Scallop Boat Virtual Tour
Fish Hold
A typical trip on the Huntress may last between five days and two weeks. As is common throughout the fleet, scallopers carry up to forty tons of ice in their holds to refrigerate their catch. While refrigeration units are also in use on some boats, the added complexity of such a system in this harsh environment often leads to problems. Ice seldom malfunctions at sea. The hold is divided up into "pens" to keep the load of ice and scallops from shifting in heavy weather - an event that could and has cost many a ship it's life. After bagging, scallops are lowered into the hold and each bag is carefully buried under ice for the remainder of the trip, taking care to balance the weights from side to side. The ice is moved from the pens in which it is stored with a simple shovel.