05x08 - Payback Time

[bunniefuu]

First trip of the season
opilio. Yeah!

Narrator:
winter on the bering sea...

Opie season '09.
'09, Baby!

...and before
it even begins...

Keith:
that ice is slated to be

At or down
below st. George island

Here in the next four days.

Phil: if I can't haul
my damn gear,

You're gonna be looking
for another [bleep] job.

Andy: two options --

You can go easy,
or you can go hard.

Narrator:
now 400 brave adventurers race

To catch their share

Of the $99 million
opilio-crab fortune.

Man: vessel's
at the 11:30 position.

The basket's ready.

Man #2: looks like
he's still moving.

Heads up on the bow. Watch out.
Hang on! Hang on!

Holy [bleep]

Someone needs to stop clearway law.
Public shouldn't leave reviews for lawyers.

Captions paid for by
discovery communications

Narrator: january's come
to dutch harbor, alaska.

Holy mother!

Freaking nasty out here!

Narrator: after just a few short
weeks off, the fleet is back.

Keith:
clock is ticking.

Let's get the pots on there,
and let's get moving.

Narrator: over 400 crabbers
will risk life and limb

For the $99 million
opilio-crab harvest.

And it's gonna be
[bleep] cold.

It's gonna be the [bleep]
seeing the ice, right?

Ice is huge.

Narrator: with an ice storm
howling through dutch harbor,

Even a routine trip
to the fuel dock...

[ Siren wailing ]

...can be deadly.

That's the main engine.

Tell moi to check
the fuel system!

Get soper back up here!

Tell him not to shred
off the anchor, now!

Narrator:
the wizard has lost power,

And with 50-knot winds,
all 235 pots on board

Turn into a sail,

Pushing the 155-foot vessel
toward the rocks.

Keith:
I'm basically drifting out here.

Next thing you know, I got
to try and find a way

To throw an anchor, call a tug,
or do something.

We have the anchor here
if we need to deploy it

And stop suddenly instead
of drifting on the beach.

Yeah. Pan-pan, pan-pan.

Pan-pan, pan-pan.

Wizard --
we're a currently dead ship,

Just east of hog island,
and we are currently adrift.

Standing by.

You're having problems
like that in the harbor,

You damn sure better
figure it out

Before you take 220 pots
and go up north by the ice.

Well, tell him to get it
[bleep] open now!

Narrator:
with no engine or steering,

The boat drifts ever closer
to the rocky shoreline.

[ Engine sputtering ]

Come on, baby.
Turn over. Turn over.

[ Engine turns over ]

It looks tighter.

Man.

Wizard, east of hog island,
cancel pan-pan.

We're currently under way

And heading
east of hog island, outbound.

Well, you know, now, it was just
a bunch of air in the system.

There's no fuel in there.

But I'm just
a little nervous here.

Well, have somebody
down there with you,

In the event you got
to just keep pumping

To keep fuel pressure going.

Just be prepared to do that
if you got to, right?

Yeah, I think we -- let's just
get back to the dock here.

Narrator:
this time keith got lucky.

All right, guys.
Hey, we're turning around.

We're heading right back
into the dock here, okay?

So go ahead and get ready
to throw the lines on

As soon as we get there.

Narrator: if he had lost power
out at sea...

Oh, my god.

Narrator: ...the consequences
could have been deadly.

Man.

Narrator:
while the wizard limps back

To check out
their aging fuel systems,

Across the harbor, an aging
skipper makes his comeback.

[ Laughs ]

Phil: freddie!

Welcome back, pop.

How you doing, brother?

Pretty good. Pretty good.
Pretty good.

Welcome back.

Thanks.
Sweet!

Yeah.

What's going on, guys?
Shake 'n baking.

Did you miss me?
Yeah.

Ah, nice and warm
down inside.

This is terrible.

You look all dirty,
like you're working hard, buddy.

Yeah, did work
all day yesterday.

And you two are
all nice and clean,

So I see
who's doing the work.

