Daily Archives: January 23, 2025

Ottawa scraps elver fishery quota redistribution plan after backlash

The federal government is no longer moving forward with its plan to redistribute the wealth of Nova Scotia’s baby eel harvest from large licence holders to individual fishers after receiving backlash from the industry. A statement from Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier’s office said the minister reached the decision after listening to feedback from stakeholders in consultations held by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) in recent weeks. A subsequent letter from the DFO in December to fishers detailing the planned redistribution said the nine commercial licensees that dominate the fishery would lose between 60 per cent and 90 per cent of their quotas, without compensation from the federal government. Video, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 16:45

Big Mountain Royalty McKenna Peterson’s Double Life as a Commercial Fishing Boat Captain

McKenna Peterson has come a long way from her path as a professional ballerina in college. Since then, she’s called Utah, Seattle, Idaho, and Alaska home. She’s gained a reputation as a professional skier charging big mountain lines. She’s also Captain of the F/V Atlantis, spending her summers calling the shots on her family’s commercial fishing vessel in southeast Alaska. The best part is she does it all with an unassuming smirk on her face. I’ve seen it firsthand during a trip to Chile together. I’m a big fan of McKenna P., I’ll throw her name in the hat as one of the finest big mountain skiers to date. McKenna skis professionally for K2, Scott Sports, Xtratuf, KAVU, Ridge Merino. Let’s dig into all things McKenna in the interview below. Video, photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:30

Dive Team Confirms Identify of Fishing Vessel “Sudden Impact

South Addison – At approximately 11 p.m. Wednesday, the State Police/Marine Patrol Underwater Recovery Dive Team, assisted by local fishermen, took advantage of “slack water” and utilized a remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) equipped with sonar and a camera to confirm the identity of the sunken fishing vessel “Sudden Impact.” The vessel is located in 160 feet of water near Moose Cove in eastern Washington County between the towns for Cutler and Lubec in an area of strong tidal current activity. Using the ROV, crews were able to observe what is believed to be the body of an individual on board the vessel. Recovery was not possible as of last night. Chester Barrett and his son Aaron, fishermen from South Addison, have been missing since Saturday evening when the two failed to return as expected after transiting on board the “Sudden Impact” from Edmunds to South Addison. The Maine Marine Patrol will continue to work with family members of the Barretts to determine next steps, including consultation with deep water salvage and recovery experts to determine whether a recovery effort is feasible. Maine Department of Marine Resources. 12:09

Career Commercial Fisherman Terrance Lloyd “Terry” Kilbreath of Edmonds, WA. has passed away

Terrance Lloyd Kilbreath (“Terry”), loving husband, father, and grandfather, passed away on January 8, 2025, with his wife Janice, by his side. Terry was born July 31, 1943, in Vancouver, Canada, and grew up in Anacortes, Washington with his parents, Irvine and Kay Kilbreath, and sister Lynn (Collson). As an 18 year old teenager, Terry started working in the summers as a commercial fisherman in Alaska. He later purchased his own commercial fishing boat and had a long and successful 50 plus year career fishing for herring and salmon in Kodiak, Prince William Sound, and Sitka, Alaska. Terry loved his profession and retired at the age of 75. His last boat, the Ayakulik, means Red River, his favorite place to fish on the west side of Kodiak Island. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 11:16

50 years plus boat history: Islander BA 316

Launched by Alexander Noble and Sons of Girvan as yard number 58, Islesman SY 433 was built as a trawler with a Kelvin T6 180hp for Alexander McLean of Ness on the Isle of Lewis. She was financed through the Highlands and Islands Development Board (HIDB) grant scheme and was also used for training up crews for other new builds at the time. There had been another Islesman in Stornoway, registered SY 248, which had been built by Jones of Buckie as MFV 324 in 1945. This was converted for fishing in 1949 as Craigewan PD 416, and subsequently sold to Stornoway in 1961, when she was renamed Islesman. This was the first HIDB training boat in Lewis, skippered, I believe, by Jimmy Chisholm. That vessel was sold to Northern Ireland in 1964 and re-registered N 246. Photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:31

Ancich Dock project hits raw nerve: Is Gig Harbor a fishing town or yacht haven?

The dock’s future depends on the outcome of a Feb. 3 appeal before the state Shoreline Hearings Board. In the online-only proceeding, Jim Franich, a former city council member and neighbor to the project, will square off against the city, the Ancich Dock’s owner and their respective lawyers, challenging the city of Gig Harbor Hearing Examiner’s decision granting the project a Shoreline Substantial Development Permit. The flap over the Ancich Dock stirs more than the usual old vs. new development tensions locally. It touches a nerve wrapped around the city’s very identity: Is Gig Harbor a fishing village or a collection of upscale marinas? Is its iconic vessel a purse seiner or a luxury motor yacht? more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 08:22

‘Relief’ for some, ‘dark moment’ for others: Communities react to Trump’s offshore wind order

Amid a flurry of executive actions on his first day in office, President Donald Trump sought to put the brakes on offshore wind, halting the federal permitting of wind farms and wind-energy leasing of the Outer Continental Shelf. Members of New Bedford’s scallop fleet — a lucrative fishery that has made the city the top-value fishing port in the country — welcomed Trump’s order. “We finally have been listened to, by someone in an administration,” said Eric Hansen, who owns two New Bedford scallop vessels. “We’ve been fighting wind power for quite some time, and everything seems to be fast-tracked. Now they’re going to take a pause and really look at it.” more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 06:51