Tag Archives: a Lifetime at Sea
A lifetime at sea
Retired skippers John Arthur Irvine and Willie Williamson have more than 100 years of fishing between them. Both played a key roll in progressing Whalsay’s pelagic fishing industry to what it is today. Here they share some of their stories with Cloe Irvine. They worked close to shore and learning from the older hands of how to navigate using fishing ‘meids’ was essential. When the first Decca navigators came in they helped a bit but they were a far cry from the satellite navigation that is the standard today. Recalling those early fishing trips to John Arthur, now 77 years old, said it had been vital to take on board the lessons that the older generation had passed on. “We didn’t even have a radar when we first went to Aberdeen, with stacked mist half of the time. >click to read< 08:11
Stanley Larsen – By Birth and by Choice, a Lifetime at Sea
At 4:30 a.m. Menemsha Harbor is glassy and the only sounds are the hum of Menemsha Fish House’s vibrating refrigerators and the early-morning summer bird opera. The Little Lady slices through the flat water, heading out for a morning of dragging. Stanley Larsen in his boat Four Kids is not far behind. He just has to sort out a few things with the engine first.,,, It’s a late start. Stanley usually likes to get going at around 3:30 a.m. “Then I can go further offshore and do longer drags,” he explains adjusting his baseball cap. “I like a two-hour drag. Closer, I can only do 20 or 30 minutes and then I’m in the mud.” >click to read< 19:50
