Have you ever thought about going up to Alaska some summer to work on a boat and try to make a bundle as a commercial fisherman? Graduate student Ivan Kuletz has done it for the last seven seasons and today he gives us a vivid look at what the job is really like. Curious about how much it resembles the show “Deadliest Catch”? Skip down to question #11. And duck.
I was born in south-central Alaska in 1985, and recently I’ve been living in Oregon with my wife for about four years. I have worked as a commercial fishing deckhand in the Bristol Bay Sockeye Salmon fishery (off the coast of Alaska) for seven seasons. Bristol Bay is unique in that it is by far the single largest source of wild-caught salmon in the world, and it is also consistently ranked as one of the best-managed fisheries in the world.
Two things before proceeding: 1) I’ve only worked as a deckhand in this one fishery, so I can only speak authoritatively about that specific experience. 2) I will use masculine pronouns for ease of writing, but understand that there are fisherwomen out on the boats as well and they’re just as capable as any fisherman.
I was born in south-central Alaska in 1985, and recently I’ve been living in Oregon with my wife for about four years. I have worked as a commercial fishing deckhand in the Bristol Bay Sockeye Salmon fishery (off the coast of Alaska) for seven seasons. Bristol Bay is unique in that it is by far the single largest source of wild-caught salmon in the world, and it is also consistently ranked as one of the best-managed fisheries in the world.
Two things before proceeding: 1) I’ve only worked as a deckhand in this one fishery, so I can only speak authoritatively about that specific experience. 2) I will use masculine pronouns for ease of writing, but understand that there are fisherwomen out on the boats as well and they’re just as capable as any fisherman.