La Donna

La Donna 

      The La Donna was a 50+ foot fishing yacht.  Built for the well off sport fisherman, it was luxurious compared to the fleet of commercial vessels harvesting  sea urchins during that period. Jim owner  operator had suffered a bad traffic accident and as a result really did have much use of his legs.  He had to be carried on and off the boat, but got around fairly good once he was on board.  Jim did not feel sorry for himself he was a hard charger and assembled a 4 5 or even six and 7 man crews. He was a serious mechanic and between him and his brother the La Donna was a vessel many divers spent a  tour of duty aboard, and I was no exception. 
       Jim and his brother converted the La Donna to a commercial sea urchin boat and besides appearance held a unique position among the fleet.  The La Donna was also comfortable...nice bunks and plenty of room.  He also fabricated a makeshift structure on top of the cabin to house another diver.  It was like a tent, fabricated with blue tarps and wire ties. The advantage was lots of room to  spread out and furnish it to the personality of the present occupant. It was nice in port, but underway it was a rolly polly affair that was not conducive to a good night restful sleep 
      I got a call that there was a spot available and I made my way to Redondo Beach Harbor from Thousand Oaks.  Since the facilities on the boat were good enough to not have to commute, I was aboard for the duration.  Trouble was, it took 3 weeks before La Donna was ready to  disembark, and I had no choice but to wait it out. Since Jim was providing all the food and beer and Redondo Harbor was the place to be for a young diver on the prowl, especially at night, with all the live music at the clubs.  It was like night and day compared to Fish Harbor.
      We finally got underway and of course out to the outer islands, and when I received a check for my first few trips, I understood why Jim was so generous with the beer and food.  It was because he took it out of our checks.  I thought the bill was astronomical. 
      Jim kept that operation running..not always smoothly, but he was the driving force that made such a big high maintenance vessel work.  I did fairly well, but personality issues arose and politics.  There was always some diver waiting in the wings, in case someone didnt show or got bumped or fired.  If there was one too many bodies aboard,  Jim would simply look at the weight of the divers catch to see who would be packing there bags.  Those numbers mattered and Jim used them like that.
    One of the more colorful personalities that was a regular on the La Donna, was Bernie.  Bernie could not, would not leave the dock unless he had at least 4 or 5 cases of beer.  He was eccentric, but nice enough and he and Jim went way back.  Bernie was actually operating the Little Jack for that trip, a smaller, but more traditional, urchin boat owned by Jim.  The boat worked occasionally, when it wasn't under repair.
      When the Fish and Game began implementing regulations designed to manage the fishery, one of the first was limiting the number of days that fishing is allowed.  This with many others hindered our efforts, at least in the short term but as time went on we learned to adapt and be flexible. So during the summer months the work week starts at 4 days a week. As the months progress the work week decreases by 1 day.  3 days a week and so on.
       As it turned out the La Donna was anchored in Pyramid Anchorage San Clemente Island, we had the advantage of refrigerated fish holds so we could stay out for 3  or four days without the worry the urchins will go bad. The following day would be a Thursday, the last day of the week eligible for unloading our catch
      Of course we ended up dead in the water.  I did not get too involved with the mechanics of the boat, all I know is we were screwed. Jim explained that he could send Bernie in on the Little Jack which was anchored not too far from us Bernie could then retrieve the part, but that would take time which we did not have. Jim tried to raise the Little Jack on the radio, but was unsuccessful.  Jim decided it would be a good idea to take one of the surfboards and paddle out to the Little Jack, relay the message, so we could get this show on the road.  It was about less than a half mile paddle to the Captain Jack,  so I grabbed a board and off I went. When I got about half way  it seemed like I had been paddling for hours.  It was less than an hour, I found out later.  I gave Bernie all the information, but he should call Jim anyway, if he wanted to. 
      I asked Bernie if he had any beer left..he said no but there was an emergency 12 pack stashed in a cave onshore and he gave me directions.  He mentioned there was a Television there too, but I thought he was jerking my chain.  So I paddled in, half thinking I was sent on a wild goose chase,  but sure enough inside the cave on a rocky shelf a 12 pack of Budweiser,  right next to it a tv with a smashed screen,  classic Bernie.
      2 days later the Little Jack rounded Pyramid point and I thought, now were in business, except now we were officially poachers. If we attempted to bring the sea urchins to market, the Fish and Game would surely swoop down on us, since  a confiscated catch is sold with the proceeds going directly to the Fish and Game.  Jim attempted to do the right thing and contact Fish and Game with our dilemma.  The initial contact sounded hopeful, though we did not get a definitive solution immediately.  The next contact was from a very official much more serious and formal.  We were immediately instructed to provide landing information, as well as estimated time of arrival.  Upon hearing that we all looked at each other and without saying a word we all knew what decision was made by the Fish and Game Brass. It was not until years later, did I catch an article in the L.A. times that the Fish And Game was under investigation for failing to properly notify the public when the auction would be.  That is the auction they have from time to time to dispose of confiscated fishing gear that is acquired during cases of illegal fishing.  Lets just say some of the officers friends and family had knowledge of the auction and to the tune of several thousands of dollars worth of gear was auctioned off to them for a pittance. It is my view that this conflict of interest was well ingrained in the Fish and Game culture, and could have led to the sudden change of attitude we were now faced with.
    Jim decided the plan would be to find a spot way back in the L.A. harbor.  He said he knew a spot way back where nobody would ask any questions. We would stay there there for weekend, then on Monday morning off to Redondo and unload.  Everyone seemed to agree and hopefully the refrigeration would keep the urchins fresh enough so we would actually get paid for them.
     I have never seen a crew disapear so fast, once we hit the harbor.  I was the only one who stayed with the boat while Jim wound his way back into the bowels of LA harbor found a spot he was looking for and off he went.  So I would be responsible for this
contraband it seemed, but I could not see an alternative.
      I was not relishing the thought of being the grunt during off loading operations.  This job was as difficult and laborious and quite a contrast to the roomy bunks and brilliant deck space.  the problem was the fish hole extended beyond the boundaries of the hatch. The grunt had to walk over the urchins and once he was hooked up to the next bag he had to guide it sideways, then negotiate the bag until it was directly under the hatch, and then it could be offloaded without obstacles. Then barter with  the  crane operator, which bag to take next.  The job was time consuming hot and thankless with no extra pay.  The bottom of my boots were ok but the sides were thin and when I was walking on those urchins I suffered puncture wounds on my feet that almost caused me to quit, until one of the other divers showed up and helped me.  That was the one and only time I suffered that duty.  Jim always had some hangers on that liked to help with the boat when possible.
     Well it went off without a hitch, although we did not get too much for the 5 day old urchins.
    I eventually moved on from the La Donna and I think the statue of limitations has expired so we are all safe from prosecution.