, we let it go back into the ocean.
This shark is part of the Hammerhead shark family, grows up to 5 feet and does not seem to be
a danger to man.
We were not very far from shore when we caught it so if it could make it up the coast, so could other, more dangerous sharks.
Something we never think about up here. lol

xoxoxoxox

10 comments:

Rick Watson said...

The only time I've ever seen sharks was when I was in Panama during my time in the Army.
Also saw some of the most colorful fish I've ever seen the times I snorkeled there.

A Lady's Life said...

We see many killer whales but very few sharks Rick. It's all about salmon fishing out here. We catch sturgeon but we let them go.The only other big fish I swam with was barracuda and those look like under water leopards. lolQuite impressive.

Akelamalu said...

I saw a small reef shark very close to shore in the Maldives - I kept my distance. ;)

I've never had lobster. I have been tempted to order it in restaurants but stopped myself because, basically, I wouldn't know where to start dissecting it.

A Lady's Life said...

Akelamalu - in restaurants they cut it for you so you don't have to worry about it.With crabs its easy. You tear them by the seams and they split easy.

SandyCarlson said...

Looks like you made good use of your crustaceans. They are amazing animals. I hope they survive being over-harvested.

Your post was a great read.

Gattina said...

I love lobster too, but I don't like that they are thrown in boiling water ! that cuts my appetite !

A Free Spirit Butterfly said...

I love your "stories." I don't have any fun family memories to post about. Keep sharing :-)

I'm with you, I'll take crabs over lobster. Although I won't pass up a lobster :-)

Thank you for sharing your poems with me.

The book should be ready by late March and I will mail you a copy!

Love you!

A Lady's Life said...

Sandy - We have ,laws here for that.
on the west coast. For crabs we are only allowed to take males not females.

A Lady's Life said...

Gattina - We freeze them then put them in cold water which quickly boils. I don't think they feel anything.

A Lady's Life said...

butterfly - thats ok. You don't need to mail me the book lol Best to sell it.