Lane continues fishing aboard Kiska Sea, lands spot on Deadliest Catch
By Tiffany Stuart
Nolan Lane grew up in Siletz with his
dad and mom, Buster and Kristy Lane. He
graduated from Toledo High school and
went into the Army.
Then he started to fish. This lifelong
career has landed him on the TV show
Deadliest Catch on the Discovery Chan-
nel. Here is an interview with Nolan Lane.
How long have you been fishing?
I started around 2000-2001; took a
couple years off and worked at the paper
mill and then went back fishing. It’s one
of those jobs where it gets in your blood
and that’s all you think about when you
are not doing it, yet when you are doing
it, you think about doing something else.
How did you get your start on a boat?
Growing up around here, you know,
a fishing community, I had a lot of bud-
dies that were doing it. Crab fisherman in
Alaska make good money. I asked a buddy
of mine, hear about any openings to throw
my name around. Right away said he had
a spot on the boat. Took off that summer
to do tender season and cod season.
Do you receive training before you go
on the boat?
No, you have to learn really quick.
It’s a fast-paced job.
what is a greenhorn?
A greenhorn is somebody new to
the fishing game. They might have had
experience somewhere else, but new to a
different type of fisheries.
what does a deckhand do?
Basically all the responsibilities of the
job. On the Kiska, we all rotate through
jobs, so everyone is trained on everything.
Jobs are from throwing a hook to running
the hydros to clearing the galley. If it’s your
cook night, you are cooking for the crew.
what do you cook?
We cook everything. We load up
when we are down south here. We’ll have
about $40,000 worth of groceries on. We
go from steaks, ground beef, chicken to
prime ribs. We get it all. We have two
ovens, big stand-up freezer and refrigera-
tor, two big tables. You know, you could
probably seat 12 people down.
Courtesy photos
Nolan Lane and the Kiska Sea. “2001, my first king crab season, there were 45-foot seas” is how Lane describes the worst storm he’s
experienced. Watch the Deadliest Catch on Tuesdays on the Discovery Channel or visit dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/deadliest-catch.
Do you ever cook crab or fish?
Not too often.
what hours do you work and sleep?
It all depends on generally how well
you are doing fishing. If we are catching
a lot of crab especially for opes (opilio or
snow crab) because our season is so long.
We have such a massive quota, we had 2.6
million pounds to catch. We try to get on a
good schedule. Shut down at midnight and
then hauling again at 6 or so in the morning.
A lot of times if the crab slow down, we try
to find them again. We keep going and going.
In the old days, derby days, there were
no quotas. Generally for the king crab sea-
son three days was all you were going to get
out of it. Back then, there was really no sleep
going on. Now for the most part, we will
generally get a few hours (of sleep) a night.
Are there laws that govern the boat?
There are standards from the Coast
Guard that we keep up for safety. You got
to keep a federal log book on what you
are catching. If we got a fine, it would be
all split up. Ultimately the fine goes to the
captain. It is overall responsibility that
everything is up to code. Like even your
pots have to be a certain way. You have to
have proper escapement, where it lets the
small crabs out and keeps the big ones in.
There is a cot mate put on the pots called
bio that you change out every 30 days.
They are designed if you lose a pot, the
cot breaks and after 30 days whatever you
caught has a chance to survive and get out.
what have you learned from being on
a commercial fishing boat?
Hard work and a good work ethic.
This is one of the most dangerous jobs in
the world. Brotherhood - you watch each
other’s back. It’s an adventure. You see
wild animals in Alaska - killer whales,
bears, eagles, foxes.
what is the hardest part of the job?
How long are you gone for?
It is a hard life to live because we
are gone a lot, half our year we spend up
there. I miss out on a lot. My daughter is
a freshman. Her freshman year flew by.
The job, the wear and tear on your
body. Crab pots could weigh over 1,000
pounds.
what is the easiest part of the job?
Sorting crab.
what is on the boat?
Galley (two tables/fridge/pantry),
mini-kitchen with pots and pans, boot
dryer room, locker area, gear room with
washer and dryer, bathrooms, stateroom
where there is TV with Blue Ray, lounge
area with a big screen, captain’s room,
wheel house (where you drive the boat).
Did you join the crew before it was
on TV?
Yes, last summer 2012.
Commercial fishing has been part of
the Siletz Tribal people’s lives for many
years. Robbie Jay, Justin Mason, Zeb
Payne, Joe Lane, Marcus Butler, Chris
Vandaam, Gary Hutchinson, Terry Mason,
Terry Mason (grandson), Todd Mason,
Scott Mason, Tad Mason, Jerry Howell,
Stuart Whitehead and Hank Kentta are
just some of the Tribal people who have
done commercial fishing. Fishing has
been a part of the Tribe and will always be.
Tribal canoes plan ceremony as they paddle Siletz River during pow-wow
By Willie Towner
Illahee Xing Native Arts/shwa’la
ni’illi dene’ canoe family has invited
several of our relative Tribal canoe
families to come and enjoy our annual
pow-wow and in an addition for this
year’s event, a canoe paddle upon our
beautiful Siletz River.
We all will participate in the parade
on Saturday morning, showing the
community that the canoes are back
to the Siletz rez! Following up in
the afternoon around 2 p.m., we will
have a canoe naming ceremony at the
plankhouse.
Then our canoe family and Logan
relatives plan to donate this new tradi-
tional vessel to the Tribe’s programs, with
Rusty Butler receiving the honor. Our
family wants to give back to our Tribe and
refresh that “river people image” and the
healings the canoe brings. We are canoe
N.D.N.s!
Then around 3, we plan to hit the
waters down at the Hee Hee Illahee city
park boat ramp. All the Tribal canoes will
do a purification ceremony upon the river,
together as one, unity and healing.
Then around 4, we will open the
waters for all to enjoy while paddling the
variety of Tribal canoes. We will have
fun canoe racing and simply enjoying the
healing experience of being in union with
others as well as paddling the canoes, the
beautiful virtual tradition and healing of
our peoples for thousands of years. We
will enjoy the waters until around 6, then
grand entry preparations.
Sunday morning, we will have the
Tribal canoes upon the plankhouse lawn
in a circle at 9 a.m. Then we plan to
feather dance within the circled canoes
for a couple hours right next to our Elders
housing, making it easier for them to
enjoy watching us carry on traditions, all
together, all Tribes as one.
And please an FYI - all dancers
are welcome on our line. No “no’s” to
anyone! But do have your own regalia,
please.
Let’s dance and bring healing to our
sacred grounds and suffering relatives.
We will then walk up the hill (those who
can) and dance grand entry, all together!
Unity presented for all to witness!
Our traditions of nocali/soregon
cannot be forgotten. We strive to keep
traditions alive with no divisions. We
are all related!
Noch.nos.sia/culture savage for
keeping traditions alive and skipper of
Dene’ Tuth-din.
August 2013
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SiletzNews
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