I boarded the Starbound on the 31st of April. It is a 240 ft fishing boat bound for the Bering sea. It drags a trawl net to catch Walleye Pollock, which is processed by the 100+ people on board.
On June first we left the dock in Seattle and entered the Ballard locks. It was an odd experience to look down on all the people gathered around to see the ships going through the locks. In their minds going off to sea is a big adventure. The thought of leaving home for months at a time seems incredible and exciting. They have no idea of the dreary monotony of crossing the Gulf of Alaska at 12 knots.
The weather has been good so far, the standards being windspeed and the resulting size of the waves. It has been mostly cloudy and cool, but that is irrelevant for most of the crew that stays mostly below decks looking out through the tiny port holes in the gally and only occasionally pops up for a smoke on deck.
Picture: A tug pulling the Starbound out of the locks
