Fisherman's blues

Today I must start thanking our readers because we have already gone beyond a thousand visits to the blog, and you are reading us in many countries. We also know that many of you are recommending it to family and friends, which is a very good idea, so here’s to you, especially the tireless readers who follow us every year.

I'm going to change the pace of the blog a bit so I can post it during working hours in Spain. Thus, if there is a problem we can count on Uxía, the IEO librarian in Vigo, who is in permanent watch and always ready to help. You may not have noticed, but she has already done a nice bit of editing these past days. Thanks a lot, Uxía!

Yesterday we made seven hauls, which is very good considering how the day started. The afternoon was beautiful but intensely cold. We all did our bit and the only missing detail was the fish. Catches were really poor: a bit of capelin, some sandlance, some cod, a few American plaice and some yellowtail flounder, a tiny lumpfish, sea cucumbers in another haul. You know what depth we were fishing, right? This is a very similar beginning to last year, when we caught less than half of the usual catch for this survey.

Jose Luis' team. From left to right: Antonio, Vanessa, Lucía, Jose Luis, Jorge and Cristina

The water is freezing. We only recorded more than 1ºC on the surface in two hauls, and seabottom temperature ranged between -1 ° C to 1 ° C. And another difference is the number of gannets. Last year we saw them in some hauls and in small numbers, this year they have followed us since Monday and yesterday I counted about 15-20 couples. The gannets remind me of Santi Area, who used to be our First Mate.

Focusing on the task at hand: Antonio, Vanessa, Lucía, Jose Luis barely seen and Cristina

Jose Luis V opens a female yellowtail flounder (see the gonads with the orangish colour) after breakfast: he holds the stomach

But it is the deckhands who get the worse deal. It is being was very cold all day and they narrowly escaped some treacherous waves. This year I have to be careful not to confuse Paco and Alberto when I photograph them at work: they have a similar size and both use scarfs under the helmet. Their lifejackets are different at least. Fortunately the kitchen takes very good care of us and both lunch and dinner were very consistent meals. Since Monday I have heard several people commenting how glad they were about starting the fishing because they have started to worry about the side effects of the Vizconde's meals, which can be significant... mums do not worry that we will not lose weight, quite the opposite. And Fergus' mum, do not fret either: your kid has adapted superbly to Mediterranean diet.

Nair also spends sometime out on deck with her friend the CTD, but for now the effort is being rewarded with some textbook profiles. You will see, Elena!

Today we are on the way to the third set and catches remain very low. As yesterday: our total catch did not reach a ton. We have caught a few clusters of the solitary tunicate Boltenia ovifera, juvenile cod, about 25-30 cm in length, which is good news if they survive a few years, and a few yellowtail flounders. There has been a marked improvement in the sea, which is nearly flat, and the wind has  dropped. The cold remains the same. And our jamón: bare to the very bone.

Boltenia ovifera: I think the young cod were around them

Last evening at 2130 (our time)