In Mixed Catch, NF Senior Editor Linc Bedrosian spotlights a wide range of commercial fishing-related news items from coast to coast.
Friday, 27 January 2012
Football players want to be selected for the NFL Pro Bowl because it brings them notoriety and money. But nobody really wants to actually play the game. Even the prospect of spending a week in Honolulu in late January isn't enough to entice star players to attend.
Here's the forecast for Honolulu for this weekend: Friday, sunny, 80 degrees; Saturday, sunny, 80 degrees; Sunday, sunny, 79 degrees. Ooh! Bundle up for the game on Sunday, boys.
Well, before Pro Bowlers decline their Hawaii invitations, they should consider what the folks in Alaska are enduring. A normal Alaska winter isn't for sissies. But this year, Old Man Winter is being especially punishing.
Consider the brief update I received Thursday from our North Pacific bureau chief, Charlie Ess.
"We have had well below zero as the norm here since the turn of the new year: today 17 below, yesterday 20 below, day before that, about 8 below," Charlie says. "In the outlying areas we've seen lows of 63 below in the village of Hughes and lots of 50-plus-below days on end in the areas around Kalskag and along the Yukon River."
It's no fun for fishermen out on the water, either. Imagine working under the physical and mental stress of constantly having to break up ice forming on the boats in such brutal conditions. Even boats at the docks are imperiled by the snow and ice that collect.
This week we learned that sea ice is forming unusually early in the Bering Sea, threatening Alaska's snow crab fishery. According the Anchorage Daily News, the cold temperatures and high winds are pushing the ice south at the rate of 10 to 15 miles a day towards prime crab grounds. Millions of dollars worth of already deployed crab pots could be jeopardized, and the ice could have a truly chilling economic impact upon crabbers and their families.
Earlier this week, the 58-foot Kimberly ran aground off the Alaska Peninsula. The Coast Guard was able to rescue all four crewmembers, but not before the crew endured a night aboard the vessel amidst high winds gusting up to 100 mph.
In closing, Pro Bowlers, I submit a photo Charlie sent me that demonstrates how brutal winter's been so far in his neck of the Alaska woods.
I suspect Charlie and plenty of Alaska fishermen will happily take any All-Pro's place in Honolulu.
Callifornia crabbing: Here's a fun video shot on the decks of the Majestik while catching Dungeness crab off the coast of northern California.
Over 500 lots of seafood processing equipment formerly owned by Adak Seafood will be sold at auction on Tuesday, June 18, starting at 10 a.m. Hawaiian-Aleutian Daylight Time at the Hilton Garden Inn in Anchorage Alaska.
The equipment is located in a recently updated 250,000 square foot state-of-the-art processing facility in Adak, Alaska. Farmington Hills, Mich.-based Hilco Industrial, which conducts 75 machinery and equipment auctions in a wide range of industries annually, will conduct the auction.
Adak Seafood opened originally as Ada Fisheries in Anchorage in 1986. The facility, updated in 2005, is located on the island of Adak, the southernmost city in Alaska near the western end of the Aleutian Islands. The facility processed cod primarily, as well as halibut, blackcod, crab and pollock, Hilco says.
Alaska fisherman and commercial fisheries activist Kevin Adams was elected chairman at the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute board of directors meeting on May 9 in Anchorage.
The governor-appointed board consists of seven members: five seafood processors and two industry representatives actively engaged in commercial fishing. Adams was appointed to fill a harvester seat by Gov. Frank Murkowski in 2004.
With 38 years of fishing experience in Bristol Bay, Adams has long been an active member in the Alaska fishing industry, ASMI says. He has worked for both the Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation and the Bering Sea Fisherman's Association, and represents Alaska fishermen on numerous boards.
National Fisherman has been the industry standard for over 50 years. Readers from coast to coast depend on it to stay up to date on news, regulations, fish stocks, to research purchasing decisions and to stay informed of the newest vessel and product technology.
