The end is near- two days left. Remember the guy who used to walk around Times Square in NYC with that sign on his back? The ending I'm talking about is the season of the Fluke, government style.  The allocated quota is caught - all you guys go home, no more work, no more fishing, no more money. Find another way to make a living. There is bitter taste in my mouth and yet I wish to thank NMFS for allowing us to fish at all. After all their job to protect the fish, never mind us, we can always buy fish from other countries. I still wish to thank them, even though we will have no income for months at a time, even though the boat will be tied up, rusting, and even though more fish are eaten by predation than anything we'd be able to catch, I am still grateful for the opportunity to be allocated a few fish. I'll be glad to have Dave home for more that two days at a time. He had to do the week long trips because there is nothing else he can do right now and we have no idea what we will be allowed to catch in the fall or winter. There's not much fishing around Provincetown and Cape Cod Bay in the summer and on the Atlantic side the cod and haddock have moved north to cooler water. The seals are eating the yellow-tail and other flounder. The lobsters are eating the guts and stuff left on the sea floor by the seals so there is a glut of lobster and falling prices. Lobster pots and gill nets blanket the bay. Do you think that when we run out of fish we'll eat the seals? I wish I had a good receipt for seal pie and I'd love to have a seal coat and boots like the coat my grandmother wore, keeping me warm this winter. We have so much to be thankful for: fish, game, fruits, nuts, all the blessings from this wonderful life and yet so many of us dwell on the dark side, drawn by fear. Remember that guy in Times Square, the end is near. It is a joke, you are supposed to feel pity for him and be repelled. The End is Not Near. So there.

Another Tuna Tail - Tale

There are stories about catching tuna, the indigenous fish that swims the world's currents, causing men to find ways and make remarkable efforts to catch them, stories that sometimes boggle the mind. During the summer of 1977 three men were  talking, standing together at the edge of the Provincetown Wharf. Kurt had just finished a scallop trip, cut and unloaded 200 bags of sweet sea food and was heading home. Henry was on his way to check his vessel tied to the wharf and Shane was out for a walk up the pier to look out at his small boat tied on a mooring. They were yammering about fish, boats, weather and other fishermen. There was hardly a ripple on the water that sweeps into the harbor every six hours. Unbeknownst to the trio a large fish was feeding upon the small squid that were chasing larvae and krill moving it closer and closer to shore. It appeared lazy as if it had eaten its fill. Shane spotted the large sharp fin traveling slowly around mooring lines and anchored boats. He felt the hair rise on his arms and he could feel his heart begin to beat faster. He knew what he was looking at, having seen this fin before.This could be his lucky day. He didn't say a word to anyone, but walked away, then ran to the  boat he knew would have a harpoon at the ready. His uncle Manny's boat the 'Silver Mink' would most definitely have what was needed.

Giant BluefinTuna can weigh over a thousand pounds and are today highly regulated, but in 1977 the name of the game was catch me if you can. Tuna are fast swimming and migratory, following paths that take them from Cape Cod to Cape Verde, away and back again. Best of all they are wonderful tasting, a rich protein delight and for a lucky fisherman they can provide monetary incentive.

Kurt began pointing in the directions of the fish and others began to take notice. Soon a small group had gathered to watch the lazy motion of the dorsal fin as it swam around boats and mooring lines just yards from the side of the pier The fish moved slowly, circling as if lost, coming closer and closer.

When a man sees an opportunity he needs to act. Shane was not out to impress. He did not think about what he would do with it once it was caught, nor about the money. For him it was instinct. He could see the large eye and the silver, blue and yellow scales flashing back at him from just below the surface.
Shane paused, waiting. People began asking what the long pole was for, did he intend to throw the harpoon from this distance, was that a shark? Shane didn't answer, could not reply, could not speak, willing the fish to come closer. And so it did. Suddenly Shane raised the pole and let it fly. The barb struck. The fish stiffened then leaped out of the water. The twelve foot pole flew away from the fish and the line attached to the triangular blade began to uncoil from the box it was stored in. A cheer went up from the growing crowd. Man and fish began a tug of war, the fish would fight for its life and Shane would fight to take it. He could not let the line play out as he would in open water, it was a crowded basin. He began pulling, struggling to move the giant fish to the beach, hoping the arrow shaped tip had gone deep enough.

