Everyone had a good excuse for being a bit crabby.
The Dungeness Crab and Seafood Festival brought out quest for shellfish Saturday in the festival’s inauguration Saturday in Port Angeles and Sequim.
Port Angeles Harbor was seeded with 500 specially tagged Dungeness crabs for the event. Participants were encouraged to catch their dinner for fun, food and prizes.
As of 5 p.m. Saturday, 17 of the tagged crabs had been pulled from the water and checked it at “Crab Central,” the festival’s headquarters at The Landing mall.
Those crabs brought their catchers an entry into a special drawing for a variety of grand prizes.
In addition 175 untagged crabs were brought in for the chance at additional prizes.
Non-crabbing participants were given the opportunity to visit any of 15 Port Angeles and Sequim restaurants, each featuring a crab-related specialty. Restaurant-goers could get a festival map stamped for entry in a third drawing for prizes.
The oil-spill recovery ship W.C. Park Responder was also available for public tours Saturday for festival participants.
The festival continues today with more crabbing, restaurant demonstrations and marine exhibits at The Landing.