Hunting abalone

[Akimbo]

There is a limit of, something like, 24 per person per year, so that can't be valid anymore. Right?

As stated above, it has been lowered from 24 to 18. Valid or not, that's their story and they're sticking to it.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

As long as there has been a regulated abalone sport fishery in NorCal (north of SF) it has always been free diving only from day one.
That was somewhere around 1953.
prior to that in the 40's there was a very limited commercial fishery by Japanese fishermen out of San Francisco, however it was abandoned because of constant inhospitable conditions, logistics, and basically for what they went through and as little as they could get up to the ab beds and as fast as conditions could turn, the math wasn't working. Right around that time they also decided to stop commercial harvest up north.
So this left the heartiest of the recreational tough guys to go out in their layers of wool undergarments with Levi's pulled over and several sweaters on with something else pulled over the top, and the same thing for their head And a small round face plate with hard rubber skirt.
Back in those days there was no limit but you had to have a fishing license and you couldn't use scuba. Shortly after that more people got into it and the limit was five.
Frank Carley was the first one in town to open a dive shop, then guys could get the new thing called wetsuits. But there was no such thing as a suit off the rack, he sold you a pattern, a few yards of neoprene, and a bottle of glue and you made your own.
The reason abalone was always Freedive only was Northern California has always been conservation minded, even back then.
They knew what would happen with these new warm wetsuits combined with scuba. Just look at SoCal and that's a perfect example, they raped it.
Their reasoning was also besides the abs having a fighting chance, the average free diver can usually only dive to about 15 or 20 feet, so the deeper abs get left alone to replenish.
When I got into it the daily limit was four and no annual limit. Then they closed all abalone south of SF so all those people started coming up here so they reduced the annual take to 100 and started the report card.
then it went to three a day and 24 a year,
now it's 3 a day and 18 a year with start time restrictions, county limits, plus tags to put on the abs and all sorts of other rules.


God rest the souls of those who died.

 

[jcaplins]

I think one would argue that shark feeding should be stopped because it changes the behavior of sharks. Freedivers aren't really affecting the behavior of abalone.

Back to molluska... As far as conservation is concerned, I don't see freediving as much help. Sure; commercial ban, established seasons, bag limits, MPAs, those I see helping... but freediving only, I'm not so sure.

A couple negatives I see with freediving:
- Abalone are pried off rocks and later found to be too small or the diver wanted a bigger one (or whatever).
If the abalone has been cut when it is returned to the water, it will die.
- Areas within easy reach of freedivers are over-fished, other areas are left alone.

I think scuba would help eliminate the waste and more evenly distribute the fishing. BTW, I'm not advocating for Scuba only.

 

[Abdullah]

I think one would argue that shark feeding should be stopped because it changes the behavior of sharks. Freedivers aren't really affecting the behavior of abalone.

Back to molluska... As far as conservation is concerned, I don't see freediving as much help. Sure; commercial ban, established seasons, bag limits, MPAs, those I see helping... but freediving only, I'm not so sure.

A couple negatives I see with freediving:
- Abalone are pried off rocks and later found to be too small or the diver wanted a bigger one (or whatever).
If the abalone has been cut when it is returned to the water, it will die.
- Areas within easy reach of freedivers are over-fished, other areas are left alone.

I think scuba would help eliminate the waste and more evenly distribute the fishing. BTW, I'm not advocating for Scuba only.

A question - Does the collector know how big the abalone is when he pries it off the rock?

I've seen fishermen keep everything they catch, then sort the catch at the end of the day back down to the limit, keeping only the best. I'm curious if some abalone divers are over collecting, then only keeping the best 3 at the end of the day. Would scuba fix that?

 

[wgw04024]

For out-of-the-area divers reading this, Abalone can only be legally taken freediving — no Scuba. Unless they were beat to a pulp against the rocks, it is hard to believe that freedivers in 7mm wetsuits can drown unless they all forgot that they can drop lead. Very strange.

This is exactly what I was wondering, thank you for clearing it up.

 

[dshorwich]

A question - Does the collector know how big the abalone is when he pries it off the rock?

I've seen fishermen keep everything they catch, then sort the catch at the end of the day back down to the limit, keeping only the best. I'm curious if some abalone divers are over collecting, then only keeping the best 3 at the end of the day. Would scuba fix that?

