What is the difference between trolling and long-lining?
Trolling is the kind of fishing we do. We take 12 hooks, tie them onto 12 lines, and throw them over the side of the boat. Each hook has a jig – some brightly colored material that lures the fish. These hooks are dragged behind the boat at a staggered distance of 4 to 21 fathoms (a fathom = 6 feet). When a fish hits the hook it pulls on the line and a bell on the back deck rings. Before the ring from the bell has faded from our ears, someone (usually Harvey, he’s the fastest) is on the back deck pulling up the line. He pulls it in with a powered reel called a pinch puller, then brings the fish aboard by hand. The fish is killed and bled immediately then sent to the front deck to cool under a steady stream of seawater. After it’s cooled, it is put into the brine freezer to be frozen down to -2 degrees. The next morning the albacore is moved to the -30 degree fish holds and stays there until the boat is unloaded.
