Former Odessa residents meet Deadliest Catch crew

Two Odessa High School graduates (1976) and longtime friends recently returned from an adventure-filled trip to Dutch Harbor in Unalaska, Alaska.

Denise Kittilson Masiello won a trip as a “Greenhorn for a Day” on th fishing vessel the Wizard of the Discovery Channel’s show called Deadliest Catch. Masiello won an annual contest sponsored by the Henry Weinhard company and took Barb Reister Frederick along as her guest. Masiello had been trying for three years to win the contest and was notified in early September that she had won. The trip was scheduled for mid-October.

The trip was to consist of meeting Captain Keith Colburn, going out on the Wizard with the crew, throwing crab pots and playing survival games. Unfortunately, their plane in Spokane suffered a fuel guage malfunction, which put them an hour late getting into Seattle. This made them miss their flight to Anchorage. Another winner from Spokane and his guest were to join them but they decided to turn back in Seattle, realizing that by the time they got there, the trip would be half over.

The two forged on, however, but in Anchorage they missed the last flight to Dutch Harbor. When they finally arrived, they were taken sightseeing by Keith Colburn. They saw bunkers on Bunker Hill, the Russian Orthodox church, and crab pots being loaded. Unfortunately the fog and rain were heavy and persistent, so sightseeing was limited. That evening they were treated to a seafood buffet dinner and met a few of the crew members there.

The next day the captains Keith and his brother Monte Colburn took them out to the Wizard, and they were able to tour around the boat and visit with the crew and ask as many questions as they wanted. The Discovery Channel film crew was filming on the Wizard, which caused scheduling conflicts, and the boat was never able to leave the dock.

During the time they were there, some of the other Captains they saw were John and Andy Hillstrand of the Time Bandit, Sig Hanson of the Northwestern, Scott Campbell, Jr. of the Seabrooke, and Wild Bill Wichrowski of the Kodiak. Wild Bill is a friend of another Odessa classmate, Randy Bain, who fishes halibut in the area. Sadly, they were unable to meet up with Randy while they were in the area.

Even though sightseeing in the area was limited, shopping was not! They were fortunate to have the Alaska Shipping Supply store right next to the motel. They made several trips to the store for items for themselves and family members.

Masiello and Frederick say this was a very interesting trip to Alaska with a lot of unexpected events; but they enjoyed it and their time together.