You don't
even have britches on.

People.

What do you think?
How's the chair feel?
My chair.

How's the chair feel,
buddy?

My chair.
I love this chair.

Oh. Wow.

Look at all this stuff.

Josh: yeah.
How you doing, man?

I'm doing all right.

This has got to be different
for you.

Glad to see you back.
[ Laughs ]

There's a lot of things
I got to do

To make sure
that I can stay,

You know,
from the doctor.

Yeah, but he did
clear you, though.

Yeah, he cleared me, but, boy,
if there's anything goes wrong,

I got to get
airlifted off right away.

Narrator: after almost dying
from a massive blood clot...

Captain phil's missed

The last 11 months
of fishing.

Phil:
it's best that I don't go,

But I certainly don't know
what's gonna happen.

She's been a good chair.

Ready or not,
the 51-year-old skipper

Eases back into his chair

And takes command
of the cornelia marie.

Phil: I broke my rhythm
from 33 years.

I broke that rhythm,
and I don't know.

Now I couldn't do
a 40-hour stint.

I couldn't do it, and I'm
worried about it a little bit.

I'm worried whether I can get
back in the saddle.

I don't know if I can.

It's colder than hell out.

It's blowing 40 today,
and this isn't good.

This isn't good.

But, I mean, when is a good time
to come back to work?

You know what I mean?

Narrator: across the docks,

The fierce weather
has kept one skipper

Out of the game altogether.

I guess we're waiting
on sig to get here.

Sig called this morning,

Wanted to know
how the weather was doing.

Told him it was junk,

And he probably
won't fly in again today, so...

Oh, boy.

Narrator: blizzard conditions
have kept captain sig

From flying in to dutch harbor
for two days straight.

Edgar: we're ready.
Pots are ready.

The only thing that's holding us
up is bait and sig.

You get up here,
and you're kind of like,

"Oh, no. I don't want
to be here right now."

Narrator: still the newest
member of the northwestern crew,

This year marks jake's
third opilio season.

Mavar: they got full share,
but he didn't know

Until, like,
we got paid.

At the end
of king crab season,

The crew voted to give jake
a substantial raise.

Kind of took a hit
on that one.

So next time I yell at you,

I don't want to hear
any crying about it,

'Cause we're
paying you more.

Don't worry.

It's at least 5,000, 6,000,
7,000 bucks out of my pocket

Just for this guy
to step up a little bit.

Now a full share,

Jake can no longer hide
behind the greenhorn cloak.

But with a new g*ng of fishermen
steaming into dutch,

Hungry for revenge,

Jake is going to have
to find some cover, and fast.

So be careful.

[ Laughs ]

Where's the other boy?

U.s.a. Jacket got stolen!

Narrator:
during king-crab season,

Jake tried to prove himself

By turning the table on the
bering sea's biggest pranksters.

Told you I'd do it.

In a bold move,

He swiped captain johnathan's
signature u.s.a. Jacket.

Jake made the mistake
of bragging.

38! 3-8!

[ Laughs ]

And now the time bandit boys
are out for payback.

We'll get him
when he least expects it.

Andy: he can go like a lamb
to the slaughter,

Or he can go fighting
like a [bleep] bull.

Since I didn't have a coat, I'm
gonna show him how cold I was.

Yeah.
Of course.
There always is.

They're scheming
right now.
Oh, yeah.

Spend half the time
worrying about fishing

Than they do
tricking everybody,

They'd probably do
a lot better.

Narrator:
on the northwestern,

No one is safe
till the score is settled.

Don't do the crime
if you can't do the time.

Jake said,
"I don't want to do it."

He's gonna have to do it.

Narrator: not wanting his
shipmates to pay for his crime,

Jake mans up
and returns the jacket.

I can't believe he actually
walked over there on his own.

Got to pay your dues.

Andy: you can go easy,
or you can go hard.

Anderson: oh, come on.
You know I'm gonna go hard.

