Oh God, Part 1

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Below is Jessie our deckhand and Sam (sitting) our fellow fisherperson.

   Parasurfer as seen from beach below.

There is so much to tell about this day that will forever be known as “What the Halibut were we thinking when we booked this tour?”. Right now, we have sailed from Homer under beautiful sunny skies and since Kay and I are both laughing so hard now that I have been to the bathroom twice and she is now yelling at me to stop it appears that we have recovered unscathed from our harrowing experience. Her description will be from a different perspective than mine since she became ill and although I struggled to make it through without being ill, it was not an easy task. Kay’s account of the seas is funny but sadly very accurate. The seas were 10-12 ft with swells that towered over the boat that had to be 20-30 ft. It was so treacherous that no one should have been out on that deck let alone the 83 year old guy (Vern) who earlier was sitting next to me and had already fallen and broken his leg and hip in several places earlier this year. Once Kay got sick, it was a struggle in this small enclosed cabin with us dropping into the black hole every few seconds to try not to be sick myself. When we finally arrive at the fishing spot, poor Vern decides he has spent all this money and he wants to catch a fish so he goes out with Captain Bligh, Jessie our deckhand and Sam our fellow fisherperson who has now become a deckhand as well. Vern is out there just a few minutes and I am trying to get some photos which is not easy because every time I try to get up out of my seat I get tossed around violently but I look out just as Vern yak’s all over the deck but he has a fish on his line and isn’t about to let go so between Kay in the trash can to my left and Vern on the deck to my right, it would have been difficult for Spongebob to keep a calm stomach during this dilemma. I refused to take my life in my hands and go out there regardless that the fish were coming into the boat so fast it appeared we didn’t need bait and had we waited they would have fallen into the boat as they rode the waves over the boat. Within minutes, our limit was reached and we are being tossed so bad I am euphoric thinking we are going back in now but no……..their sister ship got their anchor line wrapped around one of their two engine props and they would not be able to get all the way back to Homer in time for us to get on the ship. So we go to the town of Seldovia and take on the passengers from the other boat who look as bad as Kay and Vern although at this point Kay is beginning to recover. We finally make it back to the dock and then to the ship with just minutes to spare. Deadliest Catch fans…the Time Bandit was not here and has only been seen once all summer by our little deckhand Jessie. Jonathan Hillstrand and the other guys he says are seen out and about town from time to time. We showered and ate on Lido tonight and are now going to bed. Poor Kay had the worst day but I am tired and feel all achy and exhausted too from being pounded by the sea. We shall hence forth have an even more profound respect for the power of the sea and for those that fish for a living here…. Please switch over and read Kay’s blog about today to read her funny story and she was able to get some really cool pictures when we got back too. I have some video that I will share when I get home so you can see for yourselves what a fun filled day this was. It is now almost 11 PM and the sun has just set. We went outside to look at the beautiful moon but it is biting cold and I’m so cold still from today’s experience that I need socks and gloves to warm up still. Tomorrow is a quick day. We arrive at 7 AM and leave at 1PM in Kodiak which is not a lot of time to do anything much so stay tuned for the adventures of Laurel and Hardy…

Our catch ready for fileting and freezing...