Working on the Edge: Surviving In the World's Most Dangerous Profession: King Crab Fishing on Alaska's HighSeas

Working on the Edge: Surviving In the World's Most Dangerous Profession: King Crab Fishing on Alaska's HighSeas
by Spike Walker

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Book Summary Information

Author: Spike Walker
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1993-03-15
ISBN: 0312089244
Number of pages: 279
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Book Reviews of Working on the Edge: Surviving In the World's Most Dangerous Profession: King Crab Fishing on Alaska's HighSeas

Book Review: Really awsome tale of fishing off the coast of Alaska
Summary: 5 Stars

This book is a semi-autobiographical tale of the dangers and rewards of fishing in both the Gulf of Alaska and the Bearing Sea. Spike Walker recounts his 8 years of fishing for crab, as well a touches on some of the cod and other fish caught in these cold waters. Walker talks about both the highs (the ability to earn $100,000 in four months, in the early 80's) and the lows (stories of death, missing fishermen, and rampant drug usage).

The book starts when Walker is between jobs and is broke. He calls a former classmate from College who encourages him to travel up to Alaska and "pound the docks" to look for work as a "greenhorn". The work is hard and you must be able to go without sleep for a numbers of hours, days. Spike talks about the reality of getting hired. Many Captains do not like to take out "Greenhorns" as they are not sure what will happen if the person can't take the mental stress that goes with days at sea, while sleep deprived. He mentions one story where someone got into a fight in a galley because they didn't' like the way a guy chewed. As the Captain you are responsible for the safety of all on your boat. You are also responsible for getting the best price for your catch.

Walker goes into details on some of the more prominent accidents during the era of his fishing. He spent time interviewing survivors and coast guard personnel to try and determine what was happening and how things went wrong. These stories are portrayed to the reader as some of the ways that make this job one of the most dangerous in the world. You have frigid seas, rogue waves, mechanical malfunctions that are all working against your success as well as mother nature which may cause more than a foot of ice to form on a boat, or hit the boat with a more than 60' wave.

Walker breaks the stories down by the time he spends on different boats, fishing for different types of King Crab (red, blue as well as Tanner Crab).

I thoroughly enjoyed this non-fiction book. For those who love the Discovery Channels "World's Most Deadliest Catch" this book is a must. You will even recognize the name of some of the ships that came by accidents. It is also a great look into the over fishing that happened in the 80's and how it came about. Well written and interesting.

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Summary of Working on the Edge: Surviving In the World's Most Dangerous Profession: King Crab Fishing on Alaska's HighSeas

No profession pits man against nature more brutally than king crab fishing in the frigid, unpredictable waters of the Bering Sea. The yearly death toll is staggering (forty-two men in 1988 alone); the conditions are beyond most imaginations (90-mph Arctic winds, 25-foot seas, and super-human stretches of on-deck labor); but the payback, if one survives can be tens of thousands of dollars for a month-long season.

In a breathtaking, action-packed account that combines his personal story with the stories of survivors of the industry's most harrowing disasters, Spike Walker re-creates the boom years of Alaskan crab fishing--a modern-day gold rush that drew hundreds of fortune-and adventure-hunters to Alaska's dangerous waters--and the crash that followed.

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