Landing a job on a Commercial Boat

[adanac]

Looking for a change in pace and have always wanted to get myself into commie fishing while I am still in my early twenties. Problem is I have no clue where to start ? Who do I contact to get my name put there , where do I apply ect. I am quite knowledgable in most fisheries off our coast and I am also a licenced Emergency Medical Responder.

Adanac

 

[SophiaB]

If I was looking for a job on a commie boat, id walk down to the dock and talk to them.

 

[hambone]

May-June is prawn season, and tuna season follows that... Craigslist, going down to the dock and talking to people. There's usually a super high turnover in deckhands so you'll see ads come up throughout the summer lol

 

[captmike]

There are not many good jobs left in the whole industry,partly because of leasing of quota and the monopoly of Cdn Fish. Not much left for a deckhand. From where you are walk the docks leaving a card when the boats are getting ready for their season: herring-mid-end Feb,prawn-mid-end Apr,halibut-march,tuna-june,salmon-mid June,early July,draggers-year round. Volunteer to help at the dock or make a trip. Take a navigation course (the whole crew navigates). Check Steveston,false creek,Ladner,N shore. Good luck-it's a great life style if you find a good boat.

 

[spring time]

go to canfisco office and ask put your name out

 

[adanac]

Awesome thank you for the feedback guys.

 

[trophywife]

phone jimmy

 

[Jwolfe]

Some words of advise don't commercial fish, every one I know that has bin doing it for years has quit and has looked to alberta for work .I would do the same thing

 

[trophywife]

maybe he is just looking for the experience and not the all mighty... if so ,, enjoy!!

 

[adanac]

maybe he is just looking for the experience and not the all mighty... if so ,, enjoy!!

Hit the nail on the head with that post! Just want to experience it while I still can

 

[FishWhisperer]

Hit the nail on the head with that post! Just want to experience it while I still can

Let us know how that goes...
I must add, right now is the worst time to start fishing because it is winter out there now. The weather will get much, much worse before it gets better. Having stated that, most commies will be sitting on the anchor or tied up waiting for the weather to clear, more often than not during the winter. You have to pick your "windows".
If getting your butt kicked in rough seas and being brittle cold and wet interests you, then go for it. You have the whole winter ahead... I'd wait until early spring when most boats are gearing up if I were you. You'll only find some trawlers and a handful of long liners that fish thru the winter.

 

[Old Blue]

Some words of advise don't commercial fish, every one I know that has bin doing it for years has quit and has looked to alberta for work .I would do the same thing

Scanner-tech for life eh buddy!!
Jwolfe does have some good advise, you could work 6-7 months a year at a high paying job that pays for your travel and you could enjoy your time off at home go out fishing on your own boat. Just don't even think about working on the rigs, plenty of other options out there.

 

[Chovy1]

Let us know how that goes...
I must add, right now is the worst time to start fishing because it is winter out there now. The weather will get much, much worse before it gets better. Having stated that, most commies will be sitting on the anchor or tied up waiting for the weather to clear, more often than not during the winter. You have to pick your "windows".
If getting your butt kicked in rough seas and being brittle cold and wet interests you, then go for it. You have the whole winter ahead... I'd wait until early spring when most boats are gearing up if I were you. You'll only find some trawlers and a handful of long liners that fish thru the winter.

Yeah i agree with Fishwhisperer, not the best time to jump on as a deckhand due to the weather. But there are still lots of Draggers out there working, if packing fish in a blast freezer is your thing. If i was you, I'd try to get on a black cod trap boat. Very tough work as the traps weigh upwards of 70lbs when full of fish, but the money can be quite decent depending on the market.