People were shouting encouragement, "You've got him now. Keep going." The gap to the shore was narrowing. Thirty minutes into the battle the fish gave a final leap into the air and landed on the beach, high and dry as if it wanted to get the whole ordeal over with as quickly as possible. A roar went up from the crowd. Shane's hands were cut and blistered, his breathing hard when he asked a friend to stay with the fish while he went for help. "I don't want anyone coming along and staking a claim," he said. I don't know what he was paid for the fish, it weighed in at just over 400 pounds, but the standing ovation he received was worth a million dollars.

A seafaring holiday

Day 1: a car for an hour, a ferry for an hour, three buses took two hours and finally the harbor of Menemsha, on the island of Martha's Vineyard. The Richard & Arnold at the dock and Dave waiting, I was happy to see that not much has changed - the houses, the boats and the people as I remembered, inviting and warm. Actually it was one of the hottest weeks of the summer season, but I had the most refreshing swim at the beach near the harbor, looking back toward the mainland, west facing. The water was cool, clear and salty. Dinner was fish and lobster, of coarse. Day 2: Awake at 3AM. Dave started the engine and let go the lines. It felt like the middle of the night, so I stayed in the bunk ---Big mistake. An hour later I found myself sea-sick and unable to stand up. I lie on the deck like a wet fish and roll around most of the day wanting my headache and queezyness to go away. Every ten minutes I ask Dave "how much longer?" The gods of the sea looked down on me with pity and we arrived back at the dock around noon. Not bad. I changed into a bathing suit and went first for a swim then for a shower. Very refreshing. Dave and I ate lunch on shore, on the dock . A cup of chowder and saltines for me. A seafood sandwich for Dave that he called a "chimmmy-chonga". A friendly fisherman Tim, who owns and fishes the old 'Bottom Scratcher' renamed 'Four Kids' gave Dave a ride to a pharmacy to buy bonine for me. There was no Dramamine left in the whole village at Menemsha Harbor. I'll bet I'm not the first mariner to go begging for it.
Day 3: Much better, the stuff works. We headed out again at 4AM but this time I got up and went on deck to see the night turn to day as we headed south toward Gay Head Lighthouse and past the tip of the island.  Noman's Island lay as a grey lump on the horizon off in the distance. The sea was running 5-6 feet, it was rougher than the day before, but the pill was working it's magic and I was able to help a little with the sorting of fish. The piles are small and Dave had the deck cleared in less than fifteen minutes. The fish were slow coming and he decided to move, closer inside, not as rollie and easier for me. We bruise easily at our age. Dave ate eggs and sausages, I lived on water and crackers. The regulations allow for 300 pounds of Fluke per boat, per day with five days allowed each week and so we were back at the dock by one o'clock. I went for a swim, showered  and had lunch with my honey and then with mixed feeling, I hopped the bus at 4PM, then the ferry and then the car. Dave calls me "a tough lady". I was asleep in my own bed by 10PM- but recovering took two days. It was a memorable three day holiday and you know what? I'll have to do it again - I forgot to take pictures.  

Me and the Provincetown Blessing of the fleet

judy.dutra.96@facebook.com

Off To Martha's Vineyard Island

Posts have been non-existant due to change-over in compters, i'm still working it out. Meanwhile I will be joining Dave on board our sweet new/old boat. I look forward to the visit. Dave said, "Bring your draimimine." I know it's a joke but I will most likely feel queezy at some point in the trip. He never gets sea-sick and that just isn't fair. I haven't been away from home since driving  back and forth to Gloucester last winter. This time I'm leaving the car in Hyannis, it will be like old times -traveling on my own to far off places. MVI is not far, as the crow flys, but all day on car, boat and bus will be all the adventure I need. Events at the Blessing of the Fleet in Provincetown at the end of June will stay with us forever. Family, friends, loved ones gathered to share a space on board our Richard & Arnold. I'll post pictures taken by Steven Kennedy from onboard the boat. There's one of me that I kinda like, I'm not fond of having my picture taken. Dave on the other hand never takes a bad photo. The harbor where I'm heading will most likely be baking in the sun like every place in America right now. I remember being in downtown Ciaro in 1992 and it was 120 degrees in the shade. Move slow, drink water and stay out of the noon day sun. I also remember being in Menemsha, a tiny bowl that has no cell phone reception, when it felt just as hot. I'm going to get away from my responsibilities and to feel the water under me again.  I'll fish with  my honey for three days, from 5AM to whenever we catch our daily limit-which doesn't take long since the quota is so small, but that's another story. dave and I try to avoid the conflict with overzealous burourcrats, we just say, "yes'm and do their bidding." It's a sore subject and one better left to tell in the book, 'Nautical Twilight'. It's all there in black & white. So now we we have an 80 year old hull that may one day be a sailing / fishing yacht. Or maybe we will have to take all the fishing gear off and sell our permits to some big company, who can afford to buy our share. I know for sure that our Richard & Arnold will out live Dave and me, and most likely all the people in all the offices that have been hired to keep an eye on one old man and one old boat

