Roche Harbor, a different place in the off season.

Fun to see the Kenmore Air Kraken plane preparing to land as we departed Friday Harbor yesterday morning.

Our cruise to Roche was mostly calm but we hit some rough water as we neared Spieden Island. Enough to have to rinse the salt water off the boat when we arrived.

But before that boat bath, Nick set two crab pots on the other side of the harbor. 

This was an experiment. Since he didn't have clams, his go-to bait, he used chicken in one pot and pellets & cat food in the other. And then we waited...

While waiting we walked our usual Wescott Bay loop. Very strange to see zero boats in either Wescott or Garrison bays:

Roche Harbor is very different without the hordes of tourists and boaters we usually see. Docks and party floats have been rearranged for the season, and lower staffing means no payment, trash/recycling services right on the docks. And no evening flag salute.

So...the pot with the chicken had 6 crabs (4 keepers) and the other pot had one measly rock crab. The purpose of the experiment was to find ways to not have to deal with live bait. Alas, Nick will still try to have fresh or frozen clams available...or chicken.

He set up the crab boiling pot on the dock with an extension cord. It's like we have our own private party dock (without the party), and a place to park the dinghy. 

The crab was delicious although one of them had a soft shell and some limbs with no meat.

Nick used the fishing magnet to successfully retrieved the pot lid that he dropped over the side of the dock!

Happy Halloween! We missed seeing our grandsons in their costumes but received a picture of them and mom in all their finery: