In case there are some of you who haven't heard about Wayde's fishing trip with Hank Bryson, here it is:

FISHING WITH CAPTAIN HANK

I had the opportunity to go commercial fishing with Hank Bryson on his boat, Christy Belle. I had asked Hank last spring if I might accompany him on a fishing trip and he agreed to call me when the weather and fishing were better. On Sunday 7/15 Hank called and asked if I would be ready to go the next day. I said yes and made a few arrangements for the time I would be gone.

I met Hank at the boat slip on Port Dock 7 in Newport, Oregon near noon on Monday. We got underway before long and went to the South Beach Marina for fuel then to Trident Seafoods to get a ton and a half of chipped ice. Hank filled four boxes on deck and 5 bins in the hold. We had enough ice for 5 days or so depending on how many fish we caught. Hank lowered the outrigger poles and we headed under the Yaquina Bridge on our way west. We cleared the bar and set a westerly course on the Murano auto-pilot which is a very nice piece of navigation gear. Hank asked if I would watch the helm while he stowed gear and prepared the equipment to troll for salmon. I did not have much to do except watch for crab pot buoys and other boats of which we hit neither. I watched our progress on the Murano screen and ate half a sandwich. 3 hours later we stopped to fish near the north end of Stonewall Banks which is known locally as "the rock pile". The salmon trolling gear consisted of 2 steel wires on hydraulically driven reels. One had a 60# lead ball and the other a 50# ball. The lines were let down and a lured line was attached every 2 fathoms (12 feet). 4 lines were set on each wire which was also attached to the outrigger pole. The identical setup was on each side of the boat. I had the port side to tend and Hank had the starboard side. Hank showed me how to operate the hydraulic reels and told me the things to do and not to do. I remembered most of it. We used rubber hoochies and barbless hooks for lures and began trolling at 2 knots or so. We had 16 lures out to attract any salmon in the area. The lines are tended by standing in a small well at the back of the boat. We caught our first King Salmon before long. A nice fish. We also caught a few coho, ling cod, 1 small halibut and some yellow tail rock fish which all went back in the water. We fished till 9:00 pm and then brought up the gear and stowed it for the night. I believe we caught 16 kings that afternoon. I was pretty tired from trying to maintain my balance while managing the fishing gear. I got through the day without any major problems. Hank asked what I wanted for supper but I just opted for the other half of my lunch sandwich then went to bed. I slept in the bow on the starboard bunk and Hank made the table into a bunk in the cabin. Seas were pretty mild that night and I slept good except for hearing the vhf radio a few times.

Tuesday started about 6:00 am. Hank cooked us some bacon, eggs and toast. A good breakfast but I think when he is alone he mostly has cereal. With breakfast out of the way Hank checked our position and found we had not drifted much over a mile during the night. We each put out the salmon gear on our respective sides and began trolling for salmon. It was a long slow morning with only 1 king caught. Hank decided to pick up the salmon gear and head north to try for albacore tuna. We knew the area where some fish were from all the radio chatter. It was 5 hour trip. The tuna set-up was different from the salmon rigs. For tuna we set out 5 lines off each side of the boat and 1 line in the center. The lines were attached to the outrigger poles and had a hand line back to the tending station to pull the fishing line in to where you could grab it and pull in the tuna. The troll is fast at 6 knots and the lures are near surface. You can see the tuna when they get hooked. We were fishing with the stabilizers in the water which greatly reduced the roll of the boat. I still had a hard time keeping balanced and upright though. I often resembled a giant yellow ping pong ball as I caromed off various objects, Hank included, as the day wore on. We were catching tuna slow but steady and fished till near 7:00 pm. We pulled all the lines in, coiled the lines and strings and hung the lures in a fashion that should make it easy to put it all out the next day. We had 27 tuna on ice for the afternoon. I was a little concerned because my side of the boat did not look as neat and tidy as Hank's side. I did not want a huge tangled up mess in the morning when we went back in the water. We were back in the house near 9:00 pm. Hank asked if I wanted a hamburger but I was so tired I just ate a quick sandwich and went to bed. The water was a little rougher that night but I slept better and woke up less. A result of the days activities I am sure.

Wednesday started out again around 6:00 am. Hank fixed us bacon, eggs and toast. It seemed particularly good that morning. I was kind of dreading the trip to the back of the boat and putting the tuna array back in the water. I was pleasantly surprised when everything went back in without any serious tangles or problems. I was fishing before long at all. Hank pulled the stabilizers out of the water because many fishermen think they scare the fish. The boat rolled further and more sharply which increased my difficulty in trying to stay erect. We in tuna most of the time and pulled a few fish steadily. By noon we had boated 20 tuna but the sea was kicking up pretty good. The forecast 2 to 3 foot swells were more like 4 to 6 foot with wind waves to boot. I was having a very hard time staying on my feet and finally resorted to kneeling to pull the tuna lines in. I think near 1 or 2 in the afternoon Hank said ok, lets quit. I was exhausted and did not quibble with his decision. We had boated another 20 tuna that day. I took awhile to take down the tuna gear and get ready for travel. The plan was to go back to the "rock pile", spend the night and fish for salmon on Thursday morning. The weather was supposed to get better but we did not see much improvement. Hank said he did not care if we stayed out or went home and it was up to me. After some thought I said lets head in. I did not think the weather was going to improve all that much. We crossed the bar just before 10:00 pm and were tied up at the dock shortly. Barb came down and picked me up. My first commercial fishing trip was over. I greatly enjoyed the experience and learned a lot. I also gained more respect for the people who go to sea every day to make a living. Pretty hard work.

My final observation is that marine heads must be some form of punishment for past misdeeds. I won't elaborate on that one.

Wayde Dudley

July 23, 2007