Mike Corey

That guy, man...

He knows how to fish.

We'll make some good money crewing for him.

As far as Mike's concerned, it's decided.

Tomorrow, they'll tell their old skipper they're leaving.

And the day after that, they'll set sail on the Le Conti.

Bob Doyle lets out a groan as he hauls in another longline.

Like every other line they've cast for the past three days, it's nearly empty.

Just a few gray cod, and none of the more expensive rockfish they've hoped to catch.

So far, their first trip on the Le Conti has been a bust, and the 20-foot swells haven't made for a pleasant ride.

But Bob doesn't mind.

He's learning a lot from Mike DiCapua and Gigi Mork, who are both excellent fishermen.

And more importantly, he hasn't been drinking.

Being at sea and working a demanding job have given him a sense of focus and purpose he hasn't felt since his divorce.

It's helped him stay off the bottle.

The Le Conti is a long-line fishing vessel.

That means it casts out fishing lines several miles long, each with hundreds or even thousands of hooks.

And each hook has to be baited and set by hand.

It's delicate work that has to be done quickly, often with hands that are numb from cold Alaska winds.

Bob is getting better at it, but he still marvels at how fast Mike and Gigi are.