Deep Sea Fishing with Uncle Kevin

At the end of Pratt Camp Ian and I went out with Uncle Kevin on his fishing boat, on the hunt for some tasty Codfish.  I ended up registering for a salt-water fishing permit ($1) which covers me within 5 miles of the shoreline or something like that, but Kevin said we'd be farther out that that.  We went out to the West Cod Ledge.
View West Cod Ledge, 2012 in a larger map

The Captain and his First Mate.

You should have heard Ian giggling the whole way out!

I don't normally see the Portland Head Light from this vantage point!  It was neat!

Ram Island Light.

Getting down to business.

Getting lessons.

Mild course-correction.  "Watch those buoys.  That's where our fish are."

Once we reached there, the heave of the water started to get to me.  I left the fishing up to the professionals.

Ian danced the line for the bottom-feeders.

Literally a minute later, he had a bite!

He did quite a bit of the reeling in, but found it a bit tiring.

Look at that little cod!  We're in the right place!

Kevin thought it a bit small, so we threw him back.  (Little did we know he'd be the only cod that morning, and the rest weren't good for eating.)

Yeah.  So.  Um, the reason the next picture is from heading back in is because I couldn't keep my wits about me, and I got a bit seasick.  Yeah, it's true, but next time I'm taking Dramamine!

Isn't she beautiful?

Ian said he didn't feel very well either.  I thought he was sleeping, but he promises he "just had his eyes closed".  Riiiight.

The calm of Casco Bay.

Our Captain had nav charts, a GPS, a fish-finder, the works.  Fun to be at sea!

Kevin, Ian, and cousin Troy (Terena's son).

Kevin, Ian, and Joe.

Swabbing the deck.

 The next round of adventure was going up to watch the tuna boat haul in its catch.  Amazing.  They were holding a tuna tournament, and were going strong.  We watched them weigh in two fish, 248 lb, 78", and 299, 81".  Amazing.  Those are going to bring some good $$$ to the fishermen at sushi prices!

Ian's classic adventurous look.

Fish #1 on the crane.

Isn't she a beauty?

I should have had Ian take his shirt off.

They only take the fish off the ice once they buyer has arrived, then they put it straight into the shipping truck, on ice.  If it's high quality, it'll go straight to the airport to fly to Japan.  If it's okay, it'll stay in the US and go to New York or stay locally.

After weighing, measuring, and gloating, the buyer cuts off the head/tail/fins to leave a nice chub of tuna to take away.  The fisherman kept the head and tail.  As prizes?  To scavenge a bit of meat?  I can only assume.  A small sample was taken for testing at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute.  Finding his cousins, no doubt.  Tough way to keep your genealogy.

Here's number two.  Note that when they pack it on ice, they  first cut out the organs and stuff the cavern with ice.  I guess that helps keep the fish fresher for longer.

The real crew.

The fake crew.  And yet, it was AMAZING to see such a huge fish, caught by rod and reel, and hauled into the boat BY HAND.  (To meet tournament spec, of course).  The state record for Bluefin is like 819 lb, and if anyone beats that record, they win the grand price of $50,000.  Otherwise, you settle for a paltry $6,250 and the price of the fish at like $30 a pound.