At Graveyard Point, the line between work and passion blurs. Each year, over 120 fishermen from all walks of life venture to this abandoned 1920s cannery on Alaska's rugged shores, driven by one shared goal: to harvest the world's most prized wild sockeye salmon.
"Graveyard" takes you inside this unique world, where the spirit of the Wild West still thrives and fishermen brave unimaginable conditions. Some are there for adventure, others for a living, but an unshakable commitment to the sea binds all. David Wright, a veteran set-netter, and his son Isaiah share their stories of resilience, love for the craft, and the generational ties that keep them coming back—season after season.
In a time when the industry faces deep uncertainty, these fishermen hold fast to their way of life, united by the motto: "The action is the juice." Watch as they continue a tradition that transcends the paycheck, driven by the cycle of nature and the call of the sea.
Discover the raw beauty, challenges, and camaraderie that make Graveyard Point home for those who fish not just for survival but for the sheer love of the chase. Filmed, edited, and photographed by Silas Karbo, "Graveyard" will be featured at the 2024 Pacific Marine Expo on Wednesday, Nov. 20, from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m.
Roughly 120 fishermen from all over North America load their skiffs with nets, canned meals, and whiskey to make the voyage to an abandoned 1920s cannery called Graveyard Point. Some are looking for a check to help pay for college, while others are returning for their 40th season. They all share an appetite for adventure and a willingness to brave conditions many would consider unlivable. More than anything, everyone here is after the same prize: the world’s greatest run of wild sockeye salmon.
Graveyard Point is a unique place. It has a bygone Wild West spirit that’s hard to find elsewhere. A few dozen wooden structures, weathered gray by the elements, stand staunchly at the edge of the shoreline. For decades, each set-netting operation at Graveyard has squatted in the remains of the old cannery buildings. Every upright structure being inhabited by fishing crews. A central building even serves as the shared spot for net mending and, importantly, the coveted Graveyard ping pong tournament. The mantra “eat, sleep, fish” rules the daily lives of all.
With the 2024 Bristol Bay sockeye season completed, it’s no secret that it was another dismal year for many fishermen across the region. Any time spent scrolling through Bristol Bay fishing forums immediately reveals the current atmosphere of disappointment and negativity. Some fishermen begrudgingly point out that they could make just as much working at McDonald’s. Now, more than in the last few decades, fishermen are torn between their way of life and the financial risk associated with it.
David Wright, who hails from Louisville, Kentucky, has a passion for commercial fishing. In many ways, fishing keeps him going. Graveyard Point has become an intrinsic part of him in a way that’s tangible. He’s been spending his summers set-netting here for over twenty five years. “My first season, I think I spent $1,500 to get up here and made about $900 back,” he laughs. He’s returned every year since. Most seasonal fisherman hold an “off-season” profession, and David spends the rest of the year as an educator. As one might expect, being a teacher/fisherman has not made him rich by any means. David’s margins are usually razor-thin in affording the operation of his set-net site. As a result, he often jokes about how his operation is “pretty bare-bones.” He and his crew get by without many of the luxuries that some other set-netting crews at Graveyard have, such as hydraulic net rollers and a dedicated camp cook. Despite this, David has become a seasoned captain with a more-than-respectable catch record.
This season was different for David. After decades of grinding and scrapping together two sources of income, he’s ready to take a step away from educating. Despite the risk and the less-than-ideal state of the industry, he has decided to try and make his passion his full-time work. David sees the sockeye salmon harvest as a beautiful cycle - a force of nature in which he gets to play a small part. For him, it’s not about the money; it’s about the way of life. Part of his planned Midwest fish-selling model is intended to give a large portion of profit back to organizations supporting the region from which salmon come from. As he puts it, this allows him to continue the cycle of receiving from the resource and helping sustain it.
This season, David began to expand his operation with his son, Isaiah, and has taken on additional skiffs and site permits. Isaiah began fishing out of Graveyard Point when he was just 14 years old. Commercial fishing has become a family affair for him and his dad. “I was kind of thinking that Isaiah would go and do something normal,” David jokes. “But he just got into it; he loves it—maybe even more than I do.” Isaiah, now almost 21, sees himself as the next generation of fishermen. The tough state of the industry hasn’t deterred him. He says he wants to continue to grow, learn, and help make his generation even better than the last. “Every stress when I’m at home just melts away up here. This is where my bread and butter is. I don’t think I could ever get washed out.” He points out that fishing has not just provided him with extra savings; it’s allowed him to develop a work ethic and grow as a person.
Both father and son are tied to the life. An average person might call them naive. Why would you spend so much money and time on something that might just end up making you broke? David and his son often refer to a quote they live by: “The action is the juice,” which comes from Michael Mann’s heist film Heat. To Isaiah and David, it’s not the money that keeps them coming back year after year; it’s the action. “All the stresses, all the obstacles, it’s all part of it - that’s the fun in it,” Isaiah says. For David, the consuming intensity of fishing allows him to recenter himself each year: “Good physical work that’s close to the elements, close to the land—I need that; it’s great for my spirit. I think hard work is good for people, you know?”
But, as many fishermen put it, the mindset is hard to describe to someone on the outside. “Until they come up here and grab a line, pop a fish out of a net—it’s hard to let them know what it’s like,” says Greg Harris, one of the oldest veterans of Graveyard Point. “I honestly don’t think I would’ve rather done anything else.” Greg, who is now getting ready to retire from fishing, came to Graveyard after leaving the Air Force forty years ago and fell in love with it. As Greg puts it, he’s passing the torch and selling his operation to the next generation, paying it forward, and making sure the lifestyle lives on.
John Schandelmeier, another longtime set-netter and somewhat Bristol Bay legend, echoes this love for the way of life: “If you’re doing something you like, it’s not work. I tell people I retired at 17 and I’ve been retired ever since.” He says what attracts many people to fishing is the simplicity. You’re given the chance to focus all your energy on one thing— a form of meditation. All of the demands and distractions of a normal job disappear. Although he’s fully aware of the present challenges faced by fishermen, he has no plans to retire anytime soon.
Though Alaska commercial fishing is not the gold rush it’s been in the past, the hardened people it has formed continue to hold on. In the next few years, many in the industry will probably decide it isn’t worth the risk and sacrifice. But for the fishermen and women at Graveyard Point, the action is still the juice.
