Commercial Fishing

Tom owns a 42' seiner (the F/V Dolly B) and he fishes for salmon in Lower Cook Inlet. It is hard work. At age 44 I started working for him and I've never worked harder in my life - and believe me, I know what hard work is.

What a life though! I made it through 2 full seasons, and now I only fill in when we have crew shortages. I do a lot of the dock work and help keep the boat clean. Dock work means that I pitch fish upon delivery and then clean the boat (2-3 times a week), buy groceries and have them waiting for the boat at delivery and any other tasks that the skipper wants.

In the fall we do any maintenance and then we dry dock the boat until spring. In the winter Tom mills lumber with his friend Mark and they build stuff. Mostly cabins and sheds. And rabbit hutches and feeder stands.