Hours before king season, a massive new boat with a renegade captain discovers the crab are all in one spot. As the fleet races to find the quarter billion-dollar hoard, captains battle each other and the Bering Sea to claim their share of the bounty.
As the fleet chases the king crab super swarm, a decades-old rivalry heats up between Harley and Keith. Young guns Sean and Jake join join forces to set down Sig and Mandy. On the Brenna A, an inattentive greenhorn costs Sean time and money.
As the first arctic storm of the season arrives, Saga's deck boss takes a knife to the ribs. Josh and Casey's record-setting haul gets interrupted when a hand gets tangled in the coiler. Capt. Bill takes one last stab at motivating a lazy greenhorn.
With Mandy alone at the helm, a freak accident threatens the Northwestern crew. Josh changes course on the Cornelia while Casey sleeps. Harley's launcher snaps at the worst moment, and a short circuit cuts power to the Wizard's forward lights.
In the biggest storm of the season, Jake faces a life-or-death decision when a shifting stack threatens to capsize the Saga. Sig and Mandy haul through angry seas, while Josh and Casey gamble on quota but find there's more on the line than numbers.
The Bering Sea takes a toll on captains and crew. Wild Bill calls the Cornelia for help. Jake confronts a disorderly crew, forcing his toughest decision yet as captain. Josh mans the helm as Casey makes a risky ship-to-ship transfer in high seas.
The coldest weather in nearly a decade threatens to crush hulls and freeze the sea. Monte must fill his tanks fast to get home to his ailing father, while a shocking mishap leaves a Hansen family member grasping for life.
As winter intensifies, Sean faces an engine room fire. Summer Bay deck boss suffers a season-threatening injury. Harley offers a newfound nephew a trial run at greenhorn. Monte races to fill Wizard's quota so Keith can say farewell to their father.
Josh and Casey risk a 500 mile trek north to the icy Russian line. Jake tracks his own fast-moving crab horde. Sig does double duty on the Northwestern. The Bering sea cracks the Wizard's steel hull as the Colburns face the loss of their dad.
Josh and Casey haul their biggest pots, starting a gold rush to the Russian line. Captain Bill gets inside intel, while Harley confirms numbers his own way. As Arctic Storm Elsa builds in fury, the fleet realizes this ice queen casts a deadly spell.
Arctic Storm Elsa hits the Cornelia hardest as a breakaway pot thrashes Josh and Casey's crew. Captain Keith orders deckhands onto the stack as Elsa's icy blasts threaten to capsize the Wizard. No rest for Jake as the Saga takes a rogue wave.
As arctic superstorm Elsa intensifies, a forecast warns of isolated waves of unusual size. Trapped in the crab-rich northern grounds, the Cornelia Marie, Wizard and Southern Wind haul pots as big as the waves, until one boat faces a 60 foot monster.
In storm-driven seas, Cornelia Marie's crane goes off the rails, smashing Josh and Casey's wheelhouse and injuring deckhand Taylor. Sig risks navigating a rocky passage in treacherous conditions, and the Wizard crew face a rogue wave without warning.
Deckhands pay in blood as captains make up for time lost to the storm. On the Cornelia Marie, Josh takes the wheel as Casey conducts surgery at sea. Brenna A tests the mettle of a former Marine. A call from home has Sig facing a worst-case scenario.
The fleet battles a freight train of back to back storms. Sig's crew pays a price for stuffed pots, while Harley risks gear on an elusive hoard under the ice. Freddy attempts self-surgery on the Wizard. The Summer Bay crew gets news on Nick's future.
Monte returns to co-captain the Wizard just as a train of storms slams the fleet from the south. Jake battles the risk of hauling pots in 30 foot seas to return to his family. Wild Bill drives farther north into the icy Arctic than any other boat.
As crab turn elusive, veterans Sig Hansen and "Harley" Davidson form an unlikely alliance, but trust doesn't come easy for old-school captains. Freddy pays a price for Keith's decision to haul in intense seas. Jake tempts fate to become a boat owner.
As smoke fills the Wizard, the Colburns face a dark ship nightmare. Breakers shatter Jake's steel anchor, forcing him to fight to avoid the rocks of St. Paul Island. Battered by relentless seas, Sig turns to family to fill the Northwestern's tanks.
The bone-breaking winter unleashes fury on the Summer Bay. A rookie mistake leaves Captain Bill short a hand. Jake hits the jackpot at sea, but forces on land cost him dearly. There's hell to pay when Sean discovers the fatal flaw in his crab count.
In the penultimate episode, each skipper's next move determines who survives the final winter dash. Winds put the Wizard on a collision course with a monster. Jake taps a Hillstrand to save the Saga. Josh & Casey hit numbers not seen since Cpt. Phil.
In the season finale, with just ten pots to go, a crushing injury requires Coast Guard rescue. Josh and Casey face a huge loss when their offload gets cancelled. Sig gambles on an early finish, while Monte hauls more crab than the Wizard can hold.