Fish for dinner? Oh yeah.

We have been enjoying some delicious fish for dinner. The leftovers from salmon end up in the next morning's quiche (big hit) or on a bed of lettuce for lunch. Otherwise, I have been trying new recipes when I can. Here is a strata with ham and asparagus I made the other day:

I think everyone enjoyed it, but it's not one of my favorites. I will keep trying the stratas because I can make them the night before and refrigerate overnight. Since I am not a morning person, this makes for more pleasant mornings for everyone. I have a recipe for salmon strata that I may try next.

The fishing is still slow and everyone is hoping it picks up and fast. We are headed to Slokum Arm last I heard. That is a good trek from here, about 15 hours through Peril Straight and Serguis Narrows. The tides rip through there at an alarming rate - as high as 9 knots sometimes. It's skinny and shallow so the timing is key. Jeff tells me we have to go through there at 04:00. It's going to be a long night. But we had a nice evening last night - enjoying dinner off of the boat with friends in Petersburg. Thank you Cindy for another fun night of badminton, giant bubbles, and good company around the fire pit.

Quick photo of Jeff and I out on deck recently. The days and nights blur together. We have no sense of the days of the week, only whether or not the seiners are fishing or not. And then we drive and wait, wait and drive.

Lastly, Bootsie is finally home from the Cozy Cat Lodge. Keysa rescued her the other day and it's good to know they are both home enjoying themselves. Look at these happy faces:

Thank you Keysa! You are such a good friend to us and we always want you to know how much we appreciate you and all you do. 

Our best to everyone. Will write again when I can.

Joanna

We are off!

Its been slow... Not much fishing going on. We have been tied to the dock for 4 days and finally heading out. We had time to make some repairs, visit with friends and get some sleep.

 Looks like our destination is Noyes island. I have never been there before. Here's Jeff, ready to go:

Met some people up here from Kailua! That was a surprise. Suns out. Beautiful day. We are off! 

Go suck fish....

We have been working for about 3 weeks and it's been an adventure. Still, things are going on at home and luckily we have a small army of people looking after the house and the cat, Bootsie. My brother John and his wife Alaura were on duty, when Bootsie had to be boarded at the Cozy Cat Lodge for a few weeks. After many conversations about  this new arrangement and reviewing the logistics of getting her there, I was lamenting at the fact that I didn't leave anything that smells like us to comfort her during her first trip away from home... My brother, in his succinct and witty way texted:

"Go suck fish. The cat is fine..."

I roared laughing. I called him up and we kept laughing. My cheeks were hurting I laughed so hard at how silly I was with angst over the cat. Thanks John, for being you and helping me laugh when I am too much "me." Now, my new "back to reality" catch phrase is "go suck fish." It works and I get back to work and try to remember to laugh more.

This is my current view. I love my job. Even when it's not going that great. Or, I'm tired. Or the men are excessively boyish and my patience is gone. Even with all of these factors - this is the best paid adventure ever and I get to enjoy it with my husband.

We are heading out of Valdez. Don't know where we are going next... and it doesn't even matter because it is time to go suck fish and the cat is fine.

Adios! 

Joanna

Go Go Go

We have been going non-stop. So far we have been to:

• Larson Bay, 
• Homer, 
• Seward and 
• Up into Prince William Sound. 

This was the sunset/sunrise on one of my wheel watches. We have had some glitches, but continue to work through any problems that come up. Boats are a ton of work to put it mildly. Weather has been beautiful and the scenery can't be beat.
Joanna

Cooking and more

It has been an uneventful start to the season. We are running freight right now. You know the big containers that go on trucks? We are putting them on the boat and running to and from Homer and Larson Bay which is on Kodiak Island. It's about 14 hours each way. We are running fresh catch that gets loaded on to a truck, then flown to market. Amazing to see how many industries, people and steps it takes to get the fresh catch on the chefs special.

The cooking is easier. The photo is of a chicken pot pie that the boys raved about. That was a definite repeat. It seems whenever I put something in a pie crust, it's a big hit. Made a quiche, the first of the season and they wolfed it down. Other hits - pulled pork, steak fajitas, fried rice, French toast made from croissants and a chicken veggie bake. 

I'm low on supplies now so it's hard to scratch anything together that requires fresh ingredients. I try and use lots of dark leafy greens and fresh produce when I can. Needless to say a big salad usually is met with disappointing looks and I have to make something else to go with it. But they love Keysa's guacamole recipe. When I can find avocados. 

Improving as a deckhand is a challenge. The hawser lines are heavy and unwieldy. When I throw the heaving line, I have a 50/50 chance of getting it where I want it to go. I must improve this statistic right away, not only because it's important but it's mortifying when it doesn't work.  Most of my body hurts. But this will pass the longer I am on the boat. I'm still a greenhorn but now I've been around enough to see my mistakes faster and hopefully fix it before the teasing begins. Yes Joanna, put the PLUG IN THE SKIFF before it's lowered it into the water. Ty and Jeff see my mistake in this particular instance and I hear all kinds of jabs as they raise the skiff back on deck, drain it, watch me put the plug in and now we are ready to launch - for real this time. What a greenhorn move. The teasing is all in good fun and I certainly had it coming. So compared to being a deckhand, the cooking is easy. 

Hopefully I can post some more videos and photos. If anyone wants the chicken pot pie recipe I will send it along. 

Aloha, 

Joanna

2014 season about to begin

One of my favorite parts of the beginning of a new season is the train ride from Anchorage to Seward. I love trains. And this ride cannot be beat. It is beautiful and breathtaking. Our last few moments before the work begins in ernest.

More updates later. 

Joanna

Perspective

Jeff is fishing out of Dutch Harbor for a few months, and I am home waiting for him to get back. I'm thinking about him virtually all the time, and it occurs to me how different our views are right now. What I am looking out over is so drastically different from what he is experiencing at work. As always, photos say it most clearly - here is my current view:

 The following picture is from last year's trawling season. Notice the partly cloudy skies and flat water.


This photo does NOT give an accurate picture of what they are out in right now.  From what I gather, it's cold, blowing hard and raining/snowing in choppy, 9-10 ft seas.

I watch the weather and the marine traffic. It's comforting to know where he is approximately and what the weather is like, again all approximations. He keeps me updated when he can, but communication is sporadic.  It's going to be a while before he gets home. Of course, I miss him like crazy.