Guided By Passion, Pulled By the Sea
The best guides are the ones who keep chasing that original feeling; that inexplicable magic they experienced catching their very first fish. Call it the chase, call it a passion, call it an obsession — it’s their life, and the very best ones live to share the feeling. Tofino, B.C’s Captain Brody Pigeau is one such fishing guide whose connection to the ocean and sharing that experience with people is truly palpable, something one understands instantly when in his presence.
“My life definitely revolves around the ocean and fishing,” laughs Brody. “When I wake up in the morning, the first thing I’m thinking about is the tides, the swell, the wind, every part of it.”
Of course, where Brody lives and works in the Pacific Northwest paradise of Tofino, a connection to the sea — and nature in general — is inescapable.
“The second you leave the harbor, you'll probably have an eagle swoop over your head,” he explains. “Even just sitting on the dock, you're surrounded by seals and sea lions and you're maybe dodging a raccoon or something. You don't have to go very far to find whales and the fish? It's not much of a chase. There's so much wildlife within a short amount of space. It's all right at your doorstep.”
Every Guide Was Once Guided
A talented snowboarder who grew up in Eastern Canada, Brody always had the bug for fishing but the bodies of water were more rivers and lakes. At a pivotal time in his life after high school, when life may have been trying to pull him into the city for work — he felt an even stronger gravitational pull from the ocean and headed West.
Once in Tofino, surfing and working with various fishing guides to make ends meet, Brody knew he was in the right place and had a true talent and passion for catching fish…but was still a little directionless in the larger scheme of things, as most 20 years olds often are. Thankfully, he met the right guide.
“My mentor Josh was an amazing teacher. He wasn't the kind of guide to hide his secrets or anything like that. He was very willing to pass his knowledge on. I'm forever grateful for every opportunity he gave me. Josh didn't just teach me about fishing, he was like, ‘I want to help you get to where you want to be in life.’ And that meant owning my own boat and starting my own business — it wasn't just to teach me how to fish. It was teaching me how to be a man kind of thing.”
Sharing the Magic
Things took off from there and due to Brody’s determination and seemingly endless work ethic, he’s since become one of the most sought-after young fishing guides in the Sound. If you ask him, however, it’s all owed to never losing the stoke.
“I remember the first fish I caught like it was yesterday. It was on a guided trip. And I think that's what inspired me to be a guide, because that moment has stuck with me and it will stick with me for the rest of my life. As cliché as it sounds — I was hooked. Just being able to see what I could do in my own backyard was super inspiring. It’s a moment you kind of chase your whole life, similar to surfing or snowboarding or skateboarding. There's just those, those moments that you chase.”
“So, me playing host to people — that's just me doing what I like to do, you know? That's why I love to guide: I can create those feelings for other people. I've found a lot of joy in sharing my love for the fishery with others. I have no problem passing the rod over. I get so enthused when I see someone catch their first fish because I remember that experience so much.”
The Sea Is a Different Beast
A fishing trip with Brody via Tofino Ocean Adventures in B.C.’s Clayoquot Sound is a truly unique and singular kind of fishing experience, primarily because of the elemental challenges the ocean presents.
“The ocean…it moves a lot,” laughs Brody. “So, trying to wrangle that thing every day is a little bit different than fishing the rivers or the lakes, although they have their own elements for sure. But with the ocean, there’s a vastness, a largeness to it all. Everything's just bigger, more powerful and it humbles you a lot. I love fishing the rivers and the lakes, but I get really excited when I go offshore.”
“The ocean also forces you to connect with nature. And catching a fish, it's an indescribable thing, but when you’re successful, you feel like you danced with the ocean. It's not like an adrenaline rush, it's more like being in the mountains and just taking in a gasp of air. You feel accomplished. When I get to catch a fish, it's like I got to shake hands with the sea.”
A Deeper Takeaway Than the Catch
Being guided by Brody is more than an exhilarating boat ride and a solid guarantee that you’ll catch some fish. It’s an education. Beyond recently co-founding Tofino Adventure Camp, a not-for-profit camp that aims to connect youth with our natural world, one surely gains an added kind of wisdom about the ocean and its environment on his fishing charter.
“I want to educate as many people about the ocean and this fishery as I can so that it's protected,” says