I watched an episode of Discovery Channel hit The Deadliest Catch. I enjoyed it too.
Working in the Alaska salmon industry since 2000, I have heard some great stories – thrilling and terrifying – from fisherfolk who also hit the crab season. The men and occasional women who brave the stormy sea for crab fortunes have seen their share of shit flung at them from churning oceans to irate captains.
At the end of this particular episode, the season was over and they sat down at the bar (maybe the Elbow Room). Then it was over.
How can you tell a story about fishing (crabbing) in Alaska and not show the full scope? What about the whole world of stimulant drug use to stay awake all those long hours. It’s not that everybody is doing it, but it’s a safe bet that if you raided all the wheelhouses shown, coke would show up. And what about the sketchy adherence to boundaries? Who has been getting away with crabbing in Russian waters? It would make for some damn fine television to follow the crew for another week or so. At this point, there would be a bars and lots of liquor; someone would be paying an $800 bar tab; someone would be bruised, bloodied and black-eyed from a bar fight; someone would be adding to their list of court dates.
Last summer, the Northwestern came to tender salmon at a processing plant where I worked. “Tendering” means working as a middle man – buying fish off multiple fishing vessels and delivering it to a processing plant. That way the fishing vessel can spend more of the opening (or time slot when fishing is allowed by Fish and Game) actually catching fish. I hadn’t heard of the Northwestern before she showed up and the crew introduced themselves. They were nice enough for the few minutes I talked to them. Soon my friend Sarah, who worked in the office, was fielding phone calls from people who wanted to come snap a picture or meet a crew member.
Pretty crazy considering there are hundreds – probably thousands – of tenders roaming Alaskan waters. I went out to the dock one day and snapped my own picture and did some visual observation.
The Arctic Mariner is a beautiful boat and would be hard for any vessel to measure up to. With the money coming into the Hansen hands, however, I expected a prettier package. The hold was rusty which means chunks of rust can break off and stick on the fish’s skin, and she looked like she needed some sprucing up. You can squint and make out the little designs on the prows of the boats. The letters on the left prow stand for the name of the vessel, but the Northwestern’s carry instead the initials of her captain – SH. Interesting.
So we had an opening, and the fishing vessels went out and scooped up salmon. The tenders followed and unplugged the fishing boats, so they could go back out to fish. Weeell….most of the tenders did that. One of the tenders didn’t show up.
As happens in a small town, word circulated that the boys had been out at the bar the night before and hadn’t felt up to tendering the next morning. It’s not unheard of, but you get more lip service, positive and negative, with a television crew following you a couple weeks a year.
Commercial fishing is big business. It also makes for fascinating stories tempered with danger, greed and vice. It can build fortunes, but heroes? Heroes are hard to come by, and fisherman are rough candidates for the job.
Fishermen are interesting folk what with their pills and their booze. There’s a bar not 50 yards from the docks in Kodiak where, until recently, a man could show up with his paycheck, cash the thing, and drink away most if not all of his earnings. I’m sure that’s not uncommon in those coastal communities. I’m also sure it’s not uncommon that this bar had the reputation as the place to go if you were itching for a fight or looking to score some coke. Indeed, I almost got beat up there by a couple of drunken fish workers for an offense I’m not sure I committed.
No offense dude but what you wrote was shit!The Northwestern is a very well maintained and a really good looking boat.On the other hand it wasn’t renamed as the Arctic Mariner was wich originally was Vitus Bering.About the SH on the bow…Comes from the name of the fatehr of the Hansens and SH was on the bow when the boat was built!Check this out if you don’t believe it:
http://www.fvnorthwestern.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=61&pos=1
i agree with balu…
And drool…. Sure SOME fishermen do
but youve gotta remember people like on the northwestern have FAMILYS.
I find your claim of the rusty hull interesting too considering before going back up to Alaska the Northwestern was seen being sandblasted and painted in Seattle…but even with good care saltwater causes corosion
Zealous F/V Northwestern fans:
I appreciate your enthusiasm and your stop by STARBOARDPORT. I tried to backtrack to your forum post that sent traffic my way, but the post was private.
It appears this blog post has been interpreted as an attack on the vessel and her crew. Well – I read through my “shit” writing, and my observations stand.
The guys were friendly, but in July 2007 the boat needed some work on her hold. For the sake of quality assurance, a processing plant monitors the state of the fleet’s fish holds. Hers had heavy corrosion and flaking paint. I don’t doubt it’s been cleaned up and redone by now.
In July 2007 they also missed an opening after a night out on the town. They aren’t the only ones to have ever done so, and they lived through the penalty. So it goes.
If you involve yourself with a TV project, you’re going to find yourself scrutinized. It’s the flip side of the fame coin.
And I think HBO would have been a better medium for the Deadliest Catch. Then we could have all seen a more well-rounded life at sea – seaman dialogue, lines of coke in the wheelhouse, sneaking around Fish and Game regulations, nights in the local jail with a broken nose. No, not all but some…even some of the ones with families.
Please notice that the photo is pre-paint job from year. So that photo is atleast 2 years old. As to the not showing up, EVERYONE is entitled to a day off.