"In the last five or 10 years, changes in the fishing industry have been
dramatic," says Stan Watterson. He is president of a fishing association.
"Just to give you one example, a few years ago we used to see a few sea
lions along the coast, but it was a bit of an event. We'd say to the
other guys on the boat, 'Look over there, it's a sea lion.'
Today there are hundreds, thousands of them, feeding on the salmon that we
want to catch. For the salmon fishery, everything is up in the air."
Watterson is more upbeat about the future success of the Pacific fisheries
than many others in the industry. "I'm highly optimistic. But I've
always been a fisherman. I was practically born on a fishing boat. There are
no young people in the industry right now, and that's because of several
reasons."
Watterson believes the hefty price tag for purchasing a commercial fishing
license -- over $100,000 -- and the equally high price for a decent boat is
simply too much for a young person just starting out.
However, he does believe that there are opportunities and "maybe it'll
settle down in a few years."
Don Pepper has worked in many fisheries on both the East and West Coasts.
While he has a doctorate in fisheries economics, Pepper still goes out every
fishing season to catch salmon and herring on board the Prosperity, a six-man
boat.
"Eighty percent of professional fishermen come to the job through their
family -- their fathers and their grandfathers were fishermen. There aren't
any books about how to be a fisherman; the knowledge is passed down orally.
None of the fishermen I know went to school."
Pepper says there are courses on fishery-related subjects such as aquaculture,
a rapidly growing industry on both coasts. Other than that, if someone is
serious about working on a fishing boat, there is little they can do to prepare
themselves for the experience.
Bob Rezansoff is president of a fishing vessel owners association. He suggests
would-be fishers prepare for life on board a boat by taking mechanics and
electronics courses.
"You can't afford screw-ups in this job. It's a dangerous job.
You stand in the wrong place, you're dead."
Other than that, Rezansoff recommends those who want to become fishers
"pound the docks" and talk to skippers and crew. It might take a while to
find a place on a ship, but it could pay off.
And women are just as much a part of the commercial fishing industry as
men. They have been for a long time. "Men and women are equal when it comes
to hiring crewmembers," says Karen Fulton, editor of a fishing magazine. "Husbands
and wives go out on the same boat, as do sons and daughters. For years, whole
families have been going out."
Steward Murray is president of a fisher's association. He has been
a fisherman for over 46 years. His father was a fisher, starting in 1918,
as was his older brother. When his brother had an accident and could no longer
fish, Murray became a professional.
"To start with, I was just the third man on the boat -- the helper," he
says. "We fished for herring, mackerel, scallops and groundfish when the season
was open."
With the collapse of much of the East Coast fishery, fishing has become
a very tough way to make a living. The independence that so many fishers enjoyed
for generations has all but vanished -- just like the cod stocks.
"You're self-employed and want to make your own decisions," Murray
says. "But you have to [comply] with the [government]."
Murray is a staunch supporter of conservation measures designed to bring
back many of the commercial species. His own organization is even involved
in a scallop enhancement project. "If you don't have fish, you can't
be a fisherman," he says.
With over 52 years of fishing experience under his belt, Seattle's
Roger Davies has a million stories of life and work on the high seas. He went
after halibut and sablefish, traveling from the Gulf of Alaska and the Bering
Sea to Hecate Strait and south along the Washington coast. Davies isn't
very optimistic about the future state of the West Coast fisheries.
"There's not a lot of fish left in Washington waters," he says. "I
wouldn't recommend anyone become a fisherman today. There are only a
few boats and they own all the halibut quotas. When I was working, we worked
strictly on shares, with a share each per man and a share for the boat. It
was free enterprise with a vengeance."
If it's adventure you're after, suggests Davies, "go seining
or get a job on a factory trawler. It's nothing but brutal work and you
don't make very much money. But it's an adventure. And I'll
tell you, if fishing's not for you, you'll get out of it in a hurry!"
Davies does concede that if a young person is lucky enough to land a job
on a smaller fishing boat, it can still be a great life.
"You can still make very good money fishing, but the guy who owns the boat
makes most of the money. I never wanted to be married to a boat. It's
a year-round, steady job. After the fishing season, you have to clean it and
paint it and repair it. But it paid off, though. The owners were the only
ones who got their quotas -- they own the fish."