Fish Cleaning at the Captain's Docks in Seward

No, we did not catch any of these but someone on a Charter Boat did.
Cod

Salmon

Halibut

Even though we did not go fishing we were still able to find fish to clean and keep for ourselves. There's Don now cleaning tonight's dinner of Cod and Halibut.





It seems it is the responsibility of the ship's Captain to fillet any fish caught on his vessel, if his clients want him to. This fellow (below) was very fast, filleted big hunks of meat but left a lot for we beggars too.

Once the Captain is finished filleting the fish, he will toss the "tail" (rest of the fish) into a common container beneath the cleaning stations. Anyone who would like the "tail" simply needs to ask for it. The Captain will either give it to you or say no. That was how we got our fish to clean. I asked the first couple of times, then Don, seeing it wasn't too embarrassing, asked also. In all he cleaned up about 5 pounds of fish for us, which was a lot considering he was only getting the "remains".

See, lots of other folks do this very thing. Ye who asks, receives.

Our friend and neighbor, Tayja here really knows how to clean a fish. She also fishes/snags for her own salmon out front from where we are camped on the ocean. Yes, snagging in this location is legal. Being Korean Tayja is a creative cook and also collects the kelp and seaweed when the tide is out, which she cooks along with the fish (all parts of the fish) and uses for other meals too.


The fresh fish dinner Don fixed for us was delicious!


Each day the "tails" tossed into the bin below the cleaning station are crushed and chopped into small bits, then pushed through an underwater conveyance into the ocean far away from shore. It is a virtual smorgasbord for the seagull and other creatures of the waters. Smart idea as it keeps the gulls away from the cleaning areas.

BBYN Karen & Don