INTERVIEW: Looking for salmon in new ‘Alaska: Battle on the Bay’ series

Alaska: Battle on the Bay, which airs new episodes 10 p.m. Thursdays on Animal Planet, is a reality series that documents the mad dash to catch thousands of sockeye salmon in Alaska’s Bristol Bay. Among the high-speed boats trying to get in on the action is one owned by Taran White, who now finds himself a reality TV star on the new series.

“Luckily, I asked for the lightest cameraman and smallest they could get me because weight is a big factor,” White said recently about the challenges of being filmed on his boat. “It blows us down being a jet boat. He was a really cool guy. He did get in the way at times because we don’t have any seats for him. I don’t even have a bunk for him, so the few times where we did all sleep at the same time, he slept on the galley floor. And we were stepping over him, and I gave him my bunk when I was fishing and he needed to sleep. It’s a tight quarters. It’s a 32-foot boat and very small space, so I have a full crew. So definitely it was hard.”

White said that when the salmon are making their run — a time when the tide floods into the river — “the fish are just pouring over the boundary line.” That boundary line keeps back the fishing vessels, but there are so many cascading fish, it proves no match.

“You want to set your net right on that line, but the tide is pushing you in three knots,” White explained. “It is a battle trying to get to that line and set your net out and have the most exposure. That’s why having a fast boat is really helpful. At times, yeah, it’s so many boats crammed into a small area. There’s a lot of fish, but it’s putting a piece of bread in a cage full of rats.”

Based on the cutthroat battle and the many boats on the river, one might think that the fishery is overfished. However, White said the rivers only need 10 million fish to be sustainable. Anything more, he said, would lead to overpopulation problems and lower return rates the next year. Debates about ethical fishing have continued for a long time, but White said the fishery is “well-managed,” resulting in a run of 44 million salmon last year.

“Alaska fishery management is the best in the world. With Bristol Bay in particular, there’s such a strong run. There are definitely fisheries down south … you’re not guaranteed a good year, but every single year in my life it has been really productive. And it really only takes 60,000-70,000 pounds to break your expenses. That’s not a whole lot especially when you have a fast boat, and you can get to where the fish are.”

For White, sockeye salmon fishing is a family profession. When he was young, he learned gillnetting off the beach and eventually moved into “drifting,” or boat fishing.

“I started with my mom and sister and cousins off the beach, fishing off the beach in another type of fishery, in the same area,” he said. “And then at age 14, I hopped on my dad’s boat, and he taught me how to fish.”

Those early experiences led him to purchase a fixer-upper boat six years ago. Admittedly it was the “slowest boat in the bay,” but he eventually took out a loan and bought his current boat, the Thunder, which features 910 horsepower and two 18-inch jets. White said he now has the “fastest boat up there.”

Today, he and the crew focus mostly on salmon. He has tried herring (a sardine-like fish with good roe), but the price for the fish is not enticing enough.

“I am absolutely happy with this profession. I’m going to do it when I’m 80 years old. There’s not many jobs that allow you … to work hard for six weeks of the year and then be OK and set. It allows me to travel and be comfortable. If I ever have kids some day, I’ll be able to do what my family did for me, which is basically have a lot of time with them.”

The weather in Alaska can be difficult for the crew. White often wears three layers of wool, and he needs to brave against the wind and rain, which sometimes feel like needles on his skin. The sleeping, or lack thereof, can be draining. Sometimes it’s only three hours a night.

“I need to stay focused and have so many decisions going all the time that can cost thousands or make you thousands,” he said. “You’re always thinking about your crew, and also maneuvering around the boats and having a good place to set your net and finding the fish. It’s extremely fun to find the fish when it’s not flooding and the tide is going out. It’s ebbing. It’s really fun to go into a sandbar, peek around this corner, go in this corner of the district where no boats are, and if you catch the mother-load, it’s the best feeling in the world.”

Occasionally he has a waking moment to barbecue some fresh salmon on the boat for the crew. He’s a fisherman who practices what he preaches.

“It’s fun to supply the world,” he said.

By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com

• Alaska: Battle on the Bay airs 10 p.m. Thursdays on Animal Planet. Click here for more information.