The Countdown Begins

It is officially countdown time for me. March 1st was here and gone so quickly I missed it. It's that time of the year for most salmon fishermen to start readying their operations for the upcoming season. Nets have to be repaired, skiffs gone through, boats hauled, bottom painted, and every system checked at least 3 times. I start about the first of April, in Kodiak, and use a small little fishery most people outside of the State of Alaska have never heard of to get my boat and equipment tuned up before the tender season starts. Cod jigging. It gives me a chance to actually go fishing, but do it at a very slow pace. That way I can monitor all the systems and make any mods or repairs without losing a lot of time or money.

What's up at Ocean Beauty?

About a week ago the Feds served warrants at three of Ocean Beauty's plants. To date, no one has made the contents of the warrants public. Rumor has it the searches were about some seafood imports by OB. But here is the part I don't get. Three federal agencies were involved in serving the warrants; the FDA, Customs, and Immigration. What does Immigration have to do with the seafood business? Did someone stow away in a van or what? As soon as I find out I will post it.

The Pay Out / Rip Off

I know this blog is supposed to showcase Wild Alaskan Salmon, but this is worthy of a comment.
I finally received my Exxon Qualified Settlement Check. What a joke. After a 20 year war with Exxon and, at the end, our own attorneys I hold this check in my hand and shake my head with disgust. Allow me to make a comparison. I've had better days fishing. We probably should have hired some attorneys to keep an eye on our trial attorneys. They really skewered us on the Crawford Claims Fund offset. And adding more insult to injury, oil is still being found on the beaches and the damage done to people is ongoing.

Exxon Madness

I don't know how many fishermen are out there who have read about their Exxon Qualified Settlement Fund share in the Anchorage Daily News, but If you are as ticked off as I am, you can leave a comment or a question here. I sat on the joint control groups which set up the allocation and distribution matrix, so hopefully I have an answer if you have a question.