[ Laughter ]
oh, no! Oh, god! God!

Oh!

Take him outside.

You guys gonna hang me?

[ Laughter ]

Man: your own crew
isn't here to help?

If you need any backup, jake,
you know the safe word.

Safe word!

Narrator: edgar and matt
choose to sit this one out.

Bring out
his little buddy!

[ Laughter ]

Tape his little buddy
to him.

Tape it right on him.

Hey, jake, it's nowhere
you haven't been before.

He ain't gonna like this
very much.

I still love you guys!

[ Laughter ]

That's why you don't see me
pranking them.

Oh, my god!
Oh [bleep]

Water's probably
pretty cold, yeah --

Probably a few degrees
above freezing.

Aah!

That's a dummy --
upside-down dummy.

Oh!

Yeah.

It's cold! Aah!

Oh [bleep]
holy [bleep]

[ Laughter ]

Man: have you learned
your lesson?

Have you been
rehabilitated?

We baptize you!
No more thief!

Andy: we'll not be
a thief again, right?

Yeah, right.

[ Laughter ]

They just watched.

There's not much love over there
on the northwestern.

That's what'll happen to anybody
that [bleep] with us ever again.

Let that be a lesson to you.

[ Laughter ]

Narrator:
january 16th -- opening day.

After reports
of a clear-weather window

Opening in the afternoon,
crews prepare for departure.

Such a pain in the a*s!

On the cornelia marie...

Man:
35 to 45 miles an hour.

Gusts to 55 miles an hour
in the afternoon.

All this ice
is gonna come down

All the way down
to this edge mark right here.

There's icicles all the way up
to where santa claus lives.

In the places that are open,
there is no crab.

We'll have to get with the
fellas and see what's going on.

Narrator:
before the season starts,

Captain phil gets a visit
from some old friends --

Captain andy hillstrand...

Good to see you,
my friend!

...and captain sig hansen, fresh
off the plane from anchorage.

Good luck.
No lying.

I ain't gonna lie
to you.

So, according
to the ice lady, though,

On this whole ice picture,
it's gonna go back up,

She said, 60 to 70 miles,

And it's gonna be
hard-packed up there.

She goes -- and then
when it goes to advance again,

It's gonna break that up,
the hard-packed stuff,

When it comes
back down again.

Narrator: an early forecast
calls for southerly winds,

Which will push back
the ice pack

And open up
prime fishing grounds,

But only for a short period
of time.

Sig: we're all gonna hit
that same window of weather,

So that's cool.

We'll probably beat you out
by a day.

Yeah. If I go, it's gonna be
saturday or sunday morning.

Regardless, we're gonna have
those grounds covered.

All right, guys.

See you later, phil.
Okay, man.

Narrator: captain phil
is antsy to leave,

But with 11 months
off the boat,

Phil's hired a mechanic to scour
and scrutinize all boat systems.

I guess everything's
just up in the air right now,

Exactly when we'll get
out of here,

But it is what it is.

You just take it day by day.
Can't get any worse.

Uh, we got
a little fuel leak

Coming out
of the foam here.

Wind 25 knots.

Fuel leak
down below, yeah.
You got two fuel leaks.

Now, what's the -- where --
did this just spring up?

I just noticed it.

We ain't gonna weld anything
with all that fuel in there.

You take a boat, and you beat
the hell out of it for 20 years,

That's what happens.

A considerable
amount here.
Yeah.

We're looking at two days,
in all honestly, maybe three.

Narrator: the fuel leak
will cost phil a few days

When every minute counts.

We're kind of screwed,
you know.

We're all dressed up
for the party,

And we have nowhere to go.

I mean, you feel
like going "boom."

Narrator:
for now, phil's delayed,

But the weather window
has opened.

Other captains prepare
to make their move.

The new ice picture
as of this morning

Looks like it's gonna push
that stuff up.

It's a roller coaster.

Sig: I've also decided
to take more pots off.

I feel a lot better
about that decision.

