F/V I Gotta

Sitka, Alaska

Wild Alaska Keta Salmon, Wild Alaska Rockfish, Wild Alaska King Salmon, Wild Alaska Coho Salmon

Eric’s first fishing trip was on his parents salmon troller in 1950. He was 5 month old. His mother, Marilyn, was an avid fisherman and Eric fondly recalls her ambitious style of fishing. "She would often say, 'I gotta go fishing.'" The name stuck.

Eric and his wife Sarah raised their two sons, Karl and Kris, on their family fishing boat. Today, their son Karl captians his own troller and his daughter, Lily Jordan, is both his deckhand and a fouth-generation fisherman.

Eric is a conservationist and activist at his core. He's been involved with various conservation groups for decades and is active in fisheries politics during the off-season. Additionally, Eric is passionate about bringing new faces into the commercial fishing industry. He's currently working on a Crew Training Program to give aspiring green (inexperienced) deckhands an opportunity to fish as crew through the Alaska Longline Fishermen’s Association.

Whether raising money for his local public radio station, or advocating for environmental conservation efforts, Eric walks the talk by showing up for his community in a variety of ways.