Alas, the fifth and final fishery of the Sac Roe Herring season occurred this afternoon as the purse closes on another year of the annual derby here in Sitka. Harvesters targeted the remaining 930 tons of silvery sac roe containers in the Silver Bay area, south of town, in a typically competitive opening which essentially entailed 15 delicious minutes of hot seine-on-seine action.
To fully appreciate what this means, short of being on location, here are two videos to wet your chops:
As viewed from the beach:
As viewed from the sky:
For anyone wondering about the first four openings, here are the vital stats:
- March 22 2,560 tons Hayward Strait
- March 24 4,750 tons Hayward Strait
- March 28 3,800 tons Starrigavin Area
- March 31 2,500 tons Starrigavin/Katlian
So, what happens next? Both fishers and fish will glide out of here 
incrementally over a span of hours to weeks. While I can’t guarantee the whereabouts of the fish, I can state with confidence that some vessels will point their bows towards the various spawn-on-kelp pounds while others will simply fade into the horizon with, perhaps, loftier ambitions.
And what becomes of the babes left on the beach? After the glitter fades and all that remains are a few tender memories, some broken hearts, and perhaps a handful of chicks that might exercise their right to plead the Fifth, I get to debrief every teary-eyed posse pal out there. Why me? Because in the Land of BeenThereDoneThat, I am Queen.
We will congregate and commiserate over lonesome booths at various establishments and try to imagine life before the 2009 Man Herring Season. We will bolster each other with tales of love and loss as we strategically analyze the hidden nuances of every wink and drink over the past weeks. We will make heros out of herrings.
And then Spring will come, and with it the smell of rotting spawn to pervade our senses reminding us that all things in nature are amazingly cyclic. That there is an entire year to savor what was and what may never be. And at the very least, we can get back to the business of drinking ourselves pretty as we ever were!
**Thanks to this chickee for the vintage purse pic!
7 Comments
April 3, 2009 at 1:25 pm
Waaaaaa….although I am typing thru blurry blood shot eyes, I find the strength to re-read your words of wisdom….over the next few days I will have time to reflect on the “tender moments” of Man Season ‘09….
If nothing else I did learn some tibits I discovered this year…keep your camera photos on lock, take time to visit with posse and eat Mud Pie, you can impress the hell out of a man with an egg sandwich at 2am, the smell of hydrolic oil is a turn on and last but not least….ask the man for each name of his shipmates before going any further.
Love ya WSW!
April 3, 2009 at 8:40 pm
Wow, that’s like the North Line in Egegik, but with GIANTS.
April 4, 2009 at 9:09 am
THANK YOU for your roe-cking, sac-ing reporting!
I always admire,and look fwd to your posts, I often learn ALOT, too, also, as well;-)
April 4, 2009 at 10:03 am
umm, I think I may need a lil’ post self edit …thats suppossed to read ‘Roe-king & Sac-king’, dotcha ya know, & yah, i know you do.
I am reminded of my vow to finish the whole cup of coffee B4 even wee attempts at E wit.
If, I did get it right the 1st time ..delete..
hell, just delete & correct in any case..or file under ‘go figer? ‘
April 8, 2009 at 2:01 pm
Who o who is singing in the sky footage? It’s perfectly beautiful and perfectly melancholy. Which is to say, perfect.
April 8, 2009 at 2:20 pm
I don’t know oh know who o who that is because it is a youtube video that someone sent to me. Am so glad you enjoyed it!!!
April 9, 2009 at 8:37 am
To Catey, It’s Anna Coogan, State of Grace. Beautiful, poignant and perfect! Closing the purse is a sad event, but now that it’s done, I find myself in a ’state of grace’. Until next year…Yee haw!