BAY CENTER, Wash. — To reach the ocean crabbing grounds from this Southwest Washington community, Mike Green must navigate his boat through the seas that churn across the mouth of Willapa Bay. There are no jetties to sweep out the piling sediments, or buoys to mark a channel through the breakers.
"You look for gaps," Green said. "There's about a half-mile of water you got to dodge through."
Through the years, the 69-year-old Green has had some close calls. Waves once shattered the wheelhouse windows of his boat, the 52-foot Mi Lana. This winter, he suffered a far more grievous loss.
