Q: How old were you when you first started working on the boat and how old were you when you took over as captain?

A: I was 14 when I fished salmon in the summer. After salmon season, I would jump on the Northwestern and participate in blue king crab fishing seasons. Or I would fish in Norway if I had a job there. As far as running the boat, I started at the age of 22 and I believe I was the youngest crab boat captain at that time. I never took it for granted. Looking back, I'd love to do it again.

Q: What is your greatest memory out at sea, and your worst?

A: I would chalk it up to having our greatest season. I think I was 28 years old at the time, and I think we fished two million pounds of opilio. Quite an accomplishment. Worst memory was when we had a deck hand, Brad Parker, who had been on the boat 19 years and he was injured, hit by a rogue wave. Luckily he came out of it OK, but it was a wake-up call that things can happen at any time with dangerous fishing. We were very close, so that made it that much harder to deal with.

Q: Why is the boat called the Northwestern?

A: Back in the seventies when the boat was built, there were so many built that there was a list of names for vessels. To be honest, the name was picked from a list. They were built so fast that the name wasn't as important as getting the boat out fishing.

Q: How much fuel do you use in an average king crab season?

A: The Northwestern can burn from 600 to 900 gallons a day. Depending on the length of the season, 10,000 to 30,000 gallons can be used easily.

Q: How much crab can fit in the holds, with water?

A: The Northwestern can pack around 220,000lbs of opilio.

Q: If a crab cage was full, how much crab would be in it?

A: We fish larger pots than most. We fish 7x8ft crab pots. When they're full (and it doesn't happen too often) you will have over 1000 opilio crab.

Q: How much do you think the biggest crab you have ever caught weighs?

A: I've seen over 20 pounders. There are different areas in Alaska that haven't been filmed yet where the king crab are actually larger because they have a larger gene pool. That would be out west on the chain toward Adak, for example. But for the most part, they're big enough for me.

Q: On average, what is the price per king crab caught?

A: If we're lucky enough to get close to $5 a pound, and a crab is averaging 8lb, that's $40 a crab.

Q: Are the crab fragile? The deckhands sometimes stand on them to get them in the tank.

A: For the most part, no, they're pretty resilient. You need to be careful with the nose on a crab so you don't break it off. If the nose is broken, the crab will bleed to death. And when one dies, the one next to it dies too, and it's a domino effect.

Q: What happens when you have filled your boat full of crab and you're at the end of your string (only a few pots left), do you pull the last pots and dump the extra crab overboard?

A: If the season is still open, we just let the pots sit. If we're racing for closure, we have to race through the pots and empty them. Timing is everything.

Q: How do you always catch the most crab?

A: We've been fortunate the last few years. One thing I've noticed is that if the fleet hear of a hot spot, they tend to huddle together and fish that area the next year. We've been sly in venturing in the opposite direction and finding crab elsewhere. I think a big advantage in doing that is even if there's less crab per pot, there are less pots to compete with. That makes your average better and you can fish in an area longer, hopefully having a better season in the end.

Q: What do you look for in an area that would make it a spot you would set pots?

A: I determine where I'm going to fish for the next year as soon as my season is finished. So in other words, I'm pre-planning my season from what I saw the season prior, and I think about it all year. There are scientific surveys that are done in the summertime. They help in deciding where you may like to start. But for the most part, it's your gut instinct and if you stick to it, seems to me you always come up a winner.

Q: How are the pots tied/chained down?

A: The pots are tied with two pot ties. About a 5/8ths tie, 2 to 3ft long just to hold them in position on deck. When you stack on top, you do the same. The chains are put on just to stabilise the stack so that it slows the movement down, because the pots do sway back and forth. It's an eerie feeling when you're up there.

Q: Before GPS and other electronic devices how did you find the pots?

A: Before GPS we used Loran-C. Before Loran-C, they used Loran-A. A lot of times, when you'd fish close to the beach, you'd use radar bearings. You take two points and find your strings in that manner. I had to do that myself, and it's not easy.

Q: How much money do you have tied up in computers and GPS on the Northwestern? How have things changed over the years?

A: Radars can go from $10,000 to $30,000. GPS and computers are in the thousands. I can't say off the top of my head overall. Things have changed for the better. The electronics are more detailed, and it's easier to run a boat. It also makes it easier when you have crew members on watch because it makes it easier for them to navigate.

Q: How does this season compare to past seasons in terms of the weather that you faced and the catch?

A: King crab had its ups and downs, but the weather was fairly decent for the most part. This winter for opilio was frigid cold. I think some of the footage you'll see later will show that. But fishing, as far as weather, is always up and down. You never know one day to the next.

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