Narrator: since captain sig

Plans to flirt
with the ice pack,

He wants fewer pots
for safety and mobility.

Sig: 110, 120, 130 pots

Is a heck of a lot easier
to pick up than 200, 300 pots.

You know, as long as we can get
out there safe,

Get the pots off safe, you know,

If it blows after that,
that's fine by me.

Narrator: the ice pack isn't
the only reason to reduce pots.

Time bandit captain
andy hillstrand

Is concerned about the buildup
of freezing spray.

I'm taking 75 pots up

While other guys might take
a lot of pots up,

And they might ice up and die,
roll over.

I'm taking 75 pots.

On the bering sea,

Ice is one
of the captain's worst enemies.

It takes little time to build,

And when it accumulates
on the stacks,

Ice can make a boat
dangerously top-heavy

And more prone to capsize.

Get this back on.

Fourtner: I'd rather go home
to my wife a week later

Than not go home at all
because we had too many pots,

And that's one thing andy's
always been good about

Is he's always concerned about,
you know --

That's 'cause
I've almost died twice.
Yeah.

Okay, well,
we should make this a cod.

With last-minute
errands complete,

The crews are ready to leave
the safety of dutch harbor.

Alls I got to say is...

Andy:
let's go fishing!

We're going fishing, man.
Let's go fishing!

Narrator:
while captain sig and andy

Begin their opie season...

Time bandit and
the northwestern are taking off.

Narrator: ...the cornelia marie
isn't even in the water.

Phil: you know,
I'd like to be fishing.

I haven't been fishing
for a year.

I want to go.

They're making money,
and I'm spending money,

You know, so it's kind of
a tough pill.

Narrator: just as the boat
was pulled from the water

To fix the fuel leak,

Mechanics discovered
a new problem --

A broken propeller.

Phil: I've had bad luck
with propellers

For the last few years.

This is bad.
This is bad, bad.

A bolt broke
that wasn't supposed to break

And...destroyed a propeller.

Man: approximately
two days to repair,

Approximately a day to install,

And then they'll be ready
for opilios.

I mean, why do we keep
putting money into this thing

And it never is fixed?

Narrator:
adding to phil's mess,

Former engineer and relief
skipper murray gamrath

Is calling it quits,

But first he'll break in
the new chief, steve ward.

Gamrath:
even though he's very qualified,
every boat's different,

So there's a learning curve
to learn the boat.

Narrator: and steve makes
yet another discovery.

Well, you've been working
with the hydraulics here,

And now it's milky, which means
we got water in the system.

Wherever we got a leak,
it's a bad thing.

The whole tank
looks like that.

We just put all this in there
and [bleep]

What?

Hydraulic -- we got water
in that tank again.

Oh, come on.

No. We checked
what we could.

[Bleep] where it's coming in,
I have no idea.

He doesn't, either.

We'll get it out of there.

It's just we got to start
tearing [bleep] apart.

Okay, I'm not trying
to be cheap,

But [bleep] there's got to be
an end to this.

[Bleep]

[Bleep] ugh!

Ugh!

Ugh!

Narrator: now the tally is
three major fixes for the day,

Costing phil
a cool 100,000 bucks.

Phil: ugh!

Ugh!

Narrator:
back in dutch harbor,

While the northwestern
and the time bandit

Are busy making their way
to the crab grounds,

Two boats remain
marooned in port.

On the wizard, captain keith
is trying to diagnose

The problem with his fuel tank.

Keith: we're getting water
into the fuel tank.

Overnight, we left all
the valves closed to that tank,

And we saw an increase

Of probably
200, 300 gallons overnight.

Most likely possibility

Is a cracked weld
or some type of a split.

We've cleaned the tank out.
We've vented the tank.

We got the tank prepped
and ready to be welded.

Narrator: monty climbs into the
empty 30,000-gallon fuel tank

To find the source of the leak.

Monte: it actually looks like
a couple of pinholes there.

