What’s the regs on halibut up there commercial wise, and what kind of price do you get

Getting real hard to get! Number one in my book!!!

IFQ system. Basically a fisherman owns a certain percentage of the overall quota which fluctuates year to year. Unless you’re grandfathered in you have to buy it and not just anyone can own it plus limits on how much you can own. Also you must either be on board or be part owner of the boat (keeps big $ .corporations from controlling it all). Currently quota costs about $40 lb. Dock price is about $6.30 average this week.

That’s pretty much how our red snapper fishery works, as far as flounder go here in Texas I can get 30 a day. No overall quota or total for the year. The license here is the same kind of deal with the grandfathered deal, state has a decommissioning buyback program deal for the past 15-20 years or so. No new licenses will ever be issued, you have to buy a pre existing one. Right now there anywhere from $16-20k. I’ve watched em slowly rise about $1k-2k every years for the past 5-6 years.

Do you pay that every year or is it one time then you pay an update fee for less money?

If you were asking me, it’s a one time buy. It is a gamble because if you buy it this year and stocks decline and management cuts the quota next year it’s gonna take longer to pay off. Also we pay 3% tax on value of dock delivery to pay for the program. And 7.5 cents a pound towards observer program, and $600 annual liscense specific to the fishery. Plus the buyer pays 3.5% raw fish tax. For me just to fish halibut I gotta have on board a Federal Fisheries Permit, USCG vessel documentation, state vessel registration, state vessel commercial liscense, state fishery permit, IFQ permit, Hired skipper permit, and must deploy a “bird line” when setting gear so as no to accidentally catch an endangered short tailed albatross. Pain in the neck just to be able to sell the fish.

The question came to mind after txcoonman post, but your answer is very enlightening and welcome, because I had no idea, I think it might be easier to get into a nuclear power plant than to commercially fish.

3 Fingers, do you ever fish off Chirikof? When I was on there, someone was soaking line off the central west side. We fished out of the skiff in much of the same area. We caught mainly 48" to 50" fish.

MJM, Chirikof is rich grounds. Never fished the shallows up next to the island but the edge is close by and the Island is the only place to hide for a long way . Spent many days hiding from gales there. It’s a rare person that gets to step foot on Chirikof and very cool that you are one of them. Way too far out there for my little boat but I crewed many years on bigger longliners.

I love Halibut. Wish we had them a little closer here.

I drift gillnet salmon on the Yukon River. Going out tomorrow. Catching fall chums. The occasional King, and the Cohos are running now too.

Also had a Herring Permit, for Norton Sound Herring Sac Roe Fishery, but didn't have enough points to get it permanent.

I also have a fresh water Whitefish permit, and commercial fish Lamprey eels when they show up in the fall.

I also ran a boat tendering salmon for 8 years, back in the day.

The purchase of the actual license is just from the buyer to seller like a one time deal. It’s like $380 a year to the state. I think there’s only about 400 left in the whole state

Yukon Jeff and 3 fingers thats awesome, always a way to make a dollar on the water

3 Fingers, I was on there just over three months. It was a good camp out. We had the fishing figured out by the time we left for what we had. A 17' with a 30 hp motor, does tend to limit your fishing range. We would drift and jig and had a spot by the rocks that we would catch fish most passes. There was a drop off and when you hit it, you had a good chance of catching a fish. The boat fishing anchored up pretty close to where we fished. It was to rough for us to be out. I saw one setting a line off Rootok, and we thought we would run over and talk to them. They saw us coming and pulled anchor and left. I guess they were not used to people in a rubber skiff coming over to BS.