Love the sea, and the sea will reward you.

(Baonghean) - I set foot in the Lach Corn fishing port of Quynh Phuong on a December morning. The last days of the year seemed to have little impact on the lives of the people in this estuary area, who have been closely associated with the sea for hundreds of years.

I squeezed my way through the sweat-drenched backs of the fishermen to get a closer look at the mackerel, grouper, and other fish that had just been brought ashore after a long fishing trip. In the cramped space of the fishing port, it was difficult to distinguish between the boat owners and the traders. Whenever the tuna, weighing tens of kilograms, were pushed down the ramp from the ship's deck, everyone would rush forward, scrambling to buy them.

A view of Cờn Lach fishing port in Quỳnh Phương ward (Hoàng Mai town).

Mr. Dau Nhu Danh, a fisheries extension officer in Quynh Phuong ward (Hoang Mai town), leaned close to my ear and said, "The seafood we catch is sold as soon as it arrives; there's not enough to go around." Yet, before coming here, I had thought that after the environmental disaster in the central coastal region in the first half of 2016, fishing activities and the livelihoods of fishermen would have slowed down.

Just after leaving Lach Con, Mr. Dau Nhu Danh added: "Saying that the Formosa incident didn't affect fishermen is incomplete, but it only lasted for a short time. Moreover, the fishing grounds of the people of Quynh Phuong are outside the impact of the incident." Instead of explaining further to the visitor, Mr. Danh took me to visit the family of Mr. Hoang Van Luan - considered a "sea wolf" in Hong Thai block, Quynh Phuong ward.

He was a man in his sixties, large and robust, with a deep, warm voice, and every gesture exuded the wisdom of a seasoned sailor. Mr. Luan, born in 1957, was one of the few people still working at sea at the age of 60 in this rural area. He said he had been at sea since he was 13, having tried every type of fishing. From purse seine, squid fishing, anchovy fishing, and scad fishing to purse seine and gillnet fishing; from fishing near the estuary and shore to offshore fishing…

This man seems to embody all the characteristics of a fisherman from the coastal region: hardship, experience of risks and failures, and simple happiness after enduring trials and tribulations. As proof of this, Mr. Luan recounts a terrifying memory from nearly 33 years ago.

Mr. Hoang Cong Luan (left) from Hong Thai block introduces the fishing method using loosely woven gillnets.

It was the last fishing trip of 1984. Mr. Hoang Van Luan and his fellow fisherman, Nguyen Van Tich, were sailing their small boat in the open sea. After nearly a day, they had caught about 50 kg of spotted fish and herring and were on their way back to shore. When they were 7 nautical miles from land, a sudden storm arose. A whirlwind swept in, breaking the mast like a blade of grass, lifting the entire boat into the air, and throwing the two men into the sea. In the roaring waves, they were unable to get close to each other.

This fateful voyage also led to Mr. Tich's eternal demise at sea. More fortunate than his friend, Mr. Luan managed to cling to a mast and drifted for three days and two nights before being rescued in the waters off Cua Sot (in Thach Ha district, Ha Tinh province). Mr. Luan was rescued by Mr. and Mrs. Nguyen Van Hau (also known as Hau Ham), fishermen from Thach Ha district. Later, Mr. Luan became a sworn son of that kind and compassionate fishing family.

Having returned from the brink of death, it was thought that Mr. Luan would give up his seafaring career forever. But no, he decided to return to the profession as a way to remember his friend and repay his debt to life. To achieve this, Mr. Luan experimented with various fishing methods over the years. It wasn't until after 2000, when the gillnet fishing method with a wide mesh net began to be introduced to Quynh Phuong, that Mr. Luan was one of the first to adopt this fishing model. Starting with a longline fishing boat, he borrowed money to build a new gillnet with a 380 HP engine and purchased two new gillnets worth 1.4 billion VND.

The women of Hong Thai and Quynh Phuong villages knit and mend ruffled fishing nets.

The total value of the fishing vessel is over 2 billion VND. The ship has 15 crew members. “Unlike the common fishing methods of fishermen in Nghe An, the gillnet fishing method only fishes at the bottom and about 100 nautical miles from the shore. The seafood caught is also considered a delicacy, such as tuna, grouper, and snapper…” – Mr. Hoang Van Luan shared. This is exactly what Mr. Dau Nhu Danh wanted to explain to me from the beginning: that the seafood in Quynh Phuong was unaffected by the Formosa incident.

