December 5, 2014 — The LOG caught up with Dave Atcheson, author of “Dead Reckoning, Navigating a Life on the Last Frontier, Courting Tragedy on its High Seas,” on Monday, at Kenai Peninsula College, where he works.
Atcheson, 50, will be in Seward next week to read from his recently released book, which recounts his commercial fishing days in Seward, Prince William Sound and western Alaska. The event takes place at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 10 at the library.
Atcheson, who has lived on the Kenai Peninsula for nearly 30 years, said the presentation will include a talk about the book, his experiences fun, funny and downright scary while he worked as a commercial fisherman, and a chance for readers to ask questions. He also will have books available for sale, or will sign copies for those who already have one.
LOG: What made you decide to write this book, and how did you winnow down all of the events that happened to you during your commercial fishing days?
Atcheson: Well, I was always writing, keeping a journal and such, and fishing in general and the two big events in the book – coming to Alaska and ending up seining with D.E. Wood (out of Seward) and the near catastrophe on the Iliamna Bay 13 years later – were defining moments in my life.
Also, in between those two events, set-netting with the Linvilles in Prince William Sound, was kind of where I came into my own and the time I spent out there, eight or nine seasons, were some of the best times in my life.
Read the full interview from The Seward Phoenix Log