A government shutdown shortens the season and starts off a chain reaction that forces the fleet to fish harder and faster to make the market deadline. One boat goes up in flames and many are left to wonder if this is really the life they wished for.

Two weeks into the King Crab season the fleet is already behind after a government shut down and now a massive arctic storm. A harrowing Coast Guard airlift must abort with 100-knot winds whipping over the grounds.

A storm shut down the fleet, now an even more severe weather system hits them again. While captains do their best to stay their course, greenhorn problems, mechanical malfunctions and bad fishing conspire to shake their resolve.

The King fleet grows desperate as it hurtles towards the finish line and the Wizard's fishing strategy lands them on the wrong side of the law.

As crews prepare to head to the Bairdi grounds, a mayday call from a sinking ship prompts a dramatic at-sea rescue. On the Cape Caution, Bill's greenhorn is looking for a way out, while Edgar on the Northwestern takes a big risk at his first time as captain.

With one captain in the hospital and another on a bender, fishing has come to a halt on two boats. Out at sea an alleged felon is trapped, a boat goes dark, and on the Time Bandit...well Captain Johnathan Hillstrand just wants to be young again.

One captain faces what might spell the end of a storied career while another struggles to check into rehab. Problems on land pale in comparison to those on the Bering Sea where the brave men and women of the United States Coast Guard lose one of their own

Opilio season kicks off with the return of the fabled Cornelia Marie. After a 3-year struggle Josh Harris bought back the boat that helped make his old man a legend. 18-year-old Mandy Hansen arrives to convince her father Sig to take her fishing.

Blood is spilled on the Cape Caution, when a brutal storm rips across the Bering Sea. Rookie boat owner Josh Harris swallows his pride. Captain Sig fights to keep the Northwestern from going up in flames and Captain Keith battles boat-sinking ice.

In Dutch, Sig welcomes their newest greenhorn: his daughter. After four generations of Hansen fishermen, the next in line is a woman. In high seas, a major hydraulic leak on the Time Bandit primes the engine room to blow.

While the rest of the fleet have their doubts about a woman's place on a crab boat, the Northwestern crew must train their new recruit; Sig's 18-year-old daughter, Mandy Hansen.

As the wintery Opilio season roars on, Sig puts Mandy at the helm in boat-crushing seas. Josh Harris struggles quash a rebellion. Elliott's new girlfriend arrives (much to his crew's chagrin). Zack Larson feels Wild Bill's wrath.

It's Super Bowl Sunday on the Bering Sea. The Cornelia Marie battles 20-foot breakers in St. Paul, a blown prop on the Time Bandit causes a rift that pull the Hillstrands apart and Wild Bill takes his deck boss to task.

As Sig orders a classic Northwestern grind, Mandy learns what it's really like to be a greenhorn. With major repairs on the Time Bandit, Captain Andy is faced with a tough decision.

With the end in sight, crews struggle to keep it together. A saboteur seeks an early end for the Cape Caution. Cornelia Marie Captains Josh Harris and Casey McManus fight to control their crew. On the Time Bandit a long lost Hillstrand returns.

An arctic hurricane strikes the fleet. The Cornelia Marie faces sinking. Blood is shed on the Time Bandit. The Northwestern needs repair in 30 foot seas. The Wizard has a near perfect season.