For many years the fishermen of County Down on the northeast coast of Ireland have plied the waters around the British Isles to put food on the tables of their families. Many stories are told amongst them, and about them. Gerry Doyle was born into that community, and spent his working life from cook to skipper on fishing boats, amassing many voyages and as many stories.
This book tells just a few of those tales, from Hebridean gales to encounters with seals, whales and porpoises, warplanes and battleships Ð Ônear-shavesÕ in the local parlance, dangerous situations to the rest of us Ð evoking a life rich in incident and camaraderie, and bound inseparably with nature and the culture of his native Mourne.