I'm not sure there's anything I love more than loading up the back of the boat with an arsenal of crab traps and heading out into the bay to crab for dungeness.  After letting the crab traps soak for what seems like an eternity, you finally get a chance to pull them up.  And with some luck, you'll be in the crab! 

What's frustrating though, is when you spend all those hours out on the water pulling up crab trap after crab trap, only to find perhaps a handful of keepers.  

The reality is, there's more than just luck you can use when it comes to crabbing for dungeness crab.  First you want to know how to use the tides in your favor.  You also want to know what the best bait is for crab.  But in addition to those things,  there's still one more thing you can do to better your odds at feasting on delicious dungeness crab later that day.

The number one thing you can do is make sure you use the best crab trap for dungeness crab.  Not all crab traps are made equally.  And not all crab traps are designed to be used for dungeness.   By using a crab trap that's designed for dungeness crab, you'll ensure that the crab not only enter the trap, but more importantly, will stay there.  

1. Danielson Pacific FTC Crab Trap

When people think about crabbing for dungeness in the waters of the Pacific Northwest, the Danielson Pacific FTC Crab Trap is the first crab trap that comes to mind.  Not only is this the best crab trap for dungeness, but some of its other features also help elevate it to being the best.  It's stackable and collapsible.  This makes it ideal for transport and storage when not in use.

Constructed out of vinyl coated steel wire, this trap will last a very long time if cared for properly. The Danielson crab trap is not small either. At 24” x 24” wide and 13” tall, there’s enough room inside of it to hold plenty of keeper dungeness crab before you have to pull it up and empty it.

This dungeness crab trap has 4 sides to it and on each side is a one way swinging door that the dungeness crab can enter but not escape through. In addition to the entrance doors, there are also 2 small round escape rings that smaller juvenile crab are able to exit through.

As laws in states are beginning to change, you can be confident that this one complies. This trap has two fall away rot cord rings that actually disables the trap in the event that you’re unable to retrieve it.

2. FJ Neil 225-CT Snap Trap Crab Trap

The trap has two doors which lie flat on the surface when the trap is sitting on the ocean floor.  The bait is secured in the middle of the trap. Once the crabs enter the trap, they are free to come and go, much like a crab ring, until you begin to pull up on the trap with the rope.  When you pull up on the rope, the two doors swing up and trap the crabs inside.

The FJ Neil trap comes completely assembled and ready to go.  Again, this is a very small crab trap. So if you’re wanting to stack a lot of crab traps in a boat, this is a great option.

3. Promar Stainless Steel Mesh Crab Pot

The Promar Steel Mesh crab trap is the cadillac of crab traps.  If you’re serious about crabbing for dungeness and don’t want to take time to mess around, then this is the best dungeness crab trap for you.  This trap is so incredibly durable, our grandkids will be using it out on the bay well after we've retired from crabbing.

This crab trap is made out of rubber wrapped solid rebar, which makes for easy handling when both dry and wet. The round rebar frame is wrapped with stainless steel wire mesh, which is built to last for those long soaks in the salt.

The Promar commercial style crab trap has two gated entrance tunnels to help those monster dungeness and red rock crab find their way in, and never find their way out.  While at the same time there are also two smaller round escape doors that the juvenile crab can escape through. It also comes equipped with the rot cord system which allows trapped crabs to escape in the event the crab pot becomes irretrievable.

On top of the trap is a steel hinged tending door which gives you easy access to the crab trapped inside. With this feature you can keep the crab contained and take your time to accurately measure and separate the males from the females.  

This is a very heavy duty stackable dungeness crab trap that weighs in at nearly 20 lbs. While it’s not for the feeble Dungee slayer, it’s weight will prevent it from being easily moved by changing ocean currents.  The trap has a 30” diameter and is 10” high.

Have you found the right crab trap for dungeness? I'm confident that one of these traps I mentioned will work for you.  Don't underestimate the importance of choosing a crab trap that's designed specifically for dungeness. As I mentioned earlier, not all traps are made equally. 

And always remember, that no matter which dungeness crab trap you choose, if you take good care of it, it will last you for a very long time.  Salt water is incredibly powerful, so always thoroughly rinse off your crabbing gear with fresh water

Do you have a crabbing trip planned?  Or have some great crabbing tips for dungeness, like time to crab, best bait to use or even kind of rope to use? Leave a comment below and share it with the rest of us.  I'm always open to new hearing new crabbing tips!

Good luck!