Author: Dennis

FV Polaris

The Polaris was an old school 42-foot combination salmon, tuna and crab boat built in the early to mid 1940’s. My dad purchased the boat the winter of 1967. And we fished this boat from the spring of 1968 through the summer of 1972. I had many firsts on this boat, but the summer of 1968 was a summer of firsts.

Everything on the Polaris was old-school

It was powered by an old 4-71 GMC diesel engine. The boat’s top speed was 6.5 knots. The boat had no refrigeration equipment, so all the fish were packed in ice. The fish hold would carry about 4-tons of iced fish.

The navigation equipment included a depth-finder, and a magnetic steering compass, and a wristwatch. For communication we had an old AM radio.

Spring 1968

My dad headed south from Newport in April to start fishing for king salmon off Eureka, California. I got out of school early, and joined him in mid-May.

Fishing out of Eureka was the first time I spent a night out on the water. We anchored the Polaris in about 8-fathoms (48-feet) of water several miles south of the harbor entrance. There was a large white cross on a church visible from our anchorage. There was a bright light shinning on the cross, making it visible at night. We were anchoring on a sandy beach, so there was no protection from the ocean waves. But the weather was good, and we rode the small swell in comfort.

Each night we would anchor up about an hour after sunset, and pull the anchor about an hour before sunrise. We would troll for king salmon from daylight to dark every day. This was my first time “trip fishing”. Meaning, to fish multiple days. Clean the fish, and then ice them down in the fish hold.

A whale of a time

Early one morning, a hour or so before the alarm went off, the boat took a heavy roll. Heaving over dangerously to one side. Dad and I were sleeping in the forecastle. This is below deck in the front of the boat. We both climbed quickly up the stairwell and ran out onto the main deck. Thinking that the anchor must have come loss and we drifted into the surf. As we stood on the deck looking out into the night a smelly spray of mist covered us both. Shinning a flashlight over the side we spotted a blue whale rubbing his back against our small vessel. Talking to other fisherman we learned that this was not an uncommon event. Whales would often rub against the hull of small vessel to scratch their backs and remove barnacles.

Heading north

Around the first of June we started fishing our way north. The plan was to be in Oregon for the opening of the silver salmon season on June 15.

to be continued….

Columbia Pacific Maritime was started in 2006 out of the basement of my home in NE Portland, Oregon. It is a USCG approved maritime training school. The intention of this business was to replace the income that I lost after quitting my teaching job of fourteen years. Replacement of the lost income was easily accomplished. But to my surprise the second year in business it was doubled, and by the third year I was tripling the lost income.

The business is a USCG approved school for professional mariner’s. We provide Coast Guard approved courses to mariners seeking profession credentials. In short, I provide classes that can be taken to satisfy the Coast Guard exams. This is something that I enjoy doing very much. And, I am pretty good at. The school is currently in its third evolution.

Evolution 1: Basement NE Portland

This evolution lasted for 10-years. From 2006 to 2016. There were two classrooms in the basement. The main classroom was approved for 6-students. And then the radar classroom was approved for 2-students. I worked between the two classrooms.

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Evolution 2: Plaza 205 SE Portland

In 2016 the school expanded to leased space in Plaza 205. This space had two primary classrooms. A main classroom approved for 14-students. And a radar classroom approved for 6-students. In addition: the lobby was approved for overflow students. This larger space required two instructors. John worked with me as the second instructor. And Nichole worked the front desk with Patty. In 2019 John and Nichole moved to Alaska. And Pat and I started making plans to move the school to Coos Bay.

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Evolution 3: Newmark Center in Coos Bay

In 2020 the school moved from Portland to the Newmark Center of Southwestern Oregon Community College. The school occupies two rooms on the second floor. One classroom approved for 18-students. And an office space.

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In Conclusion

It is not for everyone. But my work has always defined who I am. And the school is the focal point of that work. I did not plan my life this way. It happened because of the choices I made.