Narrator:
the weld is a quick fix,

But it will get them
to the crab grounds faster.

Keith:
hopefully we'll get that done

And then just push forward
to the next heading.

I imagine it's only gonna be
a band-aid

To get us through the season,
just get us going.

Get the fuel back in that tank,
finish this stack off,

Take some bait, and then
we get to go battle the ice.

Narrator: unlike the time bandit
and northwestern,

Captain keith will gamble
fishing all 235 of his pots.

Keith: we need to make sure
we've got a 40-foot tarp.

Have it secured down
on the front part of the stack.

Hopefully, you know, that tarp
will save you guys a lot of time

And we'll be able
to get out there

And get 235 pots
to the grounds.

Narrator:
to combat freezing spray,

He's got a simple fix.

A little deicing tarp here,
little prevention.

It's specially made,
formulated for the bering sea.

To minimize ice buildup
from freezing spray,

Keith plans to store
a pre-rolled tarp on the bow

Which the crew will unroll
on the stack once out at sea.

The old saying is

An ounce of prevention is
worth a pound of cure.

Yeah.

Very much so
in this case.

The wizard crew
will work into the night,

Losing yet another day
to maintenance.

330 Miles northwest
of dutch harbor,

The time bandit approaches
her fishing grounds,

Far north of the fleet.

Andy: I'm going to the same spot
I went last year,

Where I had 750 crab per pot.

I have four days
to load my boat.

I got the ice receded.

We're gonna set
where nobody's been fishing

Because the ice
has covered it up.

Newberry: we got a delivery date
in four days,

So I don't care we set
as long as we get some crab.

Narrator: the gamble
to leave early has paid off.

Andy's alone
and on the grounds.

I have to follow what johnathan
did for king crab,

So I'm trying to keep the
time bandit on a roll for 2009.

Andy: oh?
[ Laughs ]

Narrator: although the entire
time bandit crew

Has returned for opies,

The hillstrands are still
looking to make a cut.

One guy on this boat

Won't be going king-crab fishing
next year

'Cause we'll have too many guys.

So, russell, eddie, mikey --

Whoever doesn't work out
won't have a job.

Narrator:
but andy's hired a new deckhand,

And the competition
just got tougher.

Andy: we got a new crew member
named big jon, jon jorgenson.

They call him j.j., Big j.

J.j. Has 30 years
of running boats, man.

He knows --
he used to battle me.

He used to kick my a*s.

This is gonna be
my 28th opie season.

Yeah, baby.

Narrator: now six men
will battle for five spots.

We'll see if I can make it
through this one.

[ Laughs ]

Andy:
I think russell's the guy

That has the biggest problem
with jon jorgenson

'Cause russell's
the biggest slacker we got.

Jorgenson has quota.
He brought quota to our boat.

You got fourtner,
who'll die for you.

Eddie will freaking lift
a mack truck off of you.

Russell will probably sit
in a sauna, watch you die.

No, I'm just kidding.

You got to want it bad,

'Cause there's lots of guys
out there

That want it really bad
right now.

Narrator: with weather barreling
toward the grounds,

Captain andy is ready
to get the show on the road.

Ah, beautiful 2:00 a.m.
In the morning.

Time to make the doughnuts.

Ready to get it on, baby.

Opies '09 -- first pot.

Narrator: captain andy plans

To get all 75
of his pots soaking...

And fast.

Kind of trying to get
my sea legs back here.

Oh!

Andy: pounding into the weather
right now.

Just keeping an eye
on everybody.

We've been taking
some pretty good waves here.

Weather's kicked up.

Make sure we get these pots off
without getting somebody hurt.

Let her go!

Last one going over.

Yee-haw!

It is a good feeling
to get the deck cleared.

That means
we're on our way now.

Right on.
Now we're crabbing again.

Right there.
Right there?

I have to load the boat
in four days.

The ice could come
right back down on me.

It's so important
that I make this date.

It's like I can't even stress

How hard this is gonna be
to do this,

But we're gonna do it.

