trollings future
whiteraven
2009-08-21 05:06:54
Hi all. I came to Alaska in 1972 (I haven't left since)and one of the first jobs I had was on a seiner out of Sitka with a fella name of George Shwentese(sp). Any way I remember watching the trollers when they were near and I thought then that if I ever was to commercial fish trolling is the way I wanted to go. Well now I,m close to retirement and wondering if I could still do this but I,m not sure about the future of commercial fishing in general let alone trolling. So I'm looking for input from those of you who are in the game and have a better perspective about the future of the industry.Thanks. Salty?
yak2you2
2009-08-21 16:07:57
For now at least were still able to legally fish here in Alaska, more than what you can say for other places, hopefully that will last a while longer, it is great fun. Far as making a living at it..... well, hopefully you've got a good retirement.
whiteraven
2009-08-21 18:30:22
Thanks yak2you2. I'm not sure I follow about fishing still being "leagle". Is there some reason or situation where it might not be? I know I'm concerned about things like the closure on the Yukon and west coast to King fishing and possibly chums because of poor returns. I have heard that one reason for the poor returns is the trawlers out in the Bearing after polak(sp)catching salmon as a by-catch. Supposedly they are to throw live fish back and the rest to charity. I doubt that that happens. And who knows what is going on outside the 200 mi. limit.
yak2you2
2009-08-21 23:28:12
What I mean by legally is, as you say, it's not legal to fish in many other places along the west coast. Dams, disease, draggers, mismanagement, etc. etc. have caused much if not all of the shortages, but the fisherman always seem to be the ones to suffer the consequences in the end. In a perfect world, where fish are allowed to get to their spawning habitat, or have a habitat to go to, or grow up at sea without being indiscriminately killed along with all the other fish by the greed of big industry, trolling is a harmonious, time honored way to harvest a respectable product. Unfortunately we don't live in a perfect world.
For the most part the fleet as a whole isn't capable of making what you'd refer to as a living anymore. There are still some niches where some folks are still making some decent money, but over all the runs, and hence the quotas have been so severely scaled down that it just can't support the number of permits anymore,,,in my humble opinion. Then there's the price. I was talking to a fellow yesterday who recalls starting trolling in 1978. He said the price for cohos then was 1.60 per lb. Today were getting 1.25, and the dollar is worth about a 20 th of what it was then. Why the low price? We don't want to even go there. I highly recommend anyone who wants to take trolling seriously to take the extra effort to be capable of marketing their own product.
So, if a person wants to get out and enjoy mother nature, and maybe make a little side money, it's viable, but to take out a big bank note, or to try to feed your kids with it, is not advisable.
One can only hope that the numbers of returning fish don't continue to plummet to a point where were forced to have to face the types of closures that they have elsewhere. Maybe a person should hurry and jump in, might be the only chance you get to experience it before it's gone like the Buffalo.
yak2you2
2009-08-22 15:32:32
As I reread my previous post, I realize that it sounds a little gloomy, I don't mean for it to. There's good years and bad years, always has been, this year appears to be the latter. I imagine southeast Alaska will have good returns of cohos again in future years, overall the system is still healthy. Kings will be another story, given that we have transient fish passing through that are destined for rivers that are doomed to be endangered down the way. The treaty with Canada will continue to be a constant struggle over what kings there are, and I still don't see where anyone is being real yet about stopping the by-catch issues with the draggers out west.
I sure don't see trolling as a lifestyle going away entirely anytime soon though, to many diehard old salts in the business, that just won't fit in anywhere else.
The two main pieces of advice I would offer anyone new to the game are these; Join up with other organized groups of trollers where you can, namely the Alaska Trollers Assoc., to help fight for your rights as much as you possible. And secondly, I still advocate for marketing as much of your own fish as you can. If you petal your own fish direct to a restaurant somewhere, you make more money for less effort, and, it will make your need requirements on the stocks that much less, which will hopefully help allow them to recover.
whiteraven
2009-08-26 04:03:26
Thanks again yak2you2 that makes me feel some better. I am certain that I will go ahead with this. At present I am waiting for some property to sell. My plan is to own the whole show outright(boat,permit,etc.) Hope to greet you someday.
Salty
2009-08-26 17:57:04
Trolling is a great way to enjoy SE Alaska and catch some fish. Trolling is arguably the greenest salmon fishery. Buy a fuel efficient boat, keep it up, and try to get into the Zen of taking what comes. We have managed our salmon runs to rebuild and sustain them in SE Alaska and unless global warming and ocean acidification screws things up they should sustain trolling for the foreseeable future.
It is not a great way to make a lot of money over the long term. But, if you are persistent and have some talent for keeping things running and catching salmon then it should sustain itself. Good luck.
whiteraven
2009-08-27 04:40:26
Thanks Salty, I was hoping to hear from you. I am not interested in making a lot of money from fishing. Just being able to do something I want to do as opposed to have to do is what I'm after. I worked on seiners for a good # of yrs but never did get rich. I worked in gold mines to,made good money there but still didn't get rich. I like being on the water.I suppose that comes from being a Pisces. Thanks again. I hope to make your acquaintance one day also.
Ocean Harvester
2009-10-01 02:23:15
Like Yak says marketing your own fish will put some more money in your pocket. I would add that when you are looking at a boat, seriously consider one with a freezer. It's a lot of extra work in the end, but you will put out a great product and will be rewarded with a better price for your fish.
yak2you2
2009-10-01 20:18:12
I used to have a freezer on my boat....and if you stacked em' in there tight,,, she'd hold at least three frozen popsicles at the same time, but it finally died on me,,,,sure do miss those popsicles.
Sorry, my attempt at humor for the day. While freezers arn't possible for little day trippers like myself, they are probably the way to go for someone who desires to produce the best quality possible, and has boat enough for it. The rest of us have to focus on hitting the daily shipments to the fresh markets.
Another thing I've been following here lately is the huge successes that the guys who are branding their products are seeing. Some of the Yukon King and Chum guys are doing considerably better than the ex-vessel price, or even other self marketers, by way of labeling their fish as their own wild caught product. Sure seems like doing a little investing and homework over at Kinkos would pay in spades,,,,rather than sending your stuff out in a box marked SSS or something.