Tag Archives: Bellingham
Gone processing – The price of progress?
As you read this, work is continuing in Bellingham, Wash., on a $40 million, federally financed, salmon-processing barge some think could revolutionize the Alaska fishing business. “Our refrigeration system freezes fish whole at temperatures colder than anyone in the industry, increasing both quality and shelf life,” says U.S. Department of Agriculture financed Northline Seafoods. “With a cargo storage capacity of over 14 million pounds of frozen product, our barge carries Bristol Bay salmon to Western Washington where it can be processed to our customers’ specifications in the fall, winter, and spring.” Northline CEO Ben Blakey has pitched the operation as a way to eliminate “large, shore-based processing facilities that are operated in brief, expensive seasonal periods. Salmon often spend multiple days in transit before being delivered to the processing facilities. High shipping costs outweigh the market value of salmon byproducts, and facilities may dump up to 30 percent of salmon weight back into the ocean ecosystem as waste.” more, >>click to read<< 20:51
Commercial Fisherman Peter Allen Zuanich of Anacortes, Washington has passed away
Peter Allen Zuanich was born September 3, 1946, in Bellingham, Washington. He passed away peacefully on November 24, 2023, in Oak Harbor, Washington, with his wife, Kimberly, by his side. Peter graduated from Bellingham High School and Central Washington University. Though he graduated with a degree in business, he ultimately followed in his father’s wake, working for many years as the owner and captain of commercial fishing vessels along the coasts of Alaska and California. A celebration of life will take place at 1pm on Sunday, Jan. 7, 2024, at The Boathouse in Zuanich Point Park. more, >>click to read<< 08:05
Bellingham’s shoreline history: A boom, bust of resource extraction
By 1890, the U.S. Census estimated approximately 18,500 people lived in Whatcom County. In the years that followed, additional lumber mills popped up. These included the Puget Sound Mill at the mouth of Padden Creek, the E.K. Wood Mill at Boulevard Park, and the Whatcom Falls Company (Loggie Mill) off Whatcom Creek. Pacific American Fisheries (PAF) first appeared in 1899 to process local salmon, eventually establishing the largest canning operation in the world. Both industries attracted large numbers of Asian immigrant workers, leading later to a significant shift in culture — along with significant racist worker backlash — in the region. The rich salmon runs also attracted canners and fishermen from Croatia, Finland and Ireland. Photos, >>click to read<< 09:20
Crew Connections to provide commercial fishing networking on March 18
Commercial fishing vessel captains and owners will be recruiting new crew members to help with the summer fishing season from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, March 18 at Bellingham Dockside Market. Those interested are encouraged to bring their resume and ask questions. Whatcom Working Waterfront Coalition and Foundation is hosting the networking event, Crew Connections, in partnership from the port of Bellingham and Bellingham Dockside Market. Crew Connections will take place at the Fishermen’s Pavilion, 2599 S. Harbor Loop Drive in Bellingham. >click to read< 12:55
Bookmonger: The world of working watercraft
Tom Crestodina is a Bellingham, Washington, artist who works seasonally as a fisherman in Alaska, and he is the perfect person to have produced a wonderful new book called “Working Boats.” While the book has been published by Little Bigfoot, the children’s imprint of Seattle-based Sasquatch Books, I’ll wager that children up to the age of 105 will find much to enjoy in these pages. The experience begins when you first crack open the book, and find endpapers that provide a visual primer in one of the essential skills sailors need to know — knot-tying. Simple but elegant visual diagrams illustrate how to tie a clove hitch, a cleat hitch, a bowline knot, a cat’s-paw and more. >click to read< 15:34
The Rise and Fall of Pacific American Fisheries: Fairhaven’s Historic Salmon Cannery
Before becoming part of Bellingham, Fairhaven grew up along railway lines. The town boomed with the region’s industries — fishing, lumber, and mining — into the 1870s, seeking the Northern Pacific Railway terminus. After the railway instead went to Tacoma, in 1873, multiple economic panics drove Fairhaven into a depression by the 1890s. However, Fairhaven soon found economic revitalization in what would become the largest salmon cannery in the world: Pacific American Fisheries. Whatcom County’s early settlers viewed the salmon crowding every stream as an almost inexhaustible resource. Fisheries would prepare salmon fresh, dried, salted, or smoked, but turned most into hog feed and fertilizer. Whatcom County had 11 large canneries by 1899, but many shuttered within years due to mismanagement. >click to read< 18:10
On the Puget Sound, the Women Whose Lives and Work Revolve Around Salmon
In the town of Bellingham, Washington, everyone knows when the salmon run come fall. Shimmery silvers and chum salmon break the chilly water’s surface with their heads, as they move through the Puget Sound and tributary rivers to their spawning grounds. Locals buzz, telling one another when they’ve seen them, admiring the fish on their journey. But for Ellie Kinley, this isn’t just a fall spectacle. She thinks about these fish 365 days a year. There’s a strong and sometimes overlooked community of fishing families here. The Lummi have the largest tribal fishing fleet in the nation, according to Kinley; the port is also home to fishing families, native and non-native alike, who use Bellingham as their home base between fishing trips to Alaska and California. Photos, >click to read< 17:44
Bellingham Washington selects seafood festival as its newest signature event
A committee has chosen what it hopes will be the city’s new signature event, and it’s about celebrating a longtime industry that continues to play a big role in the local economy. The festival will focus on showcasing Bellingham’s maritime and commercial fishing sector through plenty of different events, including fish filleting and oyster shucking contests, boat cruises, survivor suit races, children’s activities and cooking demonstrations. Read the rest here 18:00
