Every bracket of time presents experiences unique from the last.
This last and final trip on the pot processor Bountiful out of Dutch Harbor was
no different. Out of the last month and a half, I have been on land but two
short days, and am happy for this temporary respite until I give it one last
hard push before returning home for Christmas. As I said in my previous post,
this boat presented many challenges from all perspectives. Sampling was very
fast paced, paperwork was voluminous due to the continuity of fishing 24/7, and
as a result, sleep was very broken up. Conducting delicate specimen collections
and measurements when the boat was rocking heavily in rough weather was quite a
pain along with every other task, from going to the bathroom, to sitting still,
to finding a comfortable position in bed. When walking down the hallway to my
stateroom, it would go from a difficult uphill walk, where much leg strength
had to be applied to move forward, to steep downhill in which that same force
would have you flying ahead into the wall, and I frequently found myself
adhered to the wall like a starfish. But, amongst the struggle were many
positives.
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| The Endurance |
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| Ernest Shackleton |
During my time on the boat, I read a book called
Endurance, about a WWI era
British explorer named Ernest Shackleton and his crew who sailed to Antarctica
with the mission of being the first to cross the continent on foot. The
excursion did not turn out as planned, as their ship, the Endurance, became
hopelessly entrapped in the ice floes far from where they needed to be. It is a
great tale of mental and physical fortitude, in which unimaginable hardships
and discomforts were suffered and overcome for over a year until they made it
to a place of relief. This book was quite inspiring and when I would be having
difficulties, would just remember that “At least I’m better off than
Shackleton”, and that was at least some consolation.
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| Dutch Harbor from the dock |
Boat life is full of ups and downs and many interesting moments. There is
always a big social and antisocial component. While I had a strong working
relationship with the crew members to gather my samples, working them and doing
the measurements/specimen collection etc in my observer shack was a very
isolating process, and made me realize how weird I am given the opportunity. We
have to play to stay sane. My version was (and sleep deprivation may have had a
very strong part to play in this) I would sing the numbers as I would write
them on my deck sheets, and talking to myself was common. This would make the
time go by faster. The crew members were very similar, and humor was a big part
of our relationship, cracking retarded jokes back and forth all night. But the
biggest stress relief for me was that the captain of the vessel had an electric
guitar that he kept in the wheelhouse. He was trying to learn, and I having
played guitar for many years was happy to help him learn, and in return was
allowed to play whenever I liked (which of course was not very often due to
working). Having not played in some time, the pleasure gained from playing the
instrument was immense.
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Opilio/Bairdi Tanner Hybrid
(more Opilio) |
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| Perfect micro-environment |
There were other isolated moments that were either significant or humorous, or
interesting. Like when I am trying to determine whether a Tanner Crab is a
Bairdi or Opilio by closely looking at the mouth area (epistome) and am quickly
reminded that his arms (with powerful claws on the end) are longer than they
look and he is unhappy that I am handling him, as he takes a quick swipe at my
face. Or when this little clam came up in my sample that had a tiny family of
baby seastars and a scallop living in it. Really makes me appreciate the small
things. Or when I was sampling and the rain turned to hail- I won’t forget the
sounds of the ice shards hitting the deck and the sorting table. Or when I
laughed at the Tanner Crab that in an effort to pinch me, pinched himself very
hard and took a moment to realize that it was himself, not I, that was in his
powerful grasp. Or how the favorite pastime among crew members was watching
Ancient Aliens and frequently talking about various conspiracy theories as if
they were anything more than that. As will all boats I suspect, it was quite an
unforgettable experience indeed. So long to the Bering for now.
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| Sunset on the Bering |
