As the new year approaches, it's time to assemble the documents and details necessary to make obligatory reports of hunting and certain fishing activities.

Both Puget Sound personal-use crabbers and most hunters will have to submit first, but at the end of January waterfowlers also will have to tell the piper what they did or did not bag in the fall months.

In these matters for hunters there's a carrot, but crabbers will want to avoid the stick.

BEFORE AND AFTER THE PAGE TURNS

Some opportunity remains for razor clammers and crabbers.

The final coastal beach razor clam dig of 2012 has been green-lighted by state health officials and shellfish managers have unveiled 2013's winter razor openings list.

Local crabbers have a straight through (every day) option from now to the end of the year to close out the 2012 fall winter season with all gear due to be pulled no later than sundown New Year's Eve.

At least one new regulation governing Columbia River personal-use anglers takes effect New Year's Day.

And there most certainly will be more changes in store as Washington and Oregon fisheries management panels seek to synchronize their states policies and rules concerning personal-use and commercial exploitation of the big rivers major fish runs.

COMING SUNDAY

For more details about how and where to make your crab reports after New Years as well as options for fishing before and after midnight Monday, Dec. 31, plus more hunting and fishing news, read Sunday's Outdoors Column.

Doug Huddle, the Bellingham Herald's outdoors correspondent, since 1983, has written a weekly fishing and hunting column that appears Sundays. Read his blog and contact him at http://pblogs.bellinghamherald.com/outdoors.