The return Pamela Rose

Andrew Edwards

Pamela Rose spends her summer nights working on the chill waters

beyond Newport Harbor.

For 19 years, Pamela Rose has helped the Newport Bait Co. keep

anglers supplied with bait used to catch fish in the waters around

Newport Beach. But last summer, the 58-foot bait craft was kept out

of action. On Mother’s Day 2004, Pamela Rose ran aground at Cameo

Shores Beach, and the mishap kept the craft out of commission for

almost a year.

On April 1, Pamela Rose returned.

Newport Bait Co. owner Steve Greyshock said he recruited the

boat’s builder, Mike Acevez, to help return the old girl to

seaworthiness. Repairs were handled at the Newport Harbor Shipyards.

Greyshock recalled putting Pamela Rose through tough work to fix

and update the boat.

“I was working on it, welding and cutting steel,” Greyshock said.

He and Acevez -- who has since traveled to Guadalajara, Mexico,

and was not available to talk about the boat -- reshaped the bottom

of the Pamela Rose’s hull and increased the size of its storage

tanks. The revamped Pamela Rose has room for seven tons of sardines,

anchovies and other fish snacks destined for the hook.

PLENTY OF FISH

While Pamela Rose was out of commission, Greyshock and crew used a

substitute boat. Norris Tapp, general manager at Davey’s Locker

Sportfishing in Balboa Village, said his company didn’t have problems

keeping fishing enthusiasts supplied with bait after Pamela Rose ran

aground.

This year, Tapp said, anglers have been pleased with the amount of

anchovies -- good eating for bigger fish -- brought in by Pamela

Rose’s crew.

“For whatever reason, the Pamela Rose has been able to find

anchovies, and it’s been a world of difference,” Tapp said.

Pamela Rose’s crew drags her net as far south as San Onofre and

all the way up to Marina del Rey in search of bait. But Greyshock’s

crew catches most of its quarry in the waters near Newport. He said

bait fish are attracted to the underwater canyons, which make nearby

waters one of the best places along California’s shores to find bait.

“One thing about Newport, it’s a bait hauler’s paradise,”

Greyshock said.

On mornings after a bait run, Pamela Rose’s crew takes the boat to

the Newport Bait Co.’s barge, which floats between the jetties at the

entrance to Newport Harbor.

After June 17, when the summer fishing season is in full swing,

Pamela Rose is taken out to sea every night until Sept. 1. During

those weeks, the company maintains 24-hour bait service. Mike

Greyshock, Steve Greyshock’s son, said he doesn’t mind spending

nights on the green-trimmed bait barge -- as long as anchovies and

sardines are in demand.

“If there’s people out there, it’s OK, but it can get lonely out

there,” he said.

Taking a look at the waterfront real estate on either side of the

barge, Mike Greyshock noted that spending time in the middle of

Newport Harbor has its advantages.

“It’s a nice place to be. Nice property,” he said. “Most people

pay a million dollars for this.”

A SALTY BUNCH

Working on Pamela Rose and the bait barge seems to come naturally

for Mike Greyshock, who said working with his father in the fishing

business has been a lifelong venture.

In a similar vein, some members of Pamela Rose’s crew said they

have spent many years around the water, but the refurbished craft

picked up some new hands when it returned to the water.

One of the recent additions to the Pamela Rose’s crew is Tony

Guigliano. A former chef who enjoys fishing, Guigliano transformed

his hobby into a living.

“I’ve been going out on boats almost weekly for 20 years,”

Guigliano said. “I love the elements of the ocean, and I thought I’d

try this career change. So far I really love it.”

Just finished with his fifth trip aboard Pamela Rose, Guigliano

said he was still learning the tricks of the trade and that his

duties included a little bit of everything.

Corby Jackson, another newcomer, joined the crew around April, and

has about two decades worth of experience on the water.

“I’ve been working in Newport since I was 11,” Jackson said. “I

was running sports boats since I was 19.”

Before joining Pamela Rose, Jackson spent about eight years

fishing professionally on squid boats, experience that could come in

handy this winter.

During that part of the year, the Pamela Rose’s crew switches its

quarry from bait to squid, Steve Greyshock said. Squid are exported

to the Chinese market, and during the cold months, work on Pamela

Rose is as full-time as it gets.

“When we fish bait, we go out at about midnight and come back at

seven in the morning,” said Steve Greyshock, who has endured the long

hours of fishing for 27 years, with the Pamela Rose being his third

bait boat. “When we fish commercially in the wintertime, we live on

the boat.”

Greyshock’s deck boss, Marco de los Barrios, has worked aboard the

Newport bait boat since 1992.

The deck boss’ years aboard the Pamela Rose have given him enough

confidence to proclaim: “I know everything.”

“I need to pay attention to everything. Watch all the guys,” de

los Barrios said.