22x14 - Curse of the Hybrids

[bunniefuu]

- Ready?
- [deckhand] Yeah.

Overhead.

[Clark]
I was talking to the guy from
the cannery and he was saying

that in addition
to your bairdi quota,

you would get
an additional 30% of hybrids.

[deckhand speaking over radio]
Clear?

- [Sig] Part bairdi, part opilio.
- [Clark] Yeah.

[deckhand] Down.

- [Sig] Really?
- [Clark] Yep.

That's a third more money
in our pocket.

That area can be a very
dangerous place to fish,

that's for sure.

We're talking bigger waves
and sub-zero temperatures.

Scary.

[Sig] The ice is already
coming down.

So guys are gonna
hear about this,

and they're gonna want
to roll right in.

[Rick] Wow.
These are all hybrids.

Ooh!

You want to put the hybrids
in the back tank.

Whoa!

[Bob] Crab are leaking
out of the pen.

- The guy's got to go down there.
- Hold on!

[Johnathan]
Time Bandit's going in.

I'm gonna go
through this one

and try to head toward the gear.

You know, this is how
the Titanic sunk.

[deckhand] Go, go!

[bleep]!

- Are you OK?
- [bleep] up.

- That's a tough one, dude.
- We've created a slack tank.

At this point,
we're at God's mercy.

Whoo!

Let's go fishing, baby.

[narrator]
of Dutch Harbor...

Oh.

Hang on!

Yeah!

...on the Aleutian Lady.

[Rick]
This is not fun right now.

But I have an offload

that I need to try to get
as many pounds

as I could possibly get.

[deckhand] Let's go, let's go!

This area is normally where
the hybrids and bairdi mix.

Historically known
for some of the worst seas

in the Bering Sea.

Targeting 60 fathom depths
along the border

of the opilio and bairdi
fishing grounds,

Captain Rick Shelford gambles
he can pluck

$180,000 of hybrid crustaceans
from their habitat,

a steep continental slope

where Arctic
and Pacific currents collide,

creating wave heights

twice that of
the surrounding Bering Sea.

[crew cheering]

- [deckhand] Come on,
come on, come on!
- [deckhand #2] Come on crab!

Here we go.
Let's find out what we got.

- Come on, baby.
- Looks good.

- Oh!
- There we go, baby!

- Yeah, baby!
- Whoo!

[Rick] That is what
we're looking for.

Yeah!

All right.

[deckhand]
See how the mouth is,
like, it's not quite an M,

like, in the middle?

It's because it's a hybrid.

It looks like an opie,

[bleep] but it doesn't have
a perfect M mouth.

Just a huge biomass of
hybrids, opie-bairdi.

- It's just a slight,
subtle thing.
- Yeah.

Eyes and mouth.
So that's your main tells.

They've mated together.
They've intertwined.

There's a lot of 'em.

[deckhand] Whoo!

Yeah, baby!

OK, watch the starboard
rail, everybody.

[deckhand] Rock and roll!

- Whoo!
- Wow!

Crab!

[Rick] I got my head
on a swivel up here,

but I can't see everything.

[bleep].

- Oh yeah!
- Whoo-hoo-hoo!

[indistinct]

Wow.

- Whoo, we got crab!
- Oh!

[crew cheering]

Oh!
Oh!

[Rick] You OK, dude?

[groans]
Oh, I got nailed.

[bleep].

[indistinct chatter]

[bleep].

Ugh, you're gonna have
a bruise, bro.

[Rick] The farther south,
the better it looks.

So I'm gonna move this string
a little bit farther south.

- Come on.
- Whoo!

[Rick] Every time
I look at the weather,

it's worse and worse and worse.

- Whoo!
- Oh!

But there is no stopping.



on the opilio grounds.

What's it forecasting
for the next five days?

[Andy speaking over phone]

Really?

If I can't rescue their gear,
then we're in trouble.

OK, that'll be
my third miracle.

Then I'll be a saint.

Saint John, they'll call me.
Saint John.

Hey man, thanks.

Thanks, Andy.
OK.

We're out.

Aboard the Time Bandit.

[Johnathan] We've got 96 pots
to stack on.

and finish this opilio season.

