Steve Barber has been captain of the Bert since 2017.

The R/V Cap’n Bert is URI’s College of the Environment and Life Sciences research and education vessel. Busy and hardworking in all seasons, the Bert is kept afloat by a sense of purpose, a dedicated crew, and a captain who loves the inherent challenges of the job.

Story and photos by Eddie Cascella, M.E.S.M. ’24

In the warm months, Wickford Shipyard is bustling with boaters and fishers readying for a day on the water. In the offseason, with hundreds of boats dry-docked for winter, the shipyard is quiet.

On this Monday morning, an unusually chilly one, even for December, URI Graduate School of Oceanography (GSO) master’s student Alexander Rubin weaves through the maze of shrink-wrapped boats, gleaming white in the winter sun. Rubin is hauling equipment for the day’s fish trawl aboard the R/V Cap’n Bert, which is nowhere to be seen this morning. “The Bert’s been out on another job since before dawn,” Rubin explains. “They’ll be back for the trawl.” Right on queue, the Bert bubbles into the harbor.

The Bert is a 53-foot stern trawler that serves as the main educational and research vessel for URI’s College of the Environment and Life Sciences. Stepping aboard, it’s clear the Bert is built for work. In the shadow of the towering A-frame that carries the trawlnet, the deck can hold up to 22 passengers. The vessel’s enclosed wheelhouse contains a myriad of screens for GPS, radar, and assorted charting systems.

Captain Steve Barber and undergraduate assistant Mary McKenna sort the contents of the trawl.

One of the Bert‘s biggest jobs is supporting URI GSO’s Fish Trawl Survey … one of the longest continuous studies of fish and invertebrate abundance in the world.

The vessel is utilized for everything from deploying undersea remote-operated vehicles to hosting groups of high school students for URI’s summer shark camp. One of the Bert’s biggest jobs is supporting URI GSO’s Fish Trawl Survey, which has been performed from the Cap’n Bert every Monday since 1987. The Fish Trawl Survey, which began in 1959, is one of the longest continuous studies of fish and invertebrate abundance in the world, gathering data about how Narragansett Bay’s fish communities change over time. “To be part of such a long-running and rich program at URI is incredible,” says Rubin. “The data collected is used by Rhode Island’s Department of Environmental Management for research and management decisions, so my work directly contributes to that. It’s really rewarding.”

Working the Trawl

Today, captain Steve Barber and his crew are heading out at 7:45 a.m. for their second job of the day. For the trawl, the Bert stops at two precise locations: first at Fox Island, just offshore from Rome Point in Wickford, and then, after passing under the Jamestown Verrazzano Bridge, at Whale Rock, situated at the mouth of the bay just offshore from Narragansett Town Beach. The trawl’s consistency is vital to the data collected. “We tow the net into exactly the same spots to get a history of what’s going on in the bay,” says Barber.

A smooth dogfish is measured before being returned to the water.

While the data generated by the fish trawl brings some well-deserved attention to the Bert, the crew making it possible often flies under the radar. Led by Barber, the tight-knit crew includes deckhand Rubin and undergraduate assistant Mary McKenna. They deploy the trawlnet and haul it back from its 30-minute-long trawl, where it picks up creatures from the bottom of the bay. Then, scurrying around the stern, McKenna immediately sorts through squirming fish, squid, and crustaceans, meticulously grouping them into buckets by species. At the deck’s central workbench, Rubin looks through each bucket, recording the species name, sex, and length of each specimen. Some fish wiggle uncontrollably on the measuring board while he waits for the perfect moment to measure them, while others, like the sea sponge, make his job much easier.

Undergraduate assistant Mary McKenna, captain Steve Barber, and deckhand Alexander Rubin with the Bert at Wickford Shipyard.

“Working on the Bert is fast-paced and fun. You have to work very quickly and efficiently while also making sure everything is running safely,” says Rubin. In winter, with some regular species having migrated to warmer waters for the season, some trawls come up completely empty. Regardless, the work continues.

