In the far northern reaches of the planet a rare breed of extreme fishermen hunt the Bering Sea. Adventure is their call, crab is their prey, and a one hundred million dollar plunder is their reward. Skippers and their crews endure boat killing storms and body crushing working conditions - risking it all on the search for crab. In the end, they will all come to the realization that the most violent storms come from within.
This year, two new skippers join the veteran fleet and battle lines are drawn. Aging warriors, Captain Sig Hansen, on the Northwestern, the Hillstrand brothers on the Time Bandit, Skipper Bill on the Kodiak, and Captain Keith Colburn of the Wizard find their crab grounds invaded by 36 year old Scott Cambell aka "Junior" who helms the fast, powerful, Seabrooke and 28 year-old Elliot Neese, who runs a rusted, "floating frat-house" called The Ramblin' Rose. These cocky young skippers are determined to stake their claim to the Bering Sea crab bounty - but soon learn that "Old age and treachery" is a force to be reckoned with. The Cornelia Marie returns as well, but without legendary captain, Phil Harris.
Now, Phil's young, rebellious sons Jake and Josh Harris must ready the boat and set sail with a new skipper. Captain Derrick Ray must try to rally the boys and his crew, as they fish for the elusive blue king crab far north of the rest of the fleet.
Ep. 1) New Blood: The 2010 King crab season begins with an infusion of fresh blood into the Bering Sea crab fleet. Along with the return of our favorite veteran skippers - two new captains join the fray: 36-year-old Scott Campbell Jr., the hard charging, skipper of the sleek and powerful Seabrooke and 28-year-old first-time crabber, Elliot Neese, who helms the rusty and rowdy Ramblin' Rose. Following the death of their father Phil, brothers Josh and Jake Harris are back to keep the family fishing legacy alive - but soon find themselves tested by Derrick Ray, the Cornelia Marie's new skipper. Seasoned crews aboard the Northwestern, Time Bandit and Wizard battle heavy seas to get to their favorite hunting grounds, but arrive to hear the gut-wrenching sound of a mayday - signaling a crewman stricken on a nearby vessel.
Ep. 2) Proving Grounds: Across the Bering Sea crab fleet, bad fishing causes high tensions and low morale as empty pots whittle away profits and nerves among the men. Hoping to resurrect the storied fishing success of the Cornelia Marie, the Harris brothers and new skipper Derrick Ray pull their first strings of the season, but find nothing but barren waters and marauding sand fleas. The strikeout rekindles hostility between captain Derrick and engineer Steve Ward. On the Northwestern, ambitious deckhand Jake Anderson gets a chance to briefly operate the boat, but has to face some personal demons in the wheelhouse. Up-and-coming boats Seabrooke and Ramblin' Rose experience polar opposites of fishing fortune on the grounds: one hits it big while the other misses completely. On the Wizard, volatile captain Keith Colburn reaches a boiling point when his crew fails to follow his orders.
Ep. 3) Old Age and Treachery: Bad fishing afflicts much of the fleet in the third week of the King crab season. Veteran boats and tested skippers struggle to find their precious cargo as bad pots turn to blank pots. On the Wizard, danger strikes when a crewmember gets caught in a line. On the Seabrooke, Scott "Jr." Campbell defies the fishing odds by pulling up full pots, but a bitter, jealous deck boss, mars his triumph. On the Cornelia Marie, Jake Harris gets a sink-or-swim lesson in driving a crab boat, and steers the crew toward their biggest pots of the season - but a rift with captain Derrick Ray deepens in the process. Lastly, aboard the Ramblin' Rose, freshman skipper Elliott Neese realizes that all of his hard fought crab bounty could die in the tanks unless he makes a difficult choice.
Ep. 4) Breaking Point : It's a time of reckoning as new and different challenges descend on the crab fleet halfway through their season. A greenhorn from Idaho onboard the Seabrooke gets a rude awakening when faced with the physical and mental rigors of crab fishing. First-time skipper Elliott Neese makes a rookie mistake that costs him and the crew of the Ramblin' Rose dearly during the first offload of his young career. Frustrated by the low crab count, Josh Harris confronts Skipper Derrick Ray only to get shut down by a sprawling arctic storm. The brutal weather forces everyone onboard the Cornelia Marie to put aside their differences and run for cover. Deckhand Jake Anderson gets another crack at making big decisions for the Northwestern when he's offered the chance to strategize a town soak. And over on the Kodiak, Skipper 'Wild Bill' Wichrowski must contend with a broken crane that forces his crew to push the heavy pots, causing one deckhand to go down after a bad fall on deck.
Ep.5) A Wing and a Prayer: Bad luck finds the fleet in the latter half of the King crab season. On the Northwestern, the boat suffers a near-miss at port before bad fishing sparks a vicious fight between deckboss Edgar Hansen and deckhand Jake Anderson. The crew of the Wizard finds the source of the bad mojo aboard the boat and tosses it over the side, hoping to improve their fortunes. Captain Johnathan Hillstrand on the Time Bandit takes a massive gamble on barren grounds to find crab, while the greenhorn aboard the Seabrooke goes into a tailspin, leaving skipper Scott "Jr." Campbell in a bind.
