Portugal has a very rich fishing history, especially off the shores of Newfoundland. For hundreds of years, Portuguese schooners brought their fishermen to the grounds of the Grand Banks, lowering their small dories into the water. These men would fish all day using hand lines (or later, small trawl nets), returning to their ships at night to offload, salt, prepare, and store their catch. While it seems like it would be a simple life, it was dangerous. You could get trapped between your dory and the hull of your vessel, lost in the fog, or if a storm came up, you could be swept away. Some men just disappeared.