A life on the rolling sea in pursuit of denizens of the deep

The call of the water came early for Brad Huse, and it never left.

Nearly a half century after his first experience on the water, Huse, better known as “Shorty,” returns to Lake Michigan via the Port Washington Marina each spring.

It’s not for recreation.

Huse is a charter boat captain, a job he has held for nearly 30 years. Before that, he was a first mate for 16 years.

The draw of Lake Michigan, he said, is simple. “Just being out on the water, being with new people every day,” he said.

Every day is nearly literal. Huse hits the water April 1 as captain of one of the boats in the Nicky Boy Charters fleet and doesn’t stop until Nov. 1.

“First one in, last one out,” he said.

He regularly works 150 to 200 straight days, and those aren’t business hours. His shift starts at 4 a.m. in the dark.

“Getting up at 2:30 every morning” is the toughest part, Huse said.

Fortunately, his commute is short. Huse lives in Belgium.

During charter fishing season, however, the Nicky Boy IV, a 36-foot powerboat built by Tiara Yachts of Holland, Mich., is usually his home.

Huse takes visiting anglers, local fishing enthusiasts and the occasional celebrity out on the lake in search of the muscular salmon and trout that make offshore freshwater fishing an exciting sport.

As a veteran participant in that sport, Huse uses the knowledge of weather and habits of fish he acquired in decades of Lake Michigan fishing to reward his clients with the thrill of fighting and landing fish that can easily weigh more than 10 pounds and sometimes over 20 pounds.

Huse is not daunted by challenging conditions on the lake, but lets his clients decide. “Four to six-foot waves is pushing it for most people,” he said, “but if they want to go, we’re going.”

Even Huse doesn’t like it that rough, but he said he has never gotten seasick.

Most of his fishing is done within five miles of the Port Washington harbor, but he has taken charterers as far as 20 miles offshore and considerable distances along the shore south of Port. On Sunday morning, he fished near Concordia University Wisconsin in Mequon.

There’s a caveat to long distance fishing, however. The cost of fuel is a concern. “We don’t get miles per gallon. It’s gallons per mile,” he said.

Huse is licensed by the U.S. Coast Guard, which requires a certain number of hours on the water and passing multiple tests. The licenses must be renewed every five years.

How long Huse stays out depends on how fast the group catches its limit of five fish per person.

Groups range from four to a maximum of six people. Huse said four is ideal while six can get crowded. “They just have fun,” he said of his customers. “They’re always taking pictures.”

Nicky Boy Charters owner Sharon Scheel said Huse is a favorite of the operations’ clients.“He’s popular. People enjoy fishing with him. People depend on our knowledge of the lake out there and all the conditions. Someone that has that much experience and knowledge on the lake is definitely a bonus, and our company takes off because of that.”

Thanks to that appeal, Huse’s boat has a waiting list. “You want a weekend on that thing? Three years,” he said.

Huse credits his success to experience. “You do anything for 46 years, you’re going to be good at it,” he said.

Huse is legally limited to 12 hours of fishing per day, but he has taken groups out as many as three times per day.

During spring, Huse’s groups can catch their limit of coho salmon in a couple of hours.

But, there’s no guarantee of hitting the limit, Huse acknowledged. “If you want your limit every time, you’re in the wrong profession,” he said.

This year, however, offers better chances than in the recent past. “It’s exceptional,” he said of the fishing. “Best we’ve seen in a decade.”

Now, Huse has help. For the first time in a few years, he has a first mate—the job he started with in the industry. It’s his teenage nephew Nolan Huse.

The first mate helps set the lines and net the fish and takes photos for the anglers.

Nolan used to stop by the boat as a child and always wanted to work on it, Scheel said. This is the first year he has the chance.

“Getting up at 3:45 in the morning—what teenager wants to do that in high school? That passion is there,” Scheel said.

Capt. Huse also got hooked on boating when he was young. He grew up in Brookfield, and later his father Nels regularly took him out on the family boat at the McKinley Marina in Milwaukee.

While Huse loves being on the lake, the season’s schedule comes with sacrifices. There are no State Fair, family reunions or Summerfest visits for Huse.

To do this job for this long, he said, “You’ve got to be married to the lake.”

During the offseason, Huse is still connected to the industry. Countless emails, texts and phone calls to schedule.

Then there’s the boat. It’s more than maintenance. “It’s straight-up repair,” Huse said.

That’s when 36 feet feels a lot longer. “You think it’s 100 when you’ve gotta wax it,” he said.

While Huse provides people with an entertaining escape from their daily lives, his hobbies lie elsewhere. When he isn’t on the water, Huse hits the woods in search of edible animals with legs. He goes deer and duck hunting.