But this ice
is gonna keep moving.

It's gonna be more and more
and more in front of us.

Racing to kick off his winter
golden king crab fishery...

all that stands between
Captain Johnathan Hillstrand

and finishing his first
opie season in four years

is 35,000 more pounds

and the 900-mile-wide
Arctic ice pack

threatening to engulf


What's up, brother?

How you doing?
What's going on?

[Freddy] What?

OK, guys,
let's get ready to haul.

Back to work!

[Freddy and OJ speaking]

[OJ] I know.

[bleep].

Gonna keep going.
We're so close.

Morning, guys.

[OJ and Johnathan speaking]

[Johnathan] Yeah.

I lost my pops.

Freddy lost his dad, so...

It's part of a...

We'll all have to go
through this.

It's not easy, though.

How old was your pops?

[Johnathan] Seventy.

He had a good life.
That's a good age.

[Johnathan]
Yeah, I'm so sorry, buddy.

[Johnathan] OK.

[Johnathan]
Yeah, I'm sorry.

- We'll get you home.
- Roger.

But God loves you
and God's your father too.

- Thank you Captain,
thank you.
- Sorry.

- God bless you, OK.
- God bless.

- [Johnathan] Well, that sucks.
- Love you, Captain.

- Thank you.
- Thank you, Cap.
Thank you, Cap.

- Thank you uso,
thank you, Freddy.
- Yeah.

[indistinct]

[Johnathan]
That [bleep] teared me up, uh.

That's a tough one, dude.

I lost my dad.

The worst thing is
the sound of that dirt

when the dirt hits
the top of the coffin.

Oh, my God, dude.
Aye, aye, aye.

But at the end of the day,
we're family.

We're gonna send him home.

And come back and try to save
these before the ice hits us.

It's gonna be really close.



on the hybrid grounds...

aboard the Northwestern.

We're gonna see if there's
any luck in you.

Yeah.

There's only one way to
find out.

Biting the head
off a herring.

- [bleep].
- [Sig speaking]

One way or another.

With 20,000 pounds of opilio
in his tank, Captain Sig Hansen

targets a new species,
opilio-bairdi hybrids.

At Mandy's request,
hired Bob.

She's been doing a great job.

And then moving into
the hybrid season,

I want to finish strong.

With Captain in training,
Sophia "Bob" Nielsen

ensuring a safe
and profitable new fishery

by performing
a sacred Bering Sea ritual.

I'm gonna make up
a special treat

for our little guest here.

What, you got to find
the biggest [bleep] herring

you can find?
- Yeah.

- Oh!
- Yeah!

- There you go.
- Bleh!

[laughing]

Bleh!

Ugh, it's in my [bleep] teeth.

Hell yeah.
All right.

No, that was gross.

No, that's good luck.

- We need it.
- [Bob gagging, coughing]

[Sig] Our hope is that we see
those big half-full pots

with these hybrids.

We want a thick school

so we can really make
some fast money.

I think we can get ahead
of the weather here

if we're lucky.

[deckhand] Whoo!

[Sig] I'm gonna set this
in the ditch right

on the starboard side.

Bob, if you see any waves that
want to sneak up...

let me know and I'll let
them know.

I'll be the eyes
in the back of your head.

- OK, set it when you're ready.
- [Clark] Let's go!

We have a northerly wind
coming at us about 20 degrees,

north to south.

[Bob] Look out.
Here comes a wave.

Here comes one.

The guys are getting wet
out there.

Whoa!

And when you get the roll of
the boat just right,

it kind of washes their feet out
from under them.

- Here comes a wave.
- Here comes one.

Watch out.

Whoa!

Oh!

- Whoa!
- Oh!

[Sig] Beh!

All right?

[deckhand speaking]

[Sig] Try to keep the boat
as safe as we can.

We're getting some combers
coming over the rail.

[phone ringing]

- [groans]
- Oh, my--

No, I get it.
I can...

I understand.

All right, pal.

I'm out.

We're gonna have to start
splitting these tanks, you know?

We got to get the hybrids
in a different tank

than the opilio.

The canneries want
them separated.

It's a big fine.

Well, we're gonna have to
figure this out quick.



just outside St. Paul Island...

