June 14, 2016: Austin arrived!

We've assigned crew to the different skiffs. David has Mighty Jeff, Matt, their Big Man, and Inku their ninja guy. My skiff has David D, our Big Man (he said he's been called lots of things in his life, but big isn't one of them), David L (who is evolving into Davey and who declared this morning that he would take one for the Ambi - we won't let him get into a position to do that), and Oksanna, the small but powerful crew member. Our crew took the night tide ourselves because I wouldn't be there for the day tide (going to pick up Austin), and neither would Matt (coming with me to get an Alaska DMV learner's permit).

So far, we've really been catching only enough salmon for dinner and for practice. I don't really mind a waterhaul, but I do understand that it can be discouraging for the rest of the crew.

It always takes a little bit to get our rhythm down at the beginning of the season. David's crew didn't bring the Bathtub in at all - they just came in and anchored in the New Kid. So when it was time for us to go out at 2 AM, we actually needed to go out at 1:45 AM to leave enough time to pull down the row boat so David D and I could paddle out to it. The tide was falling and we had a decent wind from the northwest, so we should have started farther down the beach toward Pedersen Point. As it was, we immediately headed south (literally) so by the time we were even with the skiff, we were dauntingly far south of it. Now it was time to paddle against the wind and the tide to reach the skiff. My arms were tired when we finally reached it. There is such a strong temptation to stop and rest, but that makes the problem worse because it gives the elements the opportunity to move us further from our goal, so we persevered. We made it and came in to pick up the rest of the crew.

After going through the nets, we transferred to the Bathtub and brought it in as far as we could. When the outboard started kicking up mud, we pull it up and jump out and push the skiff through the water as far as we can. Then, if we can, we keep pushing it over the slippery mud. I think we got it all the way to the sand... and then we set the anchor. That way, the next crew out can just walk to the skiff without having to use the row boat. When we were pushing the 'Tub through the last bits of remaining water, the mud was up to my knees. Oh my!

We came in and slept for a bit. Then Oksanna drove Matt and me to the Carry. (I didn't want to leave the people on the beach without a vehicle, especially if they thought this was be a good tide to see if the old and improved ranger could now manage the mud.) We drove the Carry to AGS (along the side of the road as if it were a four-wheeler) where we picked up the white truck with its new and improved alternator. We took the white truck into King Salmon where we would collect Austin and Phil's car. When Phil left yesterday, he parked his car in the 14 day lot even though he would be gone longer than 14 days. Our plan was that I would pick it up and take it somewhere good and safe, and then when it's time to go pick up Patrick, park it again in the 14 day parking spot where he will find it when he and Tom return.

We had two additional stops in King Salmon: the Bristol Bay Telephone Co-op to see if anyone has found David's phone and was using it (and if not, to replace it. We got a waterproof model by Cat. It makes an engine sound when it starts up); and the DMV where we found that Matt needed to have some proof of residency (such as a bank statement) as well as a proof of age (birth certificate or passport) to get a driver's license. After collecting Austin, we went over to Wells Fargo and he opened an account. Now he will practice driving on the beach and in town, and go get a license. We'll teach him to drive our manual transmission vehicles as well, but first, we'll just focus on operating the gas, brakes, and steering wheel. David N and David D have both pitched in giving Matt (who is becoming "Matty") a chance to practice driving. He'll be ready in no time!

Austin's plane came in while we were at the DMV, but it wasn't far away so we hurried over to collect him. His first job was to drive the white truck and with Matt as navigator while I drove Phil's car. Here he is, down here at the cabins.

One of my many favorite things about our crews is that we just aren't shy about bonding. So here are Austin and Davey, having just met. Yeah, don't take that expression on Austin's face wrong. He just has a special relationship with cameras.

Matt had some letters to mail so he was disappointed that we hadn't taken them to town with us. That means it's time for a field trip to Pedersen Point (PPT). Jeff led the crew down to explore its wonders and happily, Oksanna and her camera were along. PPT has appeared in several of the photos so far this year. They are the processor about a mile away. With them so close, we've tried several times to fish for them, but somehow, it has just never really worked out well. Our longest run was about 15 years ago and ended when we were fishing in the river, in the early 2000s. I think we lasted about 10 years. When I was little, we fished for Nelbro, which turned into AGS during the 80s or 90s. They became... extra chauvinistic toward the end of the 70's, so I switched over to Whitney Fidalgo. They were bought by Farwest and that relationship was good for all of us for many years. Then I think Ocean Beauty bought out Farwest for a season and then Trident bought Ocean Beauty out. I think we fished for Trident for one season before they decided that they didn't want to bother with setnet fish. They did forget to mention that before the season started - they just stopped sending their tender to take our fish. That was the late 80's, I think. So we went to Pedersen and made a deal. I think we spent most of the 90s fishing for them.

