When young, ambitious captain Valdis Nulle is given command of the fishing trawler Dzintars, he faces a host of problems onboard. The management feels obligated to give the demoted captain Bauze a spot on the boat. He deliberately undermines Nulle’s authority, although the captain finds an unexpected ally in the secret drinker Juhans. But it soon becomes clear that his duties are too much for the novice captain. When fishing expert Sabīne also comes aboard to test a new trawl net, the conflicts come to a head. Without ignoring the class and interpersonal problems, this Latvian high seas drama draws a realistic picture of life aboard a working trawler. The screenplay was penned by writer Egons Līvs, who brought his own experience working as a dispatcher at Liepāja port to bear on the script.