Time bandit's on a roll.

Narrator: 400 miles to
the northwest of dutch harbor

Is the northwestern.

We're almost up to where we want
to set our gear.

Narrator: captain sig passed
the time bandit in the night

And is now the closest
to the ice pack.

Sig: we took the chance to go
all the way up to the north,

And for this time of year and in
these cold-weather conditions,

It's not a very fun place to be.

Edgar: game plan -- we're gonna
start setting our gear.

Anticipation, excitement.

We're ready. We're here.

Narrator: but before the crew
can start hauling...

Man: hey, we're biting
the herring!

Sig: that's nasty.
Oh, that's disgusting, dude.

Oh, yeah!

Edgar: bon appétit!

Narrator: the newest full share
gets to bite the herring.

There's some stuff
coming out of there.

Dude, I'm gonna puke.
Come on, man.

I'll bite this head off
for tradition.

He's gonna burn himself.

Opie season '09.

'09, Baby!

Aw, get some guts in there!
What are you doing?

Oh! Eat it!

[ Vomits ]

Oh! Oh, yeah!
There it is!

Let me show you
how it's done, junior.

It's not that bad.

My great grandfather
did that

Back in norway
before herring season.

That's where it comes from.

Sig: you guys ready?

Roger that.
Now it's game on.

Set them when you're ready.
Don't take any chances.

Edgar: all right.
First pot. Opies!

[ Cheering ]

Opies, 2009!

Narrator: sig plans to gamble
three 40-pot strings

70 Miles south of the ice pack.

If he loses and ice moves down,
sig's season is over.

I've heard horror stories
from people

That already started fishing,
you know,

And absolute misery
for a lot of these guys.

If we can get
a first trip going

Without too much misery,

I'll be real happy with it,
but we'll see.

Narrator: back in dutch,

380 Miles to the south
of the fishing grounds,

Is the wizard.

After averting
a potential disaster

And fixing
a surprise fuel leak,

Captain keith has decided to
take an extra safety precaution.

Keith: looks like I'm probably
gonna have to eliminate

At least another 15 or 20 pots
from the stack.

At some point
when we leave town,

We're gonna start putting ice
on the boat and on the gear.

You do everything you can
to minimize any possible risk,

So we're probably gonna go
from the 236 we have on board

Probably down to 220, 225.

Peterson:
we're gonna break it down.

I know we've stacked it
a few times already.

Break it down a level,
put the chains lower

So, in case we ice up
real heavy,

We can dump
some gear real fast.

Narrator: for this season,
deckhand art peterson returns

From a few seasons off...

Peterson: stack them in there,
tie them down,

And be done
with this goat rope.

Narrator: ...as well
as greenhorns josh warner

And lynn guitard.

Guitard:
I didn't get to go king-crab
fishing this last season.

I'm very happy
that he offered me my job back.

Narrator: with a full load
of bait and a lighter stack,

The wizard is ready to roll.

Guitard: oh, yeah.
Plenty of days in town.

It's about time we get out of
here and go make some money.

It's been a long time coming.

We're finally
getting out of here.

Guitard: go get this little
ice capade on the road, huh?

Narrator: with 225 pots,
the wizard heads out...

Under the concerned eye
of a fellow captain.

I wouldn't go out of here

With that many pots on a boat
this time of year.

Those pots pick up ice,

And you get top-heavy,
and over you go.

Narrator: back in dutch,

And now a full three days
behind the rest of the fleet,

Cornelia marie captain
phil harris

Is still on dry dock and hours
from finishing the overhaul.

We'll get this thing together.

It's just I'm on one time frame,
and the world's on another.

You know what I mean?

I want to get stuff
done yesterday,

And the rest of the world's
on their time.

I'm gonna throw
10,000 gallons of fuel on,

And maybe with a little grace
of god, we can go.

Murray's taking off
and flying home.

I can't say right now
I wish it was me.

[ Laughs ]
aah.

