Northern Eagle

The Bering Sea in February can be an unforgiving place, and during a winter deep freeze I was aboard Northern Eagle, a factory fishing vessel operating out of Dutch Harbor, AK. Over 50,000 fish per hour can be caught, cleaned and processed onboard, then stored in its massive freezers. It’s not your average fishing boat at 341 feet long and 49 feet wide, able to bring in 180 tons of fish per net load. On a two-week mission to catch over 1400 tons of fish, we endured bad weather and elusive fish, got boarded by the US Coast Guard and faced the daily grind of working on the aft deck, slipping and sliding across fish under our feet as waves knocked the boat back and forth. I always watch my step, but there was an added level of caution after one of the deckhands told me to “watch the cables, watch everything… one wave can sweep you away.” He then removed his glove to reveal a missing left ring finger which he lost when he slipped on a deck covered in jelly fish and a large hook let loose crushing his hand. Careful where you walk and keep your head on a swivel everyone!

Tech Specs

Class: DNV 1A1
Type: ICE Stern Trawler
Length: 341ft (104m)
Propulsion: 5,295 kW/7,200 hp
Speed: 15 kt
Frozen Cargo Capacity: 1,550 mt
Refrigeration System: Teknoterm, converted in 2011 to NH3
Freezing Capacity: -30C product deep freeze and storage hold
Fish Meal Plant:  ASC composed solution, 32 mt / day capacity
Fishmeal Hold Tonnage: 350mt
Fish Oil Production: Alfa Laval, 25T / day capacity
Fish Oil Capacity:  261 mt
Trawl Winch:  Naust Marine, 2 x 65 T electric main trawl winches
Area of Operation:  Eastern Bering Sea, North Pacific