"I used to be able to earn enough money off my dragger to make a living and retire," says 45-year Ft. Bragg veteran Don Bischop, "but I can't do that now. When they cut us back on the groundfish, I had to find something to supplement my income." Asa result, Bischop put his son in charge of operating their 73' dragger Merluccius and started working on a unique approach to generating more income from black cod. The California fishery is open entry at present and doesn't require a permit, but there is a limitation of 800 pounds per week per boat, or a total of 2,400 pounds every two months. "You can't make a living on that with only one boat," explains Bischop, "when the price averages 1.10 dollar to 1.20 dollar per pound. So, three or four years ago I began acquiring a bunch of old wood boats--one 36-footer, and the other two are 40 feet. I paid 7,000 dollar for one and 3,500 dollar for another. I also bought one built in 1926 for 10 dollar, and learned that doesn't pay--it cost another 30,000 dollar to rebuild it. But I was a boat builder years ago, so I enjoy working on them." With three boats rigged for pots, Bischop has been able to fish each one in turn and triple his total allotment of fish. But the older wood boats still leak and don't take well to having steel pots constantly banging against their planking. So he recently decided to update his small fleet with a pair of converted U.S. Navy surplus utility boat hulls.
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