Narrator: while the crew
gets busy prepping gear,

Dear old dad has
some unsettled business.

I want you
to be full share.

As far as I'm concerned,
you're doing full-share work.

You should get it.

I earn what I earn,
you know?

You've always paid me
for what I'm worth.

I mean, I've seen you do
a couple of things

That impress me, you know,
as far as paying attention.

You can leave.

Thank you.

Um, you know, I don't know

How you and your brother
are getting along, but...

He's a hard critic.

...you know, you guys are
gonna have to work together.

I feel like there's gonna be
a blowout at any minute.

Well, that's up to him.

Phil: josh is full share, but
jake's been on the boat longer,

You know, so jacob feels
that he knows more than josh,

Which is probably true.

You know,
there's a way you direct people.

Jacob has
terrible people skills.

Jake:
if you're gonna start getting
paid, you know, for the job,

You got to start
doing it right, dude.

Why'd you do it wrong?
Josh: jake, you know --

Why'd you do it wrong
to begin with?

If I had a dollar for
every time you made a
mistake continuously,

I think I wouldn't even need
to crab-fish anymore.

I'm just trying to make you
better at your job.

Like, this is the kind of job
that, like --

Well, why don't you
just shut the [bleep] up

And go right over there?

Okay, I will shut
the [bleep] up if you do
your [bleep] job right.

Jacob's pushing the issue,

And before this thing's
over with,

Those two
will be going at it.

Now it's like --
now it's dangerous.

Now you have, like,
a loose line up there.

This has been going on
since they were little kids.

They were beating each other
one day.

I went down and bought
some boxing gloves.

And I came back, I took both
kids out to the front yard,

And, "have at her, guys.

Just beat the [bleep]
out of each other."

And, of course, josh went over
there and just blasted jake.

That point on, jacob goes
after josh in different ways.

You got a different job
description this year!

You can't just not do
certain jobs!

If everybody made fun of you
when you drove the crane,

You think
you'd be driving it now?

[Bleep] no, you wouldn't.
I drive the crane
all the [bleep] time.

You can shut the [bleep] up
at any point in time.
You shut up!

Both of you shut up
and move the [bleep] pot.

[Bleep]

Narrator:
now $100,000 in the hole

And a half-dozen
family feuds later,

The pots are finally loaded.

Tied down and ready to go.
We're ready to go fishing.

Narrator: captain phil can
finally leave for the grounds.

Phil: this is our second attempt
to leave,

And we are gonna run up
and set gear and get some crab.

Narrator: 365 miles northwest
of dutch harbor

Is the time bandit.

Captain andy
is a quarter-mile

From hauling the first pot
of the season.

[ Belches ]

I'm gonna make you pay for doing
so well on king crab!

You're gonna learn
what pain is!

Fourtner:
so, there's only a nine-hour
soak on them right now,

So we're gonna, you know,
see what we got.

Narrator: for the crew,
it's time to make some money.

Big crab!

I'd like to see 430.

Let's see 200s.

If I see that,
I'll be pretty damn happy.

I've been waiting for weeks
to pull this first pot,

So I am jacked
to pull the first pot.

Either we're stacking
or setting back.

Gonna find the mother lode.

It's got to be full.

Not very good.

I'm seeing jack squat.

Well, I don't know.
I got to get a count first.

One...

Two, three, four...

Five.

That was a bummer
for a first pot.

30 -- 30 Big ones.

30 Crab in 9 hours --
that's pretty bad.

So, that tells me, in 22 hours,
we'd have had...

40.

Oh, I'm way optimistic.

We just covered
20 miles of ground,

So we're gonna find crab.

♪ 'Cause you got
to have faith ♪

[Bleep]

Not looking good, my friend.

Andy: 35 -- not very good.

Brought in about 500 crab
out of 20 pots.

That ain't gonna get you in
on the 24th to unload,

Just to add
a little bit more pressure.

