Seabeck, WA

Okay, so we were never actually in any kind of perilous predicament, or in danger of losing our lives, ....but we did catch a lot of crabs!!!

It was the last day of the crabbing season, Labor Day Weekend, on the scenic Hood Canal in the Western Puget Sound of Washington State. The capable crew of Bob Stewart, Jonathan Washburn, my oldest son, Ben, and Yours Truly, set sail for a three-hour tour.... uh, wait a minute...that's a different tale!

We spent a good part of the afternoon motoring around the Hood Canal to where our crab pots were submerged, about 120 feet down. We pulled up 4 pots, and limited out with 20 legal sized male Dungeness crabs.

Then it was off to Pleasant Harbor to grab some munchies and soak up some rays.....

Jonathan provides the 'Play-by-Play' as Ben skillfully demonstrates the art of cleaning a crab!




Last Spring, it was The Great White Clam Hunters....this past Summer, it was King of the Crabs....What, pray tell, is next for our adventurous crew?

One of my favorites things I enjoy about living on the beautiful Kitsap Peninsula here in scenic Washington State, is taking my boat out crabbing on the Hood Canal, part of the extensive inland waterways of Puget Sound. The Hood Canal is a long, deep, narrow strip of water wedged in between the Kitsap Peninsula and the picturesque Olympic Peninsula. The Olympic Mountain range rises up rather dramatically from the edge of the water. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking.!

To learn more about recreational crabbing out on the Hood Canal WA, go to Crabbing in the Hood.

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Rich Jacobson is a licensed real estate professional providing empowerment and relentless representation for his clients of residential properties and vacant land throughout all of Kitsap County WA and portions of Pierce, Mason, and Jefferson Counties. You can also find him at KitsapLife.com and SOUNDBITEBLOG.

This coming Friday could be Doomsday for the long awaited and much-anticipated Olympic View Marina Project out in Seabeck.

How this has remained under my radar, I have no idea. Tonight, while taking a walk with my wife, I ran across fellow RE agent, Nick Blickhan (Nick and I had worked together at the Windermere office here in Silverdale).

As a waterfront resident of Seabeck WA, Nick has been keeping close tabs on the progress, or lack thereof, of the Olympic View LLC Marina Project. Four partners purchased the fledging property a few years ago, and put together a very detailed development plan. At considerable expense, they effectively jumped through each and every hoop that the County and State required, and in most instances, went way beyond what was necessary. From every indication, it appeared that things were moving forward, and the much needed marina would become a reality.

Unfortunately, due in large part to one lone, dissenting squeaky wheel, the ear of the WA Department of Ecology has been effectively bent, and it appears that the project is headed to a devastating demise. Evidently, the neighborhood squeaky wheel is one of these types who defines/measures ‘Smart’ growth by how far you can bury your head in the sand.

Nevermind that the dire needs of the many clearly outweighs the preferences of the few, or, in this case, the one.

Nevermind that the partners paid exceptionally close attention to detail in their plans towards maintaining and even enhancing the existing environmental integrity of the areas impacted by the proposed marina development.

Nevermind that the marina would have a very positive impact on the financial stability of existing Seabeck merchants/businesses, and long-term residential property values.

Nevermind that area boat owners would finally have badly needed basic marina services and mooring space available. The closest marina is Pleasant Harbor, over on the western side of Hood Canal, just south of Brinnon. You can moor your boat there, but it takes nearly an hour by car to get there.

The Olympic View Marina Project should make complete sense - ecologically, or otherwise. While it could be argued that some commercial developments are not necessarily environmental-friendly, this project clearly fulfills the demand for highest and best use. Although Kitsap County Commissioner, Josh Brown, has voiced his full support for this project, but his influence may not be enough to affect the outcome.

The WA State Department of Ecology is issuing their final verdict on the project this Friday. In my humble opinion, the Dept needs to step up and display some backbone. Rather than buckling under the incessant whining of one solitary voice, the project should be measured and approved on the merits of the significant positive impact it will have on the environment/habitat, and the true value that quality marina services will offer to our community.