Captain Steve Barber prepares to deploy the trawl doors aboard the Bert.

“Whether it’s rainy, cold, or windy, we’re still out on the Bert doing the work.”

­—captain Steve Barber R/V Cap’n Bert

“I won’t sugarcoat it: This can be very unglamorous work,” says Barber. “Whether it’s rainy, cold, or windy, we’re still out on the Bert doing the work.”

Rough weather and empty nets aside, one thing remains constant: the sense of pride shared by the crew for being associated with the Bert. “The trust and responsibility given to me,” says Rubin, “is really fulfilling.”

Cleaning Up

Once the trawl’s over and the fish have been returned to the sea, Rubin and McKenna must meticulously shake debris from the trawlnet before swabbing the deck and spraying it down with the hose. Today, once the deck is spotless, they take turns aiming the hose at each other to clean themselves off, as well. “By the end of the sorting, counting, and measuring, I’m covered in fish scales, seaweed, dirt, and squid ink,” Rubin says. He explains that when you work on a boat, especially in the winter, it’s a race against time to get out of the cold. But there is camaraderie in the shared “misery” as the crew huddles up in the wheelhouse to escape the windchill out on the deck.

Undergraduate assistant Mary McKenna examines an Atlantic rock crab.

Alexander Rubin cleans the measuring board.

In spite of the hose-down, Rubin says it’s inevitable that you’re going to reek of fish and seawater after a day working the trawl. “My roommates are lying when they say they don’t mind the smell of my gear at our apartment,” he jokes.

In the midst of all the hard work onboard, it would be easy for the crew to miss the beauty and wonder of their Narragansett Bay workplace. It’s not unusual for a pod of dolphins to tag along for the trawl, and cormorants diving and resurfacing with a fresh catch are a common sight. “I really appreciate getting to work out on the water,” Rubin says. “It really beats sitting at a computer screen all day.”

Indefatigable

For the better part of the past three decades, Barber has worked on the ocean. His love for the water goes back even further. “I grew up on Long Island, so I always clammed and fished Great South Bay,” Barber recalls. Before coming to URI in 2017, he was a commercial fisher out of Point Judith, R.I. When he became captain of the Bert, major renovations were at the top of his to-do list. “When I took over, the boat was tired,” he says. “We needed to bring this boat into the 21st century.”

In 2018, Barber and vessel operations coordinator Mitch Hatzipetro ’15, M.E.S.M. ’20, secured a state grant to replace the Bert’s engine and generator. In 2021, the hydraulic system was also upgraded. “Along with these renovations, we still continue to add essential safety upgrades onboard as needed,” Barber says. And just this past fall, the Bert’s hull was given a pearly-white paint job. By December, the hardworking vessel’s vibrant hull had already been weathered to a dull yellow.

Captain Steve Barber at the helm of the Bert.

The Bert started life as the Angelita, a smuggling ship used for illegal drug trafficking between the Caribbean islands and the Florida Keys in the early 1980s. After the illicit operation was halted by the U.S. Coast Guard, the boat was purchased by URI and retrofitted as a research vessel and capable stern trawler. In 1987, the vessel was reborn as the R/V Cap’n Bert— named as a tribute to the late captain Bert Hiller, a North Kingstown native and lifelong fisherman who spent the latter part of his life shoreside as an assistant professor at URI.

If the Bert is indefatigable, its captain is, too. “Along with being the captain of this boat, on certain days I’m also the mate, engineer—and even a teacher! It can be a bit overwhelming.”

But, Barber says, he loves his job, which makes coming to work easy. He especially loves bringing youth groups out to experience the bay. “When I see the excitement on those kid’s faces,” he says, “it’s like Christmas on the Cap’n Bert!”

From the wheelhouse, in his self-designed Cap’n Bert trucker cap, Barber does, indeed, look like a man who loves his job. “I wouldn’t change it for the world,” he says.

PHOTOS: EDDIE CASCELLA, M.E.S.M. ’24