[Johnathan speaking]

Standing by on channel 16 for
any concerned traffic.

...on the Time Bandit.

The harbormaster called
and said the ice--

the harbor's froze over.

Coming in, so, leave it to
our own discretion to come in.

OJ's dad just died.

So we're gonna let him go home.

All kinds of stuff trying
to stop me here.

But, uh, we're going in.

We're going in,
that's all there is to it.

This ice ain't gonna win.

With 96 opilio pots marooned
in the path of Arctic floes,

Captain Johnathan races to drop

bereaved deckhand
OJ Ganuelas on St. Paul Island.

Life doesn't wait
if you hesitate.

But encircling the harbor,
eight-inch-thick pack ice,

capable of puncturing
the Time Bandit's two-inch

steel-reinforced hull.

[Johnathan] Oh.
OK, here we go.

[Johnathan and Steve speaking]

[rumbling]

[heavy thud]

[Johnathan] That big plate
is the size of the boat almost.

It's a big [bleep], that's
a heavy chunk of ice
there, my friend.

[muffled thudding]

They're running down the side
of the boat right now.

[heavy clunk]

Ooh, that was a good chunk.

[Johnathan] [bleep].

[bleep].

[loud thud]

Ooh, that was a good one.

Watch the [bleep] out.

I'll break my way in, Neal.

[ice creaking]

[whirring slows, stops]

Power's stuck.

I gotta, like, pull over there
and then back up.

I gotta back up far enough
so I go straight in.

[OJ] It's crazy.

[Johnathan]
All the way back out.

I'm gonna smash this [bleep]
right straight in here this way.

I'm creating
the Northwest Passage.

- We're going in, brother.
- [Neal] OK.

Nothing easy about
this season, is there?

Now we're clear.
Whoo-hoo!

Spring first, this one first.

We gotta get out of here.

[deckhand] Roger.

[Freddy speaking]

[sighs]
Sorry, brother.

- [Freddy] Get home
and have a safe trip.
- [OJ] Thank you, brother.

[Johnathan]
OJ's flying home.

So, now I got to get
our a*s back up there

before that ice eats
our lunch.



on the hybrid grounds.

The weather's still
picking up.

We're in a huge biomass
of hybrids.

I want to be able
to stay in front of it.

So we moved all of our gear
down south.

We've got an offload coming up.

So this whole thing is about

hauling gear as fast as you can.

...aboard the Aleutian Lady.

[Steven speaking]

So I think we're just trying
to get by the string

and see how we do.

Sometimes they're coming
from the port side,

sometimes they're coming
from the bow, and then we get

a random creeper coming
from over here

when I'm looking over there.

It makes it so hard to drive.

[Steven] Roger!

Here it comes.

- Whoo!
- Yeah, buddy!

Boom! There it is.

[deckhand]
We like those numbers.

[laughing]

Yes!

[crew speaking]

[Rick]
That's what we need.

Now all we got to do is just
keep pushing, keep hauling,

and keep grinding.

Oh [bleep]!

- Oh!
- [bleep]!

[deckhand] Ah!

Oh [bleep]!

[groans]

- [bleep]!
- [deckhand] Ah!

Sorry, that wave came and I...

Ugh!

[Rick]
I mean, we can't just back down
and go into offload short.

So I'm gonna be jamming
on these pots

and hope and pray
I get enough crab

to make my offload.



[Sig and Clark speaking]

...aboard the Northwestern.

[sighs]
I don't know what to do

I mean, the cannery
is gonna want to separate

the crab, you know?
- Mm-hmm.

A web?

Oh...

So what do you want to do?

Go from the top
and over, or what?

That's pretty nifty.

I see it.
Do it.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, do it.
That's good.

- Try it.
- [Clark] OK.

[Sig]
That's a great idea.

We got to separate
the different types of crab,

the hybrids and then,
of course, opilio.

They're talking about using
the bunch of web they got.

It's just going to make like
a little pen.

I like that idea,
keeping the crab separated.

[Sig] Well, I think we got
a plan here.

- You know, hopefully it'll work.
- [Clark] Going.

There you go.

