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This year’s twinkling lights will be
blue and yellow, to honor the local fi shing
industry.
A metal anchor sits near the bottom of
the structure, in honor of Kevin Soule, a
39-year-old crabber who died while fi shing
on Willapa Bay in 2018. A fl oat on the tree
honors Luke Jensen, a 22-year-old killed
in a fi shing accident in 2012. Another fl oat
gives gratitude to the U.S. Coast Guard
crew working at Cape Disappointment.
“I think it’s pretty cool to incorporate
the fi sherman we lost,” added long time
volunteer and local artist Don Nesbitt, as
he secured another string of lights to the
structure.
According to local legend, Ilwaco is
home to the tallest crab pot tree in the
world, however, the city doesn’t yet have
the Guinness World Record to prove it.
According to Austin, smaller trees have
since popped up in Garibaldi, Rockaway
Beach and Anacortes, Washington.
Austin says the nearby competition actu-
ally improves Ilwaco’s chances of making
the record books.
“Our understanding is that if other peo-
ple are also making crab pot trees, then
we might actually be able to get a title,”
laughed Austin.
The tree will be offi cially lit Saturday
with a lighting ceremony and parade just
as unique as the tree itself. Matt the DJ
Elf will spin music starting at 4 p.m. and
a parade of decorated vehicles, including
the Long Beach Jeep Club, will make their
way past the tree before it is lit at 5 p.m.
The lighting will be capped off with the
“World’s Shortest Fireworks Display.”
After a year of hiatus, carolers will be
back to sing in person for the tree lighting.
“We sing traditional Christmas carols
with a crab pot twist,” said Austin. “We
sing songs like ‘fa la la, we want crab.’”
Santa will be on site strictly for drive-by
visits, a change made last year due to
COVID-19. Austin said the change is
tough, but she’s happy that some version of
the celebration is still happening.
“It was super exciting when a lot of
events had been canceled and we were able
to come up with a parade idea last year,”
said Austin. “I know it meant a lot to our
community.”
While some features of the annual tradi-
tion will be modifi ed to continue to follow
social distancing recommendations, orga-
nizers strive to make the event interactive
and fun for everyone.
“We have at least 20 jeeps that will be in
the parade, and about 80 who are interested
on social media,” said Long Beach Jeep
Club co-organizer Katherine Wilhelm.
Wilhelm said the participants are aiming
Nikki Davidson
Jenna Austin supervises as volunteers
decorate the Crab Pot Christmas Tree.
Nikki Davidson
Artist Don Nesbitt climbs to the top of the Crab Pot Christmas Tree to secure lights.
Memorial fl oats honor local lives lost at sea.
to impress, going above and beyond with
their lighted parade decorations.
“This year I’ve got an infl atable Santa
that rides on the top on his stomach, riding
a sled like a toboggan,” she said. “I love
it. I love the whole hometown event and
everyone coming out and having commu-
nity spirit.”
“A lot of little neighborhoods surround-
ing us don’t do much,” she added. “Ilwaco
goes all out and it takes a lot of eff ort, a lot
of people work to make everyone happy.”
The Traveling Coast Show podcast will
release an episode with crab pot Christ-
mas carols. Download the episode and
fi nd more information about the Crab
Pot Christmas event at facebook.com/
DiscoverIlwaco.
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2021 // 5