Fishing for crabs in the Bering Sea is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. Scott Kara meets some of the crazy men who risk it all to land the world's deadliest catch.
It's like a dingy, abandoned mental asylum down below deck on crab fishing boat Wizard. The engine room is especially unnerving, with a dead din, the dirt, and a strange smell, like a mix of fish guts, diesel and oil.
Up on the deck of this converted World War II navy supply ship there's an eerie emptiness to what, during crab season, would be a dangerous and action-packed arena.
Thankfully, Wizard is tied up in a lovely serene spot on Seattle harbour today. God knows what it's like when waves the size of buildings are blindsiding the boat as the crew haul the 300kg crab pots (and that's just what they weigh when they're empty) on deck in sub-zero temperatures.
"The scariest thing is doing the head count after a big wave has hit," says Wizard captain Keith Colburn, an earnest but likeable chap who is one of the stars of Discovery Channel show The Deadliest Catch.
Because of the conditions they face when fishing for sought-after Alaskan king crab and Opilio crab in the Bering Sea - a vast and hazardous stretch of water between Alaska and Russia - it is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. An average of 11 of the fleet's fishermen a year died at sea between 2003 and 2008. And it's not a matter of if you get injured, but when.
But for guys like Colburn, Captain Sig Hansen of the Northwestern, brothers Andy and Johnathan Hillstrand of Time Bandit, and the late Captain Phil Harris of Cornelia Marie, it's a way of life, an adventure and, although they may not call it this, it's an addiction.
"It's all I know," says 44-year-old Hansen, the hard-nosed Seattle native of Norwegian descent who has skippered the Northwestern for 20 years and comes from a fourth generation fishing family. "It's our responsibility to do it and you don't just leave your boat sitting at the dock."
Since Deadliest Catch has raised the profile of these borderline crazy men it's Hansen - one of the fleet's top earners, although he never lets on how much that actually is - whose become the pin-up boy for crab fishing.
"Who would have thought a bunch of crab fishermen would get all this attention? I'm getting women flashing boobies," he says.
Or, as Hansen's brother Edgar, the Deck Boss, puts it: "It's just a bunch of guys doing a job. But I guess it's just so interesting and it's crazy how the show's taken off."
The captains and their trusty and often rebellious deckhands' popularity is understandable, because these salty dogs are salt of the earth blokes, even if some of them are prone to rockstar-like bravado. In the off-season many of the captains are based in Seattle, and today, along with some of the deckhands and greenhorns (the new guys in the crew), they are gathered for CatchCon, a mecca for Deadliest Catch fans.
Since many of the crews are in town, there is also a memorial service for Captain Phil, who died after suffering a stroke during filming of the sixth season of Deadliest Catch, which started in New Zealand last week.
They have fond memories of Harris - one of those lovable and caring, yet gruff and no-bullshit type, blokes whose "Philisms" were legendary. Sayings like: "I feel like a one-legged man in an arse-kicking contest", or "now you know why lions eat their young," after his son Jake went out and bought an expensive TV.
All the captains have stories that start with "here's a story about Phil ...", or "Phil always used to say ...".
"Phil Harris was one of the best cigarette-smokers I've ever met," remembers Johnathan Hillstrand with a smile.
He was also a fan favourite and when the episode during which he died screened in the United States it was watched by more than 8.5 million viewers, making it the third-most-viewed broadcast in Discovery's 25-year history.
As for the other captains, they all have their own distinct quirks and personalities. Hansen is the big boss man type who walks around Seattle like he owns the place, constantly puffing on a cigarette.
Johnathan Hillstrand is a law unto himself. He rides a Harley, has had two wives (he blames the fishing), and was once invited to the grotto at the Playboy Mansion (he didn't go because he had to go fishing).
His brother Andy is the quieter, more thoughtful one, whose simple philosophy about being the captain is: "In a perfect world they [the deckhands] would know their role and shut their hole."
And Colburn is seemingly a little bit of an outsider who works hard and is also known for his quietly competitive nature.
The sixth series of the show started with the crews preparing for the season in the fishing port of Dutch Harbour, located in the Aleutian Islands, which are the spray of small islands off the mainland of Alaska that look like a crumbling peninsula.
Things got fiery the night before the fleet was due to depart when Colburn and Johnathan H. got into a bit of verbal and physical biffo. The latter accused Wizard's captain of trying to poach crew members - and, in so doing, broke an unwritten captain's code.
Don't even call my boat unless you're f****** sinking," was how Hillstrand left the argument.
That's the thing about this show. It's got drama, tension, adventure, and some of the best characters on TV. And that's even before they've left port. When they hit the high - and brutally cold - seas, that's when the real action starts and the stories start to unfold.
Today, though in Seattle, Colburn and Hillstrand give each other a hearty, back-slapping hug by way of making up.
"That's the problem, we're still trying to figure out why we hate each other," says Colburn.
"The fleet is so close," continues Hansen. "After a few years you get to know these guys so well and you get into the bars in town before we're ready to go out, there's so much adrenalin that sometimes egos come out, and one crew are fighting with another crew. But you can be on the floor in Dutch Harbour one night and the next day you're buddies again. That's just how it is."
Because when you're out in the Bering Sea, you depend on both your mates and your rivals to look out for you.
Get the captains in a room together and they'll tell you a few stories, but mostly they talk over each other, disagree, think they have a better story than the other, and inevitably tell bad fishing jokes.
"What's long and hard on a crab fisherman?" smirks Hillstrand in his barely distinguishable mumble. "Third grade."
Then there's the one about the ratio of men to women in Dutch Harbour. "The running joke in Dutch Harbour was that there was a beautiful woman behind every tree, and when I first got into town it ended up there were six trees," laughs Colburn.
One of the things they do take seriously is the ebb and flow of their catch from year to year.
"In my opinion," says Hansen, "there is no ecosystem because it's a natural resource, so all of these resources that we fish, every species that's out there, [is] a resource. So when they started fishing yellowfin sole the crab populations grew because they are a predator. Now that they've stopped fishing the sole, those populations have swollen. All of the sudden we've seen a decline in crab. So it's cyclical."
And there's universal agreement that the Bering Sea is not over-fished. "More like mismanaged," says Hansen dismissively.
"In some cases," continues Colburn, "there are fisheries that have been over fished but not the Bering Sea because our fisheries are completely dominated by the elements, and if we have really warm years we have huge runs of cod, and other predators, and if it's really cold those fish won't migrate and the crabs will have a lot bigger area to survive."
When asked what things the viewers don't see on the show they also agree. "What you're not seeing is the monotony of our life," says Hansen of the repetitive dropping and hauling-in of pots. And there are other back-breaking jobs too, like cracking ice off the boats, which, if left to gather, can cause them to capsize. Then there are the days on end with little or no sleep, not to mention avoiding getting taken out by a rogue wave or a stray pot.
"After being on deck, your hands are like a claw," says Hansen. "I swear to God, you open up your hands and they start cracking and bleeding."
It sure is a hell of a life. And you have to ask the question again: why do they do it?
The money is good, for starters. And it has to be said, king crab in Seattle is pricey - for two legs you pay US$68 ($96) at fancy pants restaurant El Gaucho - but it is delicious and worth every mouth-watering cent.
While it's a family affair for many, you get the feeling it's the challenge and adventure of being out there that's the appeal.
As Harris said: "I wouldn't trade it for anything."
The captains
Sig Hansen
Boat: Northwestern
A fourth-generation fisherman from Norwegian stock, he is one of the most successful captains in the fleet, revelling in the strategy and competition of crab fishing. Also a bit of a loudmouth and showman.
Johnathan Hillstrand
Boat: Time Bandit
Shares skippering duties with brother Andy. Johnathan does the Alaskan king crab season, starting in October. A hard nut, he runs a tight ship and is not afraid to say what he thinks.
Andy Hillstrand
Boat: Time Bandit
Takes over Time Bandit as skipper in January for the Opilio crab season. He's an unassuming type who, in the off season, trains horses at his ranch in Indiana.
Keith Colburn
Boat: Wizard
A highly competitive and astute captain, his converted World War II navy ship was not really made for crab fishing: "It's so big and heavy that we go through the waves instead of up and over." It seems to work.
Phil Harris (1956-2010)
Boat: Cornelia Marie
With 30 years as a crab fisherman, Harris was the much-loved salty dog of the fleet. He died in February after suffering a stroke. His sons Josh and Jake are also stars of Deadliest Catch.
Deadliest Catch screens Wednesdays at 8.30pm on Sky's Discovery Channel.
