aelous unleashed

5/31/09

I haven’t written a word for the past 2 weeks. And the previous entries were exceedingly brief considering I could have filled many pages describing my wonderful experiences. I almost feel guilty for not writing more about this significant time in my  life, but at the same time I think it is good I don’t  feel bound to.  I am undergoing a great deal of personal growth and change during this period, and though at times I regret that many of my thoughts and experiences have gone unrecorded, I feel that even if a profound thought here or a magical experience there might be forgotten,  they can never be lost-they become part of me, or I become them. Everything that is happening to me is playing a part in shaping me. My various moods, attitudes, sights, smells(mainly fish), feelings, memories, books I am reading, dreams, interactions with my co-inhabitants and all the animals and sea creatures out here, and my contact in general to all the life surrounding me-this is my reality. And my reality is so far removed from that of the rest of the world that I don’t think it is possible to fully describe it. I find myself at the end of another day on the Shadowfax, and though I will now try and describe the happenings of today, I will never truly be able to convey the wonder that enraptured my soul. We have been fishing in a place called Port Moller for the last 3 days on the west side of the Alaskan Peninsula. There have been unbelievable amounts of fish here. Jamie has fished these waters for 30 years and has never seen this many thousands of tons of herring here. In the last 3 days, together with our partner boat the “Valkyrie” we have caught around 1500 tons of herring. Needless to say it has been pretty constant work. I pulled my first 24 hour day of the season(or at least close enough). I had been on wheelwatch since 2 am, fished that entire next day and got to bed around midnight, only to get up early the next morning to grind away. I even got chewed out because I was moving a little slower, which goes to show feeling sorry for yourself doesn’t get you anywhere in that kind of situation because no one else has any pity.  It is easier to write about it then to experience it though. It is a test of character as dad would say, and the moments I found myself wallowing in self-pity were the worst. Nobody cares, every one is tired, and it’s what we do. We are fishermen. It’s our livelihood. There is no room for complaining. Jamie’s favorite quote comes out of the movie ‘Master and Commander’ when Russell Crowe says, “quick’s the word and chop’s the action!” Anyways, today was pretty neat. This morning there was a full rainbow out for at least half an hour. What was strange was that there was neither a splash of sunlight nor a patch of blue sky anywhere. It was as if an artist had painted these beautiful colors onto a canvas that was the grey clouds swallowing the horizon, producing an almost artificial effect. The contrast was miraculous. We began fishing, yet it was a very frustrating day in that aspect. The weather was not cooperating, and it was far to windy for our spotter pilot to fly.  We had to look for fish with our sonar. And by the time we finally wrapped up a school of 200 plus tons, it was blowing a solid 50 knots out(60 or so mph). Hooking up to the tender was a nightmare. The net was heavy, the swell was heavy, the winds were heavy, the ability of the knuckledragging tender crew was heavy, and Jamie’s stress level was heavy. The boats were groaning, metal boat hooks were broken, lines were snapping(including their heavy duty tie up line to the stern), Jamie’s new tophouse was almost destroyed, and the incompetent tender drove over the net and ripped it out. We lost the entire set, and now the mood was heavy. But not for me. I was absolutely enthralled by this wind. Eric, skipper of our partner boat, tried a set and was successful, as was his encounter of hooking up to the tender. Mike and I assisted him by towing the bow of the tender away from the side of the Valkyrie to prevent  him from getting smashed by the tender with each swell as it pulled along side. It was a thrill to be in that skiff, pulling full throttle into the heavy chop with whitecaps spraying over the bow, the wind howling away all the while. Later, as we were traveling down the coast looking for a haven to anchor, we came across hundreds of walruses lounging on a beach. They were wallowing about on top of each other, whilst a few frolicked in the water. It is amazing how their clumsiness on land disappears the moment they touch the water. Driving further down the coast, we came across the carcass of a beached whale. There were 3 huge golden bears on scene, and as our boat approached they proceeded to scramble up the steep beach bluffs in flight. One of them made it while the other two were distraughtly trapped halfway up a perilous section. I felt bad for them, hoped they would make it down alright, and apologized inwardly for interrupting their dinner. We finished out our day by mending the net on the back deck to weirdly shaped cloud formations and blustery wind. An overwhelming wave of refreshment flooded my soul. I am so happy to be out on this boat. I am so happy to be a fisherman for the time being, even if it is not my life’s calling. I am so happy to be away from the problems of the world.