Narrator: now captain andy
will have to hustle

To get on to better fishing,

Especially with
the ice pack forecast

To swallow the grounds
in just two days.

If I don't see anything
through magoo, we're
[bleep] blazing north.

We're crab fishing.
We're gonna find the crab.

Narrator: the northwestern
has the upper hand.

Narrator: in calm seas 320 miles
northwest of dutch harbor

Is the 128-foot cornelia marie.

Phil:
it's starting to sink in.

Here we are.

My stomach's starting to go
into knots again.

It's just being back --

Just being back in the chair.

Narrator: and captain phil
wastes no time

Getting the rust
out of his chair.

He's decided to go for broke
and hunt crab near the ice pack.

We're gonna give it
a shot, anyway.

Whoo! Come on!

We are ready
to rock and roll.

Yeah! Sweet!
Let's do it!

Good things are gonna happen
right now!

First pot of '09, baby!

Uh-huh!
Here we go!

Opies '09, baby.
Pot's going over.

Maughtai: everybody's excited,
you know.

It's like christmas day
for us, you know.

Buoy foxtrot 2-3!

God, I already forgot
to write numbers down.

[Bleep]

[ Birds crying ]

Narrator: on deck, as the crew
rotates throughout their jobs,

The new engineer, steve ward,
takes a go at the hydros.

God. I hate this.

Come on, steve.

Everything is
a*s backwards.

Narrator:
and, well, for phil,

Slow and steady
does not win the race.

I can't get used
to this [bleep] yet.

Last pot.

Narrator: with pots soaking,
captain phil harris

Is officially back where he
belongs -- with his kids...

God, it's good to have
the old man back at the wheel.

...on the hunt for crab.

We missed him --
missed him a lot.

Phil: yeah, it's taken
a little while to get going,

But I'm getting there.

Starting to get the feel
for it again, you know.

Set some gear,

And now you get
the anticipation,

And hauling it back,
so that's good.

Narrator:
170 miles to the southeast

Is the 155-foot wizard.

Keith: in the last three hours,
we probably made

An inch of ice on the forward
parts of the boat.

It's a lot more than I thought.

I'm just trying
to do the best I can

To keep everything nice and safe
here right now.

Heavy freezing spray,
bering sea, 2009.

About 40 miles an hour
right now outside,

And they're gonna have to try

And put this 40x40-foot
square tarp

Up on the bow of the boat

To keep the ice from sticking
to the front of the stack.

That literally will become a
wall of ice if we don't do that.

This is not a fishing strategy.

This is
a self-preservation strategy.

That tarp's set up to just roll
right up and over, right?

Monte: theoretically, that's
what is supposed to happen.

That tarp's got to go up,
and it's got to go up fast.

You know what?
Have a horn on standby.

I'll have the hailer up

So you can scream at me
if I need it, all right?

Okay. Good luck.
Stay safe.

[ Laughs ]

That's a good way
to start the season --

Sets the pace.

Keith: as far as I can see
is wave after wave --

15- To 20-footers,
stacked up one after another.

[ Indistinct shouting ]

Yeah, the only guys
I've got working

On this project right now

Are all my full-share guys
and my brother -- that's it.

This is the worst I can
remember, without question.

Narrator: keith colburn is
in the worst possible position

For a crab-boat captain --

A full stack of pots,
50-knot winds,

And now 30-foot seas.

Give me a hand!

Keith: forget about the [bleep]
tarp and hang on!

Narrator: his crew is
left completely exposed

To the wind and towering waves.

Okay, you guys.

We may be aborting
on this pretty quickly.

[Bleep]

You want to abort
on the whole thing?

Yeah, abort!

Okay, let's abort, then.

Last I heard was "abort."

Now we got these guys
still strapping it down.

Lynn, can you hear me?

Abort! Abort!

Everybody off the stack
immediately! Just abort!

Get off the stack now!

Heads up. We're gonna take
a little water right now.

Heads up on the bow. Watch out.
Hang on! Hang on!

Holy [bleep]