Open Writing

I had taken an engineering planning and estimating job in Salt Lake City. The pay was exceptionally good, but we had to move our residence.

Here is where I met Ben, who in his younger days had been a commercial fisherman.

In his opinion a fortune could be made fishing for Albacore, and many years ago that was true. It was Ben’s ambition to get back into it and he persuaded me to go into partnership with him and to buy a commercial fishing boat.

We spent a lot of time looking on the west coast of California and eventually we found a boat that we could afford. It was very well equipped but had a wood hull that unnoticed by us had one place that had been damaged and not very well repaired.

The badly repaired plank sprang a leak. This was more than our bilge pump could handle as we were taking on too much water. We were sinking.

The only thing to do was call the Coast Guard. They had a bomber fly over and drop a large enough pump down to us by parachute.

Great, now we should be able to make it to the shore.

Again luck was against us. Even though the sea was fairly calm, we still had to find a way to get the pump aboard. We decided that if we drove the boat over the floating lines between the parachute and the pump we should be able to pull the pump on board.

It was a large pump with a diesel engine, and so heavy that it was all Ben and I could do to lift it.

Once we had it aboard and had taken off the floats, we tried to get it started.

We were still sinking fast and really getting worried.

Again no luck. We could not start the pump engine. Why I still do not know. It just refused to start.

Call the coastguard again.

This time they sent the Coast Guard Cutter out to rescue us.

It took a long time for them to come the 100 miles out to sea to where we were and we were very near to sinking.

Our 45 foot boat was very small compared to the cutter and they tied our boat to the side of theirs and brought us in that way.

The cutter had good cooking facilities and as soon as Ben and I got on board the cook fed us bacon and eggs which we were really ready for.

After a week in dry dock and properly repaired, we were ready to go fishing again, and we caught some Albacore. Not a lot, and nowhere near the amount we hoped for and Ben had predicted.

As a matter of fact I put a ton and a half aboard working 4 lines by myself while Ben piloted the boat. I did this in less than an hour, and all the fish were large, more than 35 lbs. I had to use a gaff to get them aboard.

Really not much fish when you consider that we had a 35 ton refrigerated hold, which we never came close to filling.

Instead of Ben’s predicted fortune we were going broke.

At the end of the first fishing season I left Ben in charge of the boat and living on it, while I went home to my wife and small son and got an engineering job for the winter.

Next year I went back to another unsuccessful fishing season. Even though we teamed up with 12 more fishing boats nobody made any worth while money.

Next winter I again left Ben in charge and I went back to work, except this time things were different.

Ben spent all winter stripping the boat and selling everything he could screw loose.
Both engines, Loran, fishing gear, compass, automatic pilot, radios, etc.

When I returned to where I had left the boat I could not find it. I spent all the time I could searching for it.

Of course I looked in every out of the way places where a boat could be hidden. Ben was more crafty than that. When I eventually found the boat it was in the harbor were all the most expensive pleasure boats were located.

A stripped, dirty old commercial fishing boat, amongst the most expensive yachts in the world?
Who would have thought to look there?

Can you imagine the cost of harboring a 45 foot boat for all that time?

Needless to say I could not afford it and the harbor authorities took the hull to pay those costs.

Meanwhile what had happened to Ben? I don’t know, and could not afford to spend any more money to find him.

Last time I heard of him he was in Texas.

If I had him arrested what good would that do? Obviously he would have very little money, or he would not get much time in jail, so I decided to forget it all.