To keep the opilio
in his tanks apart

from the hybrid crab
in his sights,

Captain Sig drains all


from the aft hold
to build a barrier

using 1,000-pound wooden
planks

and nets scavenged
from below decks.

Anytime you press a tank up
or down and it's sloshing,

that's when all that pressure
is going back and forth with

the weight of the crab.

That's dangerous.

That's how boats can turn
over and capsize.

Yeah, Roger!

We kind of came up with a plan
with this net.

Put the net over 'em,
stapled that to the bin board.

This is the first time
I've ever done it,

so see how it works out.

Essentially, it's like three
boards high with some webbing

over top and nails
to secure the crab.

Hurry up!

Yeah, Roger.

[beeping]

He's pressing the tank now.

They're starting to press.

We'll see how well this
contraption works.

Whoa!

Now it's moving.

- [metallic creaking]
- Ugh.

[Sig] I mean, we're just trying
our best to keep a slow speed

and just go with it,
but it still rolls.

Water builds up one side,
goes the other side,

back up.

It just starts
building momentum.

At this point,
we're at God's mercy.

[Karl] Whoa!

You know, as soon as the tank
was empty, the guys got down

there and just
got on-- oh, [bleep].

Oh, [bleep].

[Clark speaking]

How we looking?

- The board's out.
- [Sig] What, it broke?

Here, pump [bleep].

Are you [bleep]
serious right now?

- [Karl] I'm serious.
- [bleep]damn it.

[Karl speaking]

The board is so close.

The water was almost to half,
and that [bleep] board gave way.

Hey, uh, the guys got to go
down there

and try to fix that bin board.

And we've got to pump out
the tank again

and try it all over.

Ah, [bleep].

[Sig] I came up with the idea to
separate the hybrids

from the opilio.

Everything looked good.

Pumping up the tank,
and then the weight of the crab

in that bin moved,
and it was just enough

to break the top bin board.

Hopefully, we can get this
to work.

Old a*s bin board.

We got to get the board out of
there and, you know,

try to just put the web across.

- [Clark] Got it?
- [deckhand] Got it.

Hope we got enough nails to
strap it down.

[indistinct]

[indistinct]

Ah, [bleep].

They're gonna start filling
the tank up.

[Sig] OK.

Let me get the boat
turned here.

Now, my job is just to keep
the boat nice and straight

downwind so we're not
sloshing around.

Look.

[Karl speaking]

That water level needs
to come three feet,

four feet and get up above
those boards, then you're fine.

[Karl speaking]

It's almost three quarters
of the way full now.

Get it less violent.

[Karl speaking]

[Clark] Now you just have
a little slosh.

[Bob] Well, we did it.
The tank is pressed.

[both chuckle]

Well, that's good news.
[bleep].

[Bob]
No, I think it's gonna work.

[Sig speaking]

[deckhand speaking]

[Sig]
Right now, we'll just run up
to the gear in the water

and see if we can find
something in there.

Fingers crossed.



on the edge
of the Arctic ice floes...

OJ's dad died,
so he's flying home.

But now we gotta just
keep hauling.

Ninety-six pots.

Try to save these
before the ice hits us.

...aboard the Time Bandit.

Oh, yeah, that's a big flow
there, my friends.

That's a thick one there.

It just does not look
good here.

We're going in, brother.

Time Bandit's going in.

I don't like this one bit.

It'll k*ll you, it'll just crush
your butt like a little tin can.

I think we got an all stop.

We're going through.

I see my pots.

Perfect string right there.

There's no ice.

We got to get these up
quick, guys.

- [bleep].
- Yeah, baby!

- This is it.
- Come on crabs! Come on crabs!

[deckhand] Yeah!
Come on, come on, come on!

- Oh yeah, oh yeah!
- There's crab!

Look at that son of a b*tch,
there's crab!

- Whoo!
- Baby, baby, baby!

[bleep] crab!

[indistinct]

[bleep] crab, big ones!

Oh, oh!

That's enough crab to feed,
like, 400 people

with one pound each.

That was a good one.

We'll see what
the next one has.

[bleep].

Hey, boss!

[indistinct]

Oh, no.
I think I got it on the wheel.

Bring the grapple back
real quick.

