Johnathan Hillstrand’s Deckhand Receives Heartbreaking News

There are some things more important than crabs as Johnathan Hillstrand recognized during the August 21 episode of Deadliest Catch. The Time Bandit captain had to adjust and change plans when one of his own crew received devastating news. 

Meanwhile, Sig Hansen and Rick Shelford were each on the hunt for hybrids. The species that are part bairdi and opilio, bringing in more possible earning potential. This came with its own challenges including one vessel that faced the risk of being capsized.

Read on to see how they all weathered through their latest obstacles. 

Johnathan Hillstrand 

Johnathan Hillstrand (Discovery Channel)

The forecast for the next five days was not looking good. “If you can get this done, it will be a miracle.” Jonathan’s brother Andy said.  He wanted to finish his first opilio season strong in four years with 35,000 more pounds to catch and $200,000 worth of gear on the line. His crew member O.J. Ganuelas got bad news that his dad passed away. He hadn’t told the captain yet. O’J’s late dad had just turned 70. Johnathan did all he could to console his loyal deckhand. 

The captain changed course and took him back to Saint Paul Island for a charger flight home. This wasn’t your normal docking considering the harbor was frozen over. Despite the warning about the ice, Jonathan wanted to get O.J. off the boat The ice could have potentially punctured the Time Bandit. Johnathan put his wealth of experience to the test maneuvering through the ice.

There was a snag when the buoys got stuck and put the Time Bandit at a standstill. They worked through the ice so O.J. could go home. Johnathan directed his crew to use a separate line and hydraulic power hauler to pull the tank free. If it didn’t work, the captain might have had to limp the 360 miles back to Dutch Harbor. They were lucky enough their method worked with O.J. able to go home. 

Sig Hansen 

Sig Hansen (Discovery Channel)

Sig couldn’t pass up the proposition to earn an additional 30 percent in hybrids. Though this meant venturing to a dangerous area to fish with bigger waves and subzero temperatures. The ice was already making its presence felt. Relief skipper Sophia “Bob” Nielsen continued to earn her stripes.

She hoped to bring the Northwestern some luck by following maritime tradition and biting the head off of a herring. Sig could certainly use that after receiving a call from the canary manager that they couldn’t sort the crabs at the dock due to Fish and Game rules. They’d need to figure out a way to separate the hybrids or risk hefty fines. Sig brought in his son-in-law Clark Pederson to the wheelhouse to talk about what they could do to separate the tanks. 

The plan was to drain the tank in order to build a barrier using wooden planks and nets. They were playing a dangerous game. All the sloshing and distribution in weight could cause the boat to capsize. There was a moment when one of the boards came out. The guys then had to start the process from scratch. The second time was the charm. Sig asked Bob to name their incoming string. She dubbed it 2.0” because it’s the “better refined version because I did it.”

Sig just wanted to get the crab and hope the boat could hold it together. The pots were full. Bob performed another tradition when she tossed a baited pot-hauling hook on fire into the Bering Sea as the team marked their final crab pot of this run. .Sig was impressed by Bob. “Opportunities will come to her,” he predicted. “All she has to do is grab them.” 

Rick Shelford 

Rick Shelford (Discovery Channel)

Just about 200 miles north of the Dutch Harbor, Rick had an offload coming up. The Aleutian Lady were looking for hybrids. However, they were met with some of the worst seas by the border of opilio and bairdi gambles.

With upwards of $180,000 worth of hybrids on the line, the juice was worth the squeeze. The crew received a sobering reminder of the dangers they face on deck when a crew member hurt his waist during a particularly violent wave.

Rick decided to move the string a little farther south. Hauling gear as fast as he could became the name of the game. But let’s be honest…when isn’t that name of the game? Crab counts were coming in the triple digits. They kept hauling, meeting the 30,000 pounds of hybrids to make their offload. 

Deadliest Catch, Fridays, 8/7c, Discovery Channel