2012 DeckHand Position?

[Abundance]

I am sorry that it didn't work out for you, Tom. You gave it your best. Its hard enough for an experienced local to get a spot on a boat, let alone a stranger, but I never would have expected people to be obnoxious to you. I guess that there are some real jerks around that I never associate with. Sorry I must have missed you in Wrangell, but I was in and out a lot. Did you see a black sailboat? I saw a bunch of ferries pass me. Anyway keep on trying, and you never know. You've made a few friends in the fishing community. That might pay off down the line. You opened up an experience that you will never forget, but that experience isn't over yet. Lone Eagle might have good thought. I don't know how far you are located from the various California fishing ports, but they are worth a shot. And keep in touch with people on this site. This place is probably your best tool for setting up a future job.

[fvsedna]

Tom~
I have been reading posts by yourself & others since you began your quest back In April.....I remember when I began traveling from Idaho 2-3 times a season back In the late 80's/ early 90's, longlining out of Seward & Homer. I recall Seattle airport(much smaller then)...being full of college aged kids to mid thirties on there way to unrealized adventure In Alaska commercial fisheries..many just as you did, without any certainty of work. I had the same pull to Alaska...My father Introduced me to commercial fishing on the ocean when I was a little "chummer".. I was worthless to Dad...I stood on a metal bucket so I could reach over the side to "chum" the fish for Dad.That was down south In America, now I own/operate my own troller out of Sitka. I had the same passion back In the 80s/90's as you do now.....Don't give up cuz' of one bad season, there will be another one next year.....Tom, you have grit & passion, two key elements of commercial fishing...I'll p.m. you my e-mail address... keep In touch, I know a couple of ol' crustys that need a hand once In awhile...maybe even a tender also...
Hope you find something down In America to wet your appetite..good luck..
Andrew~

[TomD]

lone eagle,
Thank you so much for the advice I appreciate it very much. I only live about an hour and a half from Bodega Bay and have bin there many of times and love the area I camp a lot at Dillons Beach which is just down the road . Most of my Ocean experience (the very little I have) has bin in Bodega bay, the smallest being a 14ft aluminum and largest being a 50ft we called the "Loose Rivit" lol Good times for sure ! Yea working in a Cannery would be cool, I would get to learn a lot and I am a worker so I would work the hours I could get . Yea learning everything about the industry you work in is always a good idea, getting to know the good and the bad helps at times. Again thank you very much for your words. And when I get back down to California I will look into heading over to the bay, I am not done with this Journey I am on !

[TomD]

Abundance,
As always nice to hear from you . Thank you very much. I did what I could do while I was there and its not over for me yet , I will get on a boat and catch some fish and get some experience in the commercial fishing area of fishing. I met plenty of locals who were doing the same thing as me and were having trouble getting on a boat who had what sounded like a ton of experience so its just one of those things I guess. I wish all the best for them. And yea I think I ran into a good portion of them lol I wont forget there faces and there attitudes that is for sure . I put my best foot forward everywhere I went and with everyone I talked to. Yea to bad it would have bin nice to stop and say hello to you , I was so in awe with every boat I looked at I could have its just not coming to me. I was staying in the Boat yard (In a shipping container) there for a little over a week I think like 10 days. Met some cool people in Wrangell, made friends with a couple of the guys who work on people's boats there . And met some friends I will be going back to see again ,nice little slow paced town, I liked it there. And experience I had , I learned a lot about this that and the other , I am not giving up and I am strong , healthy and have the willpower to keep pushing forward .Yea I think I will be looking into those places Lone mentioned there not far at all and I have bin to them from time to time in my years. This site and you group of fisherman/women are amazing. You have all bin so helpful and generous with information with me and I respect you all for it. Thank you. Another site I am on it wasn't but as soon as I was on my way home, I was a little late to my own hate rally by a few of the guys on there . But I just laughed it off, it means nothing to me when people want to throw out there negative attitudes to me I just move on and keep going forward. They are not in my shoes nor do they live my life, I live my life . I will be around for good and people will get to know/work with me when the time is right. There is a reason for everything that happens to us all , I truly believe that.
Thank you Garrett and look forward to meeting you in person someday.

[TomD]

fvsedna,
Thank you for your response. It was an experience I never thought I would get. Through all the crazy things that happened it is only adding to the man I have become and will continue to become. I enjoy the more ... how do I say, ruff and ready type work.Being outside working with my hands is something I enjoy. I enjoy doing things most never think of , and today not any of my friends,family or people I talk to would even think of doing half of what I just did or will do. It is only the beginning and I will continue to keep working on the things I want to do in life. I have many dreams and some of them will come true as some will not. I have patience and am persistent . I have a good attitude and have bin told I make for good company and someone good to work side by side.I am a people person who enjoys meeting people from all different backgrounds and ways of life. I give people respect and hope for the same in return . Some say bright eyed and bushy tailed, I say passionate. I thank you for your kind words and I will keep in touch for sure. Yea getting a chance to get out this season at least one time would be great ! I really want to get a feel for what I could be doing for many years to come !

Thank you very much
Tom Day Jr

[SilverT]

Tom stopped in on his way south and joined us for a couple of days on the water. My son made the comment that he caught on to running the gear faster than anyone we have had out to date and I must admit, I was comfortable with him on the gear by the end of the first day. I also noticed he caught on to reading the springs faster than anyone so far. He's a natural & with a lot of common sense and I suspect his visit did nothing to discourage the fishing affliction, based on the look on his face when he gaffed his first king. Good having you Tom.

