The author recounts their initial venture into commercial fishing aboard the old boat, Evening, with a grizzled captain named Mick. Despite their training and preparation, the experience quickly turns perilous. They set out to fish for albacore off Washington, preparing for what was intended to be a short training trip. However, the boat is in poor condition, and soon disaster strikes as the vessel sinks, leading to the tragic death of the captain and leaving the author adrift in the vast Pacific Ocean.
On my first time out as a commercial fisherman, my boat sank, my captain died, and I was left adrift and alone in the Pacific.
We spent a few days waiting for the weather to clear. Mick did paperwork and chores and I tidied the boat.
These would be short trips-four or five days at a time-to train me up for the summer, when I'd join Mick for a real voyage.
The Evening looked ramshackle, as if it had survived 80 years in the northern Pacific more by luck than design.
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