Go, go, go, go, go, go!

[Johnathan]
That's putting undue stress
on the motor.

[bleep].

[Johnathan]
It's just the last thing
we needed right now.

Forty hours to delivery.

aboard the Time Bandit.

Oh, no.
I think I got on the wheel.

[Johnathan]
He missed it and then,

I thought I put this in neutral,
but I left it in reverse.

So when it rolled on the end of
the boat,

it went right in the...

So I might not
get this one back.

With three-quarter-inch nylon

bound in his
starboard-side propeller,

Captain John directs
the crew to use a separate line

and his hydraulic power hauler
to pull the tangle free

or limp 360 miles
back to Dutch Harbor

on his port-side engine.

OK, roger!

[Johnathan]
Be careful.

That's where everyone
falls in right there.

Yeah, you got it.
Freddy's got it.

[Johnathan speaking]

Start pulling it
towards the block.

All right, good job!

Have to get the line,
and we put it in the block

and put some tension on it,
hoping we can pull it out.

- OK.
- Look at your line,
now you should [indistinct].

Oh, let's go!

- Whoo!
- That's how you do it.

- Look, there it is!
- Let's go, baby!

- Bring the pot in, land it.
- Roger.

Loaded!

Jackpot!

[indistinct cheering]

They're here.
Ha-ha!

Don't count us out.

We'll see.

Aye, aye, aye, aye, aye.



[Sig] Let's pick a name
for this string.

Bob!

- I call it 2.0.
- What's that mean, 2.0?

It's the better refined
version, because I did it.

Oh, OK.

...on the hybrid grounds.

[deckhand] Here we go.

Come on, baby.
Come on, come on.

OK, first part of the hybrids
coming up, 2.0.

[Bob] Right on.
Well, the tank is pressed.

It's looking good.

[Sig]
Hopefully we can get our crab,

and hopefully the boat
will hold together.

Come on, baby.

Come on.

- Oh!
- Yeah, baby!

Yeah!

Well, that was a pretty
good pot.

That works.

- Let's go!
- Whoo!

- Wow that's good.
- Whoo!

Pot's coming up!

- Oh, yeah!
- Yeah!

Yeah!
[laughing]

Oh, yeah.
We're in 'em now!

Oh, my God!
Look at that pot.

- Better?
- Oh yeah!

We're adding up, fast.

Whoo!

Just want to really
keep up the tempo

so we can make it in, OK?

- Yeah, baby!
- Let's go!

[Sig]
Hopefully, we have enough
hybrids in all this gear

to wrap this season up.

- [Rick] Damn, that is full.
- Yeah, it's hella full.

All right, guys.
Noah, good job, Nico, Steve.

For all the [bleep]
we went through,

I'm thankful that we got that.

All right.

We got 30,000 pounds
of hybrids.

That is a huge blessing
and makes me very happy.

[deckhand] Yes, sir.

Hey, guys.

- Sexy, yeah.
- [Freddy] Big boys, big boys.

[Johnathan] We made it through
all those ice floes.

We just got to offload them.

We're blessed by God,
and we got some nice-a*s crab

down there, 1.5-pound crab.

Done with opilio.

Just need to get back
out there.

We're going to go fishing.
Golden crabs.

Gonna keep my little head,
nose, to the grindstone,

whatever the [bleep]
that is saying.

Why do I have all
these sayings?

Bob, it's on the bow.

[Sig]
At the end of the season,
we got a flaming hook.

We've been doing it for years.

I don't know how it even came
about, to be honest.

If you miss on the last pot
in the season, it's bad luck.

[Bob speaking]

OK.

[Bob] Hi-yah!

Hey!

Yay!

[Bob] Get over here.

A little luck goes
a long way.

Dude, I was gonna
throw up if I missed.

[Sig]
Bob did everything we asked
of her, and then some.

You know, for the first time,
it's not easy for anybody.

[Bob]
Thank you so much.

- She did a good job, I thought.
- [Bob] Thank you.

[Sig] So I think in the future,
opportunities will come to her,

and so...

all she has to do is grab them.
- Thank you!

- Whoo!
- Last pot coming up!

[Bob] It's been one of
my favorite seasons so far.