 

[FishWhisperer]

Yeah i agree with Fishwhisperer, not the best time to jump on as a deckhand due to the weather. But there are still lots of Draggers out there working, if packing fish in a blast freezer is your thing. If i was you, I'd try to get on a black cod trap boat. Very tough work as the traps weigh upwards of 70lbs when full of fish, but the money can be quite decent depending on the market.

lol, I see you've been a draggin hey chovy1? Yup, mending web (bottom trawl) and stacking fish. Haul-backs in a following sea, doors crashing, hydraulics screaming, guys yelling, fish flopping, waves combing over the rail... AARRRRRRRGH Billy!! Miss that ***** sometimes, lol.
On another note, I'm not sure if there are many boats fishing Black Cod anymore. I think most of the quotas on the West Coast are stacked up on only a handful of boats. I'm pretty sure most have day-raters working the deck and traps with only a few guys or so dragging down full shares - Engineer/Mate, Deck Boss, Skipper will drag down a share and a half himself. I think they're getting over $6 lb for IQF at sea. They pay about $4 lb just for the quota, then the boat takes 50% off the top, a % for gear deterioration, then fuel, grub and bait. Not much left for the slaves...

 

[Dennis.t]

My bro worked on a commercial troller for a couple of seasons. It was one of those "life experiences", that we all need to have, so we can really live our lives to the fullest. He said it was long hours, rough seas, with little sleep, but some of the places he got to see was spectacular...

 

[onefish]

As an ex commie ( close to 30 yrs) I would walk the docks and have some idea of what type of commie experience you are looking for. Trolling for Salmon and Tuna in the summer is quite different from working in the dead of winter on a dragger. Many of the fisheries are ITQ in which the deckhands end up with very small pay cheques after all the expenses are taken off. Is the boat a "good" boat. Clean, well equipped and suitably rigged for the weather it can be expected to encounter. Is the captain a raging lunatic, or is he a guy that you can work with. Don't be fooled by what a guy seems like at the dock because there can be a real Jekyll and Hyde effect once the lines are cast off the dock. Do your homework and find out what kind of reputation the captain has as far as a fisherman ( can he catch ) and is he a decent guy to work for. Also try to find out what you can about the boat, most importantly is it a good sea boat that will get you home safely. Commercial fishing is hard work but can be very rewarding if you are in the right fishery on the right boat.
The hardest work for me was shaking herring without any hydraulics, trolling for pink salmon was a close second. The most lucrative was trolling for sockeye. The most fun was trolling for tuna ( this is almost like sport fishing).
If you do go out on a troller go on a freezer boat not an ice boat. I repeat, go out on a freezer boat NOT an ice boat. You should be able to get a job in the spring on a boat going up to the charlottes. Try to get on a boat that is going to fish salmon on the front end of the season and tuna from the middle of August on. Make sure to have top notch boots and rain gear. Good luck

 

[Dennis.t]

As an ex commie ( close to 30 yrs) I would walk the docks and have some idea of what type of commie experience are you looking for. Trolling for Salmon and Tuna in the summer is quite different from working in the dead of winter on a dragger. Many of the fisheries are ITQ in which the deckhands end up with very small pay cheques after all the expenses are taken off. Is the boat a "good" boat. Clean, well equipped and suitably rigged for the weather it can be expected to encounter. Is the captain a raging lunatic or is he a guy that you can work with. Don't be fooled by what a guy seems like at the dock because there can be a real Jekyll and Hyde effect once the lines are cast off the dock. Do your homework and find out what kind of reputation the captain has as far as a fisherman ( can he catch ) and is he a decent guy to work for. Also try to find out what you can about the boat most importantly is it a good sea boat that will get you home safely. Commercial fishing is hard work but can be very rewarding if you are in the right fishery on the right boat.
The hardest work for me was shaking herring without any hydraulics with trolling for pink salmon a close second. The most lucrative was trolling for sockeye. The most fun was trolling for tuna ( this is almost like sport fishing).
If you do go out on a troller go on a freezer boat not an ice boat. I repeat, go out on a freezer boat NOT an ice boat. You should be able to get a job in the spring on a boat going up to the charlottes. Try to get on a boat that is going to fish salmon on the front end of the season and tuna from the middle of August on. Make sure to have top notch boots and rain gear. Good luck

Good advise,from someone whos been there,done that.The boat my bro worked on trolled for sockeye, of which were flash frozen destined for the Japanese market. The fish had to be flawless, for the Japanese wouldn't buy any pieces with a mark on them. I think they fished in the Charlottes...