Lane

[TomD]

WHAT A TRIP !!

So hanging off the back of a boat gaffing Salmon has to be one of the greatest things on this planet to do ! I was able to go out in Washington and troll for a few days ! Man was it awsome ! It really was an amazing place to be and experience . I don't think I could have had better weather then what we had , it was perfect. Took many a pics and got a lot of video and it came out great. I wish I could have done it more this season but there is still a chance here in California to get on some kind of fishing boat before the season is over. Thank you to everyone out there.

Lane,
I have nothing but amazing things to say about you and your family. Thank you very much. I learned so much and hope to have many more learning moments with you. Your a great man and I feel fortunate to have you apart of my life. I hope I caught on fast enough and kept up the work pace you wanted. I would fish with you any day of the week in any water. Miss you all. See you again friend.

Tom Day Jr

[joeman79]

Tom,
NEVER GIVE UP ON YOUR DREAM!!!!!!! I am heading north in 3 days for a month on the F/V Sidney the OLDDDD Boat you saw in Petersburg. We are going to try Chum Trolling and I am STOKED to get there. Someday I want to own my own Troller and Fish SE AK till I am to old to go anymore. Pushing 4 years of chasing my dream and I think about it every single day. By the sound of your short experience trolling it looks like you are a natural. I wish you the best and hope your dream comes true also. I will report and have pics when I get back. 3 More days!!!!!
Good Luck to all,
Joe

[TomD]

Joeman,

Thanks buddy for sure ! I had a great couple of months, and it is only the beginning of my Journey . In the end being able to go out on a boat and seeing what it was like to troll was such an awsome experience .I really enjoyed it beginning to end. I like the look of the F/V Sidney and it looked good to go and set up for fish. I am really happy to hear you get to go out this year ! When were out doing ANYTHING we enjoy it makes that moment in time something for the memory to grab a hold of,I now have a few forever.I have my rain gear in eye site and am sitting here waiting for it to rain in California so I can put it on haha! I will return to the water sooner then later!Your gonna have an amazing month and I can't wait to hear a few story's from you!

Good luck buddy travel safe and catch those fish !

[fanshawfan]

Hi Tom. Sorry to hear your summer didn't turn out like you hoped it would. Having grown up in Petersburg, here is my advice (probably worth what it costs! ) on how to approach this. It's usually not too difficult to get hired on at Icicle Seafoods. Once you have a job (any job) there, let your supervisor know you'd really like to be on the "beach crew" ( the guys who unload the boats), then work your butt off wherever you are and prove yourself. Most supervisors will try to help out a hard worker who is reliable. It may take a summer or two to get on the beach crew, but stick with it. Once you get on the beach crew, work your butt off again, and be friendly. Most Skippers watch at least some of the unloading of their boats; they notice hard workers. Whenever you get a chance to talk to a skipper, tell them your desire for a deckhand job, and ask if they know of any openings. This seems to work better than hitting them outright with a job request. If they eventually have or know of an opening, they will most likely know the beach crew boss, and it'll be easy for them to find you, and get a referral on your work ethic, through him or her. Advantage: you are right there and easy for them to find. Sometimes jobs open and need to be filled quickly. I have seen guys quit their beach crew job and they are headed out of town on a boat minutes later... maybe someone got hurt or quit unexpectedly. Another advantage: you're getting paid while you wait! It may be your first job on a boat will be filling in for a student headed back to college, and you only get the last two weeks of the season, but now you got your foot in the door. Seiners have the most crewmembers, so there's more opportunity there, but once again, you have your foot in the door. I expect this would also work at any of the processors in the other towns as well.

Best of Luck

[TomD]

Hey Fan

No need to apologize friend .I had a great experience and would not trade it for anything. I learned a lot about a lot of things and they will help me in life in the years to come. I will continue to try and get on boats wherever/whenever I can . Petersburg was a nice little town and probably would a bin a nice place to spend the summer fishing out of. I met a few people from that town and they were nice. Plus I have some Norwegian blood in me so it made it a little easy'r to fit in haha. Yea I think what I plan to do is apply early to work in a factory next year. Keep trying to get on a boat and if I can't I will still have a chance to get working at a plant. I would love to work outside on the docks, I think that would be a great place for me to be. I could learn a lot, meet a lot of people . But I wouldn't mind working inside to start out either.

Thank you very much for the advice, it means a lot .

Tom Jr

[TomD]

Hey everyone !

I hope you are all out there catching as many as you can ! I am home in California thinking about being out there in the water for sure ! I wanted to share a picture of one of the Salmon I helped catch this year out of Washington with Captain L and his boys . It was an amazing time and I had a blast ! When the captain called the day I wasn't ready to go in !

DSC05105.JPG (102.97 KiB) Viewed 1288 times

[Jackson Combs]

How's it going now, Tom?

[TomD]

Hey Jackson

Not to bad at all. Back at home in California now working. Spending time with the family and working on a few things to get me back out on the water! How's everything going with you these days?

[ratboy]

Did you ever find work?

What happened???

[TomD]

Hey Ratboy,

I was able to get on a Troller on my way back home to California on a boat in Washington . It was awsome !!!! I loved it ! There is a pic above of me and one of the fish we all aboard worked for . I am home back in California with a new job that will help me in my fishing journey ! Thank you for asking