The Aleutian Ballard, a vessel etched into the industry memory after nearly capsizing on national television, has found a new role far from the Bering Sea fishery that made it famous.
The boat was featured in season 2 of Deadliest Catch when a reported 60-foot rogue wave struck its port side, is now operating as a hands-on tourism platform in Ketchikan, according to reporting from K5 News.
Under the direction of Captain David Kethin, the vessel runs the Bering Sea Crab Fisherman’s Tour, offering visitors, many arriving by cruise ship, a curated look at commercial fishing operations. The experience includes hauling shrimp and crab ports, longline gear demonstrations and handling live catch directly from the gear.
Lethin told K5 that the vessel’s survival only adds to its draw. “So many stories about why this boat should not be here today,” he said “I honestly think it’s a blessing that the Aleutian Ballad survived all that it did, including the wave on Season Two of ‘Deadliest Catch.’”
While the operation is tailored for tourism, the crew is made up of working fishermen, giving passengers a version of the real thing, without the weather, risk or economic pressure that define the commercial side of the industry.
One of the tour’s most distinctive elements is its wildlife interaction. With approval from the local Tsimshian Tribe, crew members feed fish to bald eagles, drawing dozens of birds within feet of the vessel.
"How do you describe 40 to 50 bald eagles dive-bombing your boat six feet off the top of your head to grab fish and water?" Lethin said. "You cannot describe it. I've done this tour thousands of times, and every single day I'm blown away at what we get to offer guests.”
Tour has become a fixture in Ketchikan’s cruise-driven economy, offering something Lethin says goes beyond a typical shore excursion. "And that's the joy we get here, where you can't even put that in a bottle and sell it,” he said.
For an industry often defined by consolidation, regulation, and shifting markets, and Aleutian Ballard’s second act highlights a different kind of adaptation, one where a former working crabber now helps translate the realities and mythology of the trade to the public.
