'Deadliest Catch' captain Keith Colburn says this season's conditions the most horrific yet

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'Deadliest Catch' crews' icy troubles

Exclusive footage gives inside look into treacherous conditions fishing crews face on Discovery's hit reality show

Discovery Channel’s incredibly popular fishing docu-series “Deadliest Catch” returns Tuesday, marking its 100th episode and most edge-of-your-seat season yet.

“In my 26 years of fishing, this season's were the worst conditions I had ever experienced – the storms, the ice,” Captain Keith Colburn told Fox411’s Pop Tarts column. “I can’t really describe it – my heart was racing, and we were on constant high alert. You realize quickly that you aren’t in control of your own destiny. Mother nature is. We were tested on a lot of different fronts.”

Incredibly harsh weather aside, this season the “Deadliest Catch” crews also have to contend with their fishing quotas being slashed almost by half, forcing the captains to change their tactics and question how they are going to make enough money to keep their livelihoods and businesses afloat. But according to Colburn, it is those challenges and life-threatening dangers that keep him and his colleagues inspired.

“You have to have a weird chromosome to do this, I don’t think I am completely there,” he continued. “I’m just an adrenaline junkie, I can’t see myself doing any other job.”

And although the Captain has now shot seven seasons of the popular reality series centered on life aboard fishing vessels in the Bering Sea, he still isn’t accustomed to being a famous face, or watching himself on the small screen.

“There are often a lot of moments I relive when I watch the show that I’d rather not,” he explained. “It still is uncomfortable seeing yourself. The novelty and cool factor of that is long gone.”

But above all, Colburn hopes that the series not only provides audiences with a richer understanding of the perils associated with commercial fishing, and what these men and women endure to put fresh fare on the table, but that it also encourages Americans to buy fish only from their homeland.

“Stick to American fisheries, and ‘wild caught’ is best,” he added. “When you start buying from overseas without the same health regulations, the quality issues can become scary. There are places that raise chickens above the fish pans, and use the excretions as a food source.”

Anyone else just lose their appetite?