While Mr. Dau Nhu Danh seemed quite pleased with the story of the "old sea wolf," Mr. Hoang Van Luan led me to the spacious courtyard of his family home, where more than 400 fishing nets were stacked. He said: "Each loosely woven net is 7.5 to 9 nautical miles long, equivalent to 13.5 to 16.6 km, and 2 meters high. Loosely woven nets are a form of bottom trawling with the assistance of fish finders equipped on each boat. Unlike purse seine fishing, which requires bright lights to attract fish and can only be used on dark nights after the lunar cycle, loosely woven nets are caught using ocean currents."

Mr. Danh added: "Anyone who studies the tidal calendar will know about the monthly 'birth tides'. Accordingly, except for February and August, which have 3 birth tides (new tides), the remaining 10 months each have 2 birth tides, 14 days apart. Based on the birth tide calendar, fishermen cast their nets according to the ocean currents. Usually, during each birth tide, fishermen will have 4-5 days of fishing. A net 9 nautical miles long is usually divided into 3 sections (or more) based on the depth of the fishing grounds at the fishing point."

The nets are typically cast horizontally and drift with the current. Thanks to a system of lead weights and buoys floating about 1.5 meters above the seabed, all kinds of fish are drawn into the nets. This is the fishing method that has made the fishermen of Quynh Phuong coastal area famous. For Mr. Hoang Van Luan's family boat alone, the average catch per trip is 1.5 - 3 tons of fish, worth between 200 - 450 million VND. The income of the workers is over 100 million VND per person per year.

The family of Mr. Hoang Cong Luan is one of the exemplary seafood fishermen in Quynh Phuong ward.

Besides Mr. Hoang Van Luan's family, there are nearly 600 fishing vessels operating in Quynh Phuong ward. Of these, 182 have a power output ranging from 90 HP to under 400 HP; and 13 have a power output of 400 HP or more. Most vessels with a power output exceeding 90 HP fish offshore using the gillnet method.

The catch yield from the gillnet trawling method is not high, averaging only 1.5 - 3 tons of fish per trip. However, the value of the seafood is many times higher than other fishing methods. Accordingly, each kilogram of tuna (including mackerel, barracuda, etc.) costs from 120,000 - 150,000 VND; while other types of fish (such as axehead tuna, snapper, and barracuda) cost 60,000 VND/kg. Therefore, despite the low catch volume, the fishermen of Quynh Phuong still "win" thanks to the quality of their seafood.

Perhaps only fishermen truly understand the hardships, difficulties, and risks of the seafaring profession. But since it's a generational occupation, they live and die by the sea. As Phan Thi Hue, wife of Captain Bui Trung Thanh, from Hong Thai hamlet, says, "Because my father, son, and I love the sea, the sea has been kind to us." Thanks to this "good fortune," Hue's family was able to build a nearly 2 billion VND trawling vessel to catch squid in the autumn and winter seasons, and to catch scad and tuna in the spring and summer. This 110-horsepower vessel has provided a comfortable and prosperous life for 14 fishing families for many years.

It is likely thanks to the "bountiful sea" that, from the first fishing cooperatives named Quyet Tien, Quynh Phuong ward has now formed 9 fishing branches with 33 fishing and harvesting cooperatives. In 2016, the catch of Quynh Phuong ward reached 14,250 tons. The value of the products reached nearly 309 billion VND. Notably, Quynh Phuong seafood is mainly for export, accounting for up to 65% of the total value of the local seafood. Therefore, the quality of Quynh Phuong seafood is not only considered top-notch in Nghe An but also famous throughout Central Vietnam and the whole country.

On our way back to Lach Con, we encountered dozens of women gathered in groups mending fishing nets along the narrow roads. Women from the coastal region are incredibly quiet when alone, but when in groups, they become boisterous. One woman stopped mending and chirped, "Look at the loose, fluffy nets, honey. My husband will be back from the waves around noon." Their clear laughter echoed through the nets, the sounds blending with the sunlight reflecting off their rosy cheeks. It seemed the new spring had already begun to arrive, tapping on the curved trays of squid.

Dao Tuan