Went up to Craig with some friends last week for an adventure on a rebuilt 1916 tugboat that a client and good friend of ours has been rebuilding over the last several years.....it took them 6 long days to power up there from Poulsbo, and they pulled it off just in time for us to arrive. Pretty cool old girl really, 65-feet, 9-ft below water line, and handled the rough water much better than I had anticipated:
M/V AMAK
They towed up a 17-ft Arima and a 10-ft hardbottom inflatable for skiffs
We did our own cooking in the AMAK's new galley, which is outfitted with copper ceilings
One of the guys even dragged along a prime rib that we BBQ'd on the poop deck one afternoon
The fishing was good when we didn't get blown off. The second morning I was on deck at 4 AM and the whole boat was still asleep....but after re-baiting a hali rod with a salmon belly I hooked a 40-lb halibut, which is not really noteworthy except I had to get help gaffing it and hauling it aboard......my buddy Joe flew out of his bunk and in his underwear and socks gaffed that sucker and yanked it on deck, where it proceeded to to the haliboot shake and shudder and woke up the entire boat
The kings were around, all high teeners, no pigs but all good eaters
And the humpbacks were thick! Bastards kept trying to cut me off! Apparently they were chasing the same bait balls we were
We ended up bringing home 100 lbs of fish, not too bad given the weather we had and the DIY aspect of fishing up there....those bait-robbing seabass are sure a pain in the azz if you are in the wrong place at the wrong time! We had a blast, and I hope to be able to get back up to Paradise soon.
Ran into STAM on the way up in Hollis, and Addicted on the way back in the KTN airport bar...... apparently the summer migration of the fishy doods is underway
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