Inside Alaska

Novels of Life, Love & Danger in The Great Land

Gear

Seiner Podcast

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Great images, with some video, and insights into the Thunder Bay Seiner Series:

See Alaskan commercial fishing salmon seiners working, boats, live salmon in the fish hold, an plenty of scenic shots.

Brailer

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The huge net holding fish is a brailer. It’s used to move fish caught in the seine (net) from the ocean and into the fish hold. Pulleys and ropes are used to lift the heavy brailer and swing it from the net to hovering above the fish hold. A pull chain releases the bottom of the brailer-bag, letting the fish drop into the hold.

Net Coming Off

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The net is being lifted by the power block then stacked on a flatbed trailer. Notice the black tarp on the wooden railing, which is to prevent the net from being caught and ripped.

Seiner Controls

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View from the deck (looking forward) on this seiner, from left to right:

  • alongside the cabin is a narrow walkway to get to the bow
  • the three rung ladder going from the main deck to the flying bridge
  • the orange hose is a wash-down hose that forces pumped seawater through, for washing the deck or fish hold.
  • (not shown on this boat) there is often a rain gear locker with hooks inside for hanging bibs, jackets, and gloves
  • the rusty-looking circle with the teal rope is part of the deck winch, used to bring the net in
  • the levers next to the cabin door are the controls for the power block, boom winches, wash-down pump and other gear
  • the cabin door: may be one solid door or may have two separate parts, upper and lower
  • the side roller is on the far-right and it’s used to bring in the net
  • hanging from the main boom is a rope-hauler. The winches attached to the boom are used to move the boom, using hydraulics
  • the aluminum hatches in the bottom, with a slider opening, cover the fish hold, below it

Power Block

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The power block is a spinning wheel, controlled with hydraulics, that helps bring the net in. The interior rubber grips the net, leadline, and corks, pulling the net and fish aboard, where the deckhands separate and stack it, corks on one side and leadline on the opposite side, with the webbing between them. On the boat above, the power block is on a slider on the main boom, meaning it can be extended to the end of the boom when needed, or brought in closer as shown above. One end of the net is hanging from the power block in the photo above.