The Richard and Arnold heading out, this time to Woods Hole then on to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Sound to chase the summer flounder. In the two weeks before this picture was taken Dave added a layer of fiberglass cloth and resin over the doghouse and forward deck, the hatch lip was lowered by four inches and a new cover added. Doors to below deck now swing open and are louvered. We drove to NJ and back with a net reel and doors. Dave changed doors, but then changed them again - put his old ones back on, the net needed the bigger door. Each door weighs about 600 pounds. I watched as he used a sky hook to put them into the back of his old truck, using a three part tackles system on a gin-pole. Nets were changed, the squid net for the 'flat-net', he had a beauty built by the Levin's in Fairhaven since the last one he had built by them lasted many, many years and caught its share of flat-fish. He stopped squid fishing because the boat's muffler was leaking fumes into the wheelhouse. The old muffler was removed and a new elbow, pipe and stainless steel muffler were added, thanks Wellfleet Welding - Matt.  This all takes place before he can even set the net. Oh and he changed the oil in the engine. Lots of small issues taken care of, all good, all to keep the boat safe and catching. Let's hope this will be a good Fluke season.

Fishing is what Dave loves to do and he's now doing it with our fishing/yacht. Our vessel will be leaving the wharf again for a June Fluke season off Martha's Vineyard. The daily catch allowance is small, 300 pounds, but we can live with that. There is hardly any fishing left around here, I mean that the cod allocations have been caught up, there are lots of back door dealings as far as the yellow-tail flounder go, the rules have pretty much overwhelmed most fishing businesses and the lobster gear has moved in for the season. The latest scheme for dividing up the fish - the current trend, it's not a good one. First of all it was based on a time frame that did not take into account the years leading up to allocation. Too many people have been pushed out of the fishing business using faulty data and over zealous regulators. The control and money are now in the hands of a few and they can sell allocation to whomever they choose. It's the thirty year cycle - weirs, dorymen with hooks, gillnets and draggers, harpooners and hand-liners- after thirty years no one will remember what the broo-haha over catch shares was all about and no one will remember when men were free to fish the way they wanted. We hope to leave all the bureaucracy at the wharf when we cast off the lines, catch a few fish. If the price stays up we'll have a good summer.   I have been busy writing, speaking, and spending time meeting lots of friends who tell me they enjoyed reading my book, 'Nautical Twilight'. I will be in the author's tent in Wellfleet for the Wellfleet Harborfest on the pier at 10 am Sat.- June 16, 2012 - and will talk about the book. I'm not used to tooting my own horn - but so many people have been telling me how much they've loved it. It's a small slice of our lives and a look at what was once the Provincetown fishing fleet. I have been invited to speak at the Eldredge Library in Chatham,MA at 2 pm on Thursday, June 21                     ALSO Dave and I will be participating in many of the events at the Provincetown Portuguese Festival and the 65th Blessing of the Fleet, June 21-24. visit their web page: www.provincetownportuguesefestival.com  I will be sharing a table with Nancy Bloom on Ryder Street all day Friday and Saturday. Stop and say hello.   Dave has promised to bring the boat back for that weekend- he's not allowed to fish for fluke on Fridays and Saturdays anyway, don't ask me why. The Richard & Arnold will be in the parade of boats on Sunday, this is our 31st with the R&A, but we had lots of blessings and parties with the 'Wildflower' back in the 1970's. Looks like June is going to be a fun month.   Thank you one and all