Part 4, The Deadliest Season: Fishing the Gulf of Alaska Aboard the Elusive and Watching as Tragedy Strikes the Alaskan Fleet: Chapters 1-6 Summary and Analysis

In chapter 1, the record breaking season of 1980, gave each fisherman more money that they had seen before, encouraging many to use that money in irresponsible ways. Many fishermen would drink in the local bars night after night, often buying drinks for everyone in the bar to a tune of hundreds of dollars. Cocaine also became a problem in the crab fleet. Spike can recall walking onto a boat and seeing bowls full of cocaine on the table.

In chapter 2, the fishing fleet in Alaska had increased immeasurably in the three boom years and this caused the building of fishing...