Each processor has to find a way to get the fish from the fishermen to the processing plant. For the setnetters, they send big old 2 1/2 ton army trucks (deuce and a halfs) to carry the fish, and giant Gehl forklifts to pull the bags of fish (brailer bags) out of the boats. Sometimes they'll send us a small tender - maybe a herring boat or maybe a seine boat. Then they use an onboard crane to pull the brailer bags out and empty them into the hold. For the drift fleet, they hire tenders to anchor in strategic locations so that the drifters can find them at the end of a fishing period to offload. Pederson - and other processors as well - often hire crab boats because this is their off season. Sometimes, they are crabbers made famous by the Deadliest Catch reality show. Here is the Maverick, serving as a tender for PPT.

PPT was built by Hungary Pedersen on a low spot on the bluff, out into the water. Growing up, we always called it Hungary's and you can still hear people talk about Hungary's Flats, the large expanse of mud flats seaward of the processing plant. Because the beach is state-owned, PPT was required to provide a way for the public to get from the beach on one side of their plant to the other. For years, people just drove up the ramp on one side of the dock and down the ramp on the other. Here are Jeff, Davey, Inku, Matt, and Oksanna (behind the camera) on the dock. Next stop is the office where they should find an outgoing mailbox. Matt also reported on the state of their bathrooms: advanced. They are one-seaters, complete with a sink in each little room. I kind of want to sneak over and try one out. There isn't much that I long for when I'm here, but being able to wash my hands in running water, and not having to share a bathroom with someone I don't know (or don't know well enough) who is flossing his teeth in his underwear would answer my wildest dreams.

PPT also built a road around their plant. Before the Beach Access Road, that used to be the high ground where we'd park our vehicles. It goes around the boat warehouses (where the wooden boats were stored), past the outdoors boatyard where the aluminum and fiberglass boats are stored, past the laundry and the messhall, past the fishermen's bunkhouses, past the winterman's home and the superintendent's home, past a graveyard and an airstrip and down the cliff to the other side of the plant. That other side of the plant is where there is some great clamming on the big negative tides. All along that road through PPT is... well, let's call it storage for disused items. It's sort of like the bottom drawer of the dresser or the back of the closet where you keep all the stuff you are not yet ready to dispose of, but whose value would not be readily apparent to a stranger. Here are the guys, walking down the road passing all that really cool and mostly really big, and probably pretty old stuff that they wish they could think of a use for.

This is kind of like shopping. There might be something really good in there. I think I can see part of a four wheeler, some rusty metal... all kinds of things that might get these fertile minds thinking, "maybe we could make a pathway of this and this and this to give the ranger more traction..." or whatever they were coming up with.

Now they are going by the boatyard. These boats are probably going to fish this year, but most of the boats haven't gone into the water yet. As soon as they do, the captain won't have a good night's sleep until they come out again. Even if they've tied up to the dock and the captain and crew are sleeping in the bunkhouse, someone could come pound on their door saying that they need to get out so all the boats attached to them need to close the gap when they leave. Or if there's a storm from the southeast, their boat might be battered against the dock or between bigger boats. Or it might just come loose and float away. When boats are tied up too tight, they can sink right at the dock, unable to rise and fall with the tide. If they're out on their anchor, they need to be aware of the possibility of dragging their anchor or (and this would be a disaster) a broken anchor line, or a bilge pump that gives out or a battery that dies. So many things the drift captains have to be aware of. We have to babysit our boats too, but they are way less complicated and way less interdependent with other boats.

Ah ha! Jeff did find something. The powerpack for the roller in the New Kid lost its muffler several seasons ago. We looked into replacing it but it was really expensive - something like $800. So they've been suffering along without it. Jeff, however, is always thinking. He found one!! Here it is. Just a little retrofitting. Once again, we are missing Roger!

Here is the view walking toward the cabins from PPT. It's about a mile away.

Striding toward home. It's about 7:30 pm in this photo. The shadows are beginning to lengthen but it is still about four hours to sunset.

They've made it back to the cabins and here is the promised sunset, about four hours later.

I think Oksanna just turned around and took this photo of Ollie watching the same sunset. There he is, not quite as big as a water jug.