RECORD YEAR FOR ICELANDIC FRESHER TRAWLER

Record year for Icelandic fresher trawler. The crew of Icelandic company Brim’s fresher trawler Viðey recorded a record catch for 2021. Their overall catch for 2021 was around 10,300 tonnes with a value of approximately ISK2.1 billion. Viðey’s previous record year was in 2019 with a 10,143 tonne overall catch.

Viðey last landing of the year was 200 tonnes of mainly cod, after a short trip to Westfjords fishing grounds.

Speaking durng the last trip of the year, Kristján E. Gíslason, who sailed as skipper for this trip said:

“We sailed from Reykjavík in the early hours of Monday morning and headed straight for the Víkuráll Gully. We were there for 19 hours and had 60 tonnes of good fish, mainly cod as well as redfish and a few tonnes of saithe.”.

He added that he then decided to try their luck on the Hali grounds.

“The weather was rough when we set off and it was wild on the way, with north-easterly 20-30 m/sec winds and temperatures of -10°. It took twelve hours to fight our way northwards to the Hali grounds, and that would usually take us six hours,” he said.

He said that he had no regrets about making for the Hali grounds as the fishing was unusually good, with a lot of life to be seen in the area and plenty of large, top-quality cod. Their cod averaged 3-4 kg in weight, and the saithe a kilo heavier.

“We should be alongside in Reykjavík before midnight, so that makes this trip four days, port to port. The crew are understandably delighted, as the results have been outstanding. Let’s remember that it’s not enough to catch the fish. This success wouldn’t have been possible without a good crew who work brilliantly together. These are great guys doing what they do best,” Kristján E. Gíslason said.