The crew of Brim’s fresher trawler Viðey have set the bar high with a record catch for this year. Their overall catch for 2021 is 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 docked in Reykjavík before New Year with a green weight of 200 tonnes on board, after a short trip to Westfjords fishing grounds.
‘We sailed 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,’ said this trip’s skipper Kristján E. Gíslason.
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, but there were no regrets about punching through heavy weather to reach 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. Viðey’s cod averaged 3-4kg in weight, and the saithe a kilo heavier.
‘This trip was four days, port to port. Of course, the crew are 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.
