Rolling seas in the frigid waters of the Bering Sea, temperatures that are regularly 30 below and thousands of pounds of steel pots that must be hauled every day – it’s just part of a day’s work for the crew of “Wizard,” one of the featured crab boats on the Discovery Channel’s hit series “Deadliest Catch.”
Capt. Monte Colburn, a lifelong resident of Tahoe and relief captain of “Wizard,” shared some stories and words of wisdom recently at the Tahoe Maritime Museum’s lecture series.
Born in South Lake Tahoe, Colburn and his brother Keith – captain of “Wizard” – moved to the North Shore in the early 1970s, and still call Tahoe home. While the brothers spend the winters crabbing in the Bering Sea, they enjoy the warmer climate of Tahoe each summer.
Cpt. Monte has enjoyed his fair share of adventures working on the crab boats of the Bering Sea, sandwiched between Russia and the United States with the Arctic to the north and the Pacific to the south. Last season he suffered two broken ribs, but has back on “Wizard” after only two weeks.
While he says that he now enjoys the competitive side of crabbing, he didn’t always enjoy it. “I had my first trip, I hated it, I hated my brother for getting me the job,” he says with a laugh. “I got the first check and said I could do it again.”
Despite the physical demands of the job, Cpt. Monte says it’s a job he’s enjoyed since his brother got him his first job on a crab boat in the mid-1980s. He then proceeded to fall into the sea between two crab boats and after hoisting himself onto a buoy, decided to call for help to get back on the ship in case his attempt wasn’t successful.
He worked on “Juno” from the early to late-90s before joining “Wizard” about 10 years ago. “Wizard” has been featured as part of “The Deadliest Catch” for the last three seasons.
“Wizard” is a 155-foot crab boat that began its life as a Navy yard oiler, giving her a large hold that can hold 450,000 lbs. of crab. There is an eight-person crew including Monte as relief captain and his brother Keith as captain, along with first mate, engineer and deck hands. “Wizard” works 24-hours-a-day, with two guys always in their bunks, rotating every six hours.
“Once we start fishing, we don’t stop,” he says.
“The Bering Seas has a way of swallowing people … it takes them in many ways,” Monte said after being asked about the death of Cpt. Phil Harris of “Cornelia Marie” in February from a stroke. Monte says crabbing can be a dangerous job, but the lifestyle, the stress and the poor diets aboard the boats also can threaten their lives. He noted that they are making more of an effort aboard “Wizard” to prepare healthy dinners.
Discovery Channel begin shooting the series in 2005, and off the more than 200 crab boats in the fleet, the few featured in the first season were chosen because they were willing to put up with the camera crew, Monte says. Discovery wasn’t paying, and most of the boats that they approached didn’t want to take on the crews, and care for and feed them. A few said yes and were featured in the early seasons.
“They are in the way … but, they’re all good guys,” Monte said of having the camera crew on board. But, he said almost all of them are extreme cameramen, some of whom have been to the Himalayas, and can handle the harsh conditions.
“The Deadliest Catch” is now seen in 135 countries and has been recognized all over the world from the show, which shoots 18 episodes each year.
“A lot of people don’t get a lot of adventure in their lives,” Monte said of the show’s popularity, where fans can enjoy the adventure he lives.
While the Bering Sea calls Monte to its waters each year, Lake Tahoe calls him home every summer, where he lives from the spring to mid-August.
“I can’t imagine a better place to grow up and also to reside,” he says.
Another crab boat captain that also lived in Tahoe once told him: “When it comes to Tahoe, all our called, but few are chosen.”
These are just a few of the tales Monte shared in a riveting talk at the museum. If you missed it, visit http://www.discovery.com/ where you can see video clips from past seasons. The sixth season is currently airing on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. Visit the Web site for a schedule.
Capt. Monte Colburn, a lifelong resident of Tahoe and relief captain of “Wizard,” shared some stories and words of wisdom recently at the Tahoe Maritime Museum’s lecture series.
Born in South Lake Tahoe, Colburn and his brother Keith – captain of “Wizard” – moved to the North Shore in the early 1970s, and still call Tahoe home. While the brothers spend the winters crabbing in the Bering Sea, they enjoy the warmer climate of Tahoe each summer.
Cpt. Monte has enjoyed his fair share of adventures working on the crab boats of the Bering Sea, sandwiched between Russia and the United States with the Arctic to the north and the Pacific to the south. Last season he suffered two broken ribs, but has back on “Wizard” after only two weeks.
While he says that he now enjoys the competitive side of crabbing, he didn’t always enjoy it. “I had my first trip, I hated it, I hated my brother for getting me the job,” he says with a laugh. “I got the first check and said I could do it again.”
Despite the physical demands of the job, Cpt. Monte says it’s a job he’s enjoyed since his brother got him his first job on a crab boat in the mid-1980s. He then proceeded to fall into the sea between two crab boats and after hoisting himself onto a buoy, decided to call for help to get back on the ship in case his attempt wasn’t successful.
He worked on “Juno” from the early to late-90s before joining “Wizard” about 10 years ago. “Wizard” has been featured as part of “The Deadliest Catch” for the last three seasons.
“Wizard” is a 155-foot crab boat that began its life as a Navy yard oiler, giving her a large hold that can hold 450,000 lbs. of crab. There is an eight-person crew including Monte as relief captain and his brother Keith as captain, along with first mate, engineer and deck hands. “Wizard” works 24-hours-a-day, with two guys always in their bunks, rotating every six hours.
“Once we start fishing, we don’t stop,” he says.
“The Bering Seas has a way of swallowing people … it takes them in many ways,” Monte said after being asked about the death of Cpt. Phil Harris of “Cornelia Marie” in February from a stroke. Monte says crabbing can be a dangerous job, but the lifestyle, the stress and the poor diets aboard the boats also can threaten their lives. He noted that they are making more of an effort aboard “Wizard” to prepare healthy dinners.
Discovery Channel begin shooting the series in 2005, and off the more than 200 crab boats in the fleet, the few featured in the first season were chosen because they were willing to put up with the camera crew, Monte says. Discovery wasn’t paying, and most of the boats that they approached didn’t want to take on the crews, and care for and feed them. A few said yes and were featured in the early seasons.
“They are in the way … but, they’re all good guys,” Monte said of having the camera crew on board. But, he said almost all of them are extreme cameramen, some of whom have been to the Himalayas, and can handle the harsh conditions.
“The Deadliest Catch” is now seen in 135 countries and has been recognized all over the world from the show, which shoots 18 episodes each year.
“A lot of people don’t get a lot of adventure in their lives,” Monte said of the show’s popularity, where fans can enjoy the adventure he lives.
While the Bering Sea calls Monte to its waters each year, Lake Tahoe calls him home every summer, where he lives from the spring to mid-August.
“I can’t imagine a better place to grow up and also to reside,” he says.
Another crab boat captain that also lived in Tahoe once told him: “When it comes to Tahoe, all our called, but few are chosen.”
These are just a few of the tales Monte shared in a riveting talk at the museum. If you missed it, visit http://www.discovery.com/ where you can see video clips from past seasons. The sixth season is currently airing on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. Visit the Web site for a schedule.
(Photos: Cpt. Monte Colburn)
