Mike Hudson
Voices of the Bay
In The Capturing the Voices of the Bay Education Program, students take responsibility for their own learning experience as they research, plan, and conduct personal interviews, first with each other and then with citizens of the community, to capture the rich stories, traditions, and knowledge that define Monterey’s fishing legacy. This place-based learning experience allows students the opportunity to deeply explore the historic, economic, environmental, and cultural dimensions of their particular “place” in the world and, perhaps more importantly, how all these dimensions inter-connect through the lives of those who live and work in the region.
Mike Hudson is a very selective Northern California Salmon and Crab Fisherman born in Reno Nevada, raised in Germany, and he currently reside in Berkeley. Hudson comes from a long line of Native American fisherman from Canada. He finds joy in catching fish and going to the Farmer's Market with his wife and seeing the satisfaction in his buyers' faces. Hudson explains to his audience that a fisherman hardly gets lost at sea because of the technologies and gizmos in the boat, and if that fails fisherman analyzes which way the waves and wind blows then sail towards shore. He also shares how the gas industry have greatly change since he joined the fishing industry and suggested that fishermen should start using sailboats to become more sustainable in order to save the oil resources. The fishermen do not compete against each other because it's already tough to make a living in the fishing industry, thus the fisherman have respects towards one another and their fishing boundaries. Hudson teaches his audience the types of salmon found in California and which species are endangered. Thus, every fisherman tries to be sustainable because majority of fisherman invest in boats and different equipment that's suppose to last them a lifetime, and if there are very little fish to catch then a fisherman's invest would go to waste.
Please Note: The oral histories in this collection are protected by copyright and have been created for educational, research and personal use as described by the Fair Use Doctrine in the U.S. Copyright law. Please reach out Voices@noaa.gov to let us know how these interviews are being used in your research, project, exhibit, etc. The Voices staff can help provide other useful resources related to your inquiry.
The NOAA mission is to understand and predict changes in climate, weather, oceans, and coasts, to share that knowledge and information with others, and to conserve and manage coastal and marine ecosystems and resources. The Voices Oral History Archives offers public access to a wide range of accounts, including historical materials that are products of their particular times, and may contain offensive language or negative stereotypes.
Voices Oral History Archives does not verify the accuracy of materials submitted to us. The opinions expressed in the interviews are those of the interviewee only. The interviews here have been made available to the public only after the interviewer has confirmed that they have obtained consent.