Abalone divers are required to carry a measuring gauge with them. See 29.15 (d) and (f) below. Here are the abalone regulations, copied from pp 46-48 of California Sport Fishing Regulations 2015-2016:

29.15. ABALONE.
(a) Open Area: Except in the area described in subsection (a)(1) below, abalone may only be taken north of a line drawn due west magnetic from the center of the mouth of San Francisco Bay. No abalone may be taken, landed, or possessed if landed south of this line.
(1) No abalone may be taken in the Fort Ross area bounded by the mean high tide line and a line drawn due south true from 38°30.63’ N, 123°14.98’ W (the northern point of Fort Ross Cove) and a line drawn due west true from 38°29.45’ N. 123°11.72’ W (Jewel Gulch, south boundary Fort Ross State Park).
(b) Open Season and Hours:
(1) Open Season: Abalone may be taken only during the months of April, May, June, August, September, October and November.
(2) Open Hours: Abalone may be taken only from 8:00 AM to one-half hour after sunset.
(c) Bag Limit and Yearly Trip Limit: Three red abalone, Haliotis rufescens, may be taken per day. No more than three abalone may be possessed at any time. No other species of abalone may be taken or possessed. Each person taking abalone shall stop detaching abalone when the limit of three is reached. No person shall take more than 18 abalone during a calendar year. In the Open Area as defined in subsections 29.15(a) and 29.15(a)(1) above, not more than 9 abalone of the yearly trip limit may be taken south of the boundary between Sonoma and Mendocino counties.
(d) Minimum Abalone Size: All red abalone must be seven inches or greater measured along the longest shell diameter. All legal-sized abalone detached must be retained. No undersize abalone may be brought ashore or aboard any boat, placed in any type of receiver, kept on the person, or retained in any person’s possession or under his control. Undersize abalone must be replaced immediately to the same surface of the rock from which detached. Abalone brought ashore shall be in such a condition that the size can be determined.
(e) Special Gear Provisions: The use of SCUBA gear or surface-supplied air to take abalone is prohibited. Abalone may not be taken or possessed aboard any boat, vessel, or floating device in the water containing SCUBA or surface-supplied air. Abalone may be taken only by hand or by devices commonly known as abalone irons. Abalone irons must be less than 36 inches long, straight or with a curve having a radius of not less than 18 inches, and must not be less than 3/4 inch wide nor less than 1/16 inch thick. All edges must be rounded and free of sharp edges. Knives, screwdrivers and sharp instruments are prohibited.
(f) Measuring Device: Every person while taking abalone shall carry a fixed-caliper measuring gauge capable of accurately measuring seven inches. The measuring device shall have fixed opposing arms of sufficient length to measure the abalone by placing the gauge over the shell.
(g) Abalone Possession and Transportation: Abalones shall not be removed from their shell, except when being prepared for immediate consumption.
(1) Individuals taking abalone shall maintain separate possession of their abalone. Abalone may not be commingled in a float tube, dive board, dive bag, or any other container or device, until properly tagged. Only after abalones are properly tagged, as described in Section 29.16 (b), Title 14, CCR, may they be commingled with other abalone taken by another person.
(h) Report Card Required: Any person fishing for or taking abalone shall have in their possession a nontransferable Abalone Report Card issued by the department and shall adhere to all reporting and tagging requirements for abalone defined in Sections 1.74 and 29.16, Title 14, CCR.

29.16. ABALONE REPORT CARD AND TAGGING REQUIREMENTS.
(a) Abalone Report Card Required. All individuals including divers must have an Abalone Report Card in their immediate possession while fishing for or taking red abalone. Individuals must complete and return the card pursuant to regulations in this Section and in Section 1.74.
(b) Tagging Requirements. An Abalone Report Card includes detachable tags that shall be used to tag any abalone that is taken and retained in the sport fishery. Any red abalone possessed by any person shall be tagged.
(1) Cardholders shall tag any red abalone either immediately upon exiting the water or immediately upon boarding a vessel, whichever occurs first. For the purposes of this section a vessel is defined as any watercraft used or capable of being used as a means of transportation on water (reference Section 9840(a) CVC). Cardholders shall not wait to return to their vehicle, beach site or other location to tag any abalone in possession.
EXCEPTION: Cardholders who dive from a non-motorized vessel such as a kayak that is in the water may wait until immediately after disembarking from the non-motorized vessel to tag and record any abalone in possession, but shall not transfer any abalone from his or her immediate possession unless they are first tagged and recorded on the report card.
(2) The cardholder shall fill in the month, day, time of catch, and fishing location on the abalone tag, remove and completely detach the tag from the card, and affix it to the shell of the abalone.
(3) The tag shall be securely fastened to the shell of the abalone. To affix the tag, a “zip tie”, string, line or other suitable material shall be passed through a siphon hole on the abalone shell and through the tag at the location specified on the abalone tag.
(4) Tags shall be used in sequential order, and shall not be removed from the report card until immediately prior to affixing to an abalone. Any tags detached from the report card and not affixed to an abalone shall be considered used and therefore invalid.
(5) No person shall possess any used or otherwise invalid abalone tags not attached to an abalone shell.
(c) Reporting Requirements. Immediately upon tagging all abalone in possession, the cardholder shall record the month, day, time of catch, and fishing location in the appropriate spaces on the numbered line on the Abalone Report Card which corresponds to the number on the tag attached to the abalone.
(d) Records of Prior Activity. All tags must be accounted for at all times by entry of a record on the Abalone Report Card corresponding to all tags that are not in possession. Any tag that was lost or destroyed shall be recorded as such on the corresponding line on the Abalone Report Card. Any tag that was inadvertently removed and is still in possession shall be recorded as void on both the tag and the corresponding line on the Abalone Report Card.
(e) Abalone tags must be left affixed to the shell, including while stored at a residence or nontransient location, until the abalone is processed for immediate consumption.
(f ) The annual fee for the Abalone Report Card is specified in Section 7149.8 of the Fish and Game Code.

 

[jcaplins]

A question - Does the collector know how big the abalone is when he pries it off the rock?

They are required to know.

(d) Minimum Abalone Size: All red abalone must be seven inches or greater measured along the longest shell diameter. All legal size abalone detached must be retained. No undersized abalone may be brought ashore or aboard any boat, placed in any type of receiver, kept on the person, or retained in any person's possession or under his control. Undersize abalone must be replaced immediately to the same surface of the rock from which detached. Abalones brought ashore shall be in such a condition that the size can be determined.
(e) Special Gear Provisions: The use of SCUBA gear or surface supplied air to take abalone is prohibited. Abalone may not be taken or possessed aboard any boat, vessel, or floating device in the water containing SCUBA or surface supplied air. Abalone may be taken only by hand or by devices commonly known as abalone irons. Abalone irons must be less than 36 inches long, straight or with a curve having a radius of not less than 18 inches, and must not be less than 3/4 inch wide nor less than 1/16 inch thick. All edges must be rounded and free of sharp edges. Knives, screwdrivers and sharp instruments are prohibited.
(f) Measuring Device. Every person while taking abalone shall carry a fixed caliper measuring gauge capable of accurately measuring seven inches. The measuring device shall have fixed opposing arms of sufficient length to measure the abalone by placing the gauge over the shell.

from CA fish and wildlife:
How to Measure Abalone Correctly to Avoid a Ticket? | California Outdoors Q and A


Some may think it's not a big deal to pop one off the rocks and put it back if they don't want it, but, because Abalone are hemophiliac, If injured, they bleed to death.

 

[Laurie S.]

At Van Damme, Game and Fish uses both high-powered binoculars and listening equipment to see what's happening with the abalone divers.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

A question - Does the collector know how big the abalone is when he pries it off the rock?

I've seen fishermen keep everything they catch, then sort the catch at the end of the day back down to the limit, keeping only the best. I'm curious if some abalone divers are over collecting, then only keeping the best 3 at the end of the day. Would scuba fix that?

That's called high grading and it's very illegal. With freediving they can watch for this by viewing divers from shore when they surface with binoculars they can sometimes see this happening and issue citations. With scuba there would be no way of monitoring this along with a lot of other stuff shady people would do.
The law is that you're supposed to carry a 7" gauge with you and if there's a question you take the gauge down and measure the ab before pulling it. Most of us that have been at a while know by looking at them what's legal size. I personally don't bother with anything below an 8".
You keep the first 3 legal size abalone regardless, no trading for bigger ones.

 

[spoolin01]

I think this is the same spot I checked out last year - cliffs all along the south edge of a deep bay, houses along the bluffs, with almost no places to get down the cliffs. I found one spot more than half-way towards the point, with cleaner water than at the back of the bay, but it would be directly exposed to typical NW swell direction, and there were only one or two narrow slots to get into the water, and big boulders everywhere. It did appear to get deep right at the water's edge. It was definitely a spot only for the calmest of days.

If I recall, there was also access to the bluffs at the point, but I didn't check out shore access as I figured the odds of catching decent conditions there would be slim.

The local's report of the woman's reaction to the prospect of fresh abalone is not unfamiliar and would be funny if it didn't highlight the tragic foolishness here. Some people are just nuts about abalone. I think it's like chewing rubber bands, tho at least chicken-fried. The hunting [-]is[/-] can be fun though.