Before I arrived in Dutch Harbor, Alaska, I was warned plenty about getting seasick. I was not, however, warned about the potential for nausea from something else entirely – a dead herring in my mouth.
And yet here I find myself decked out in boots and a bright yellow bib while holding the frozen fish with a rubber glove as the crewmen of Captain Keith Colburn’s Wizard, the massive fishing boat made recognizable in households across the world by The Deadliest Catch, count down from three. My goal when they hit “one” is to rip its head clean off… with my teeth. Keith has assured me that I should be grateful the herring is frozen – otherwise, I’d have blood dripping down my chin – but it’s a little tougher than I expected (and honestly, it doesn’t taste too bad; kind of reminds me of eating tinned fish). I’m successful in my quest, though the rip isn’t quite as clean as Keith would like. Naturally, he has to show me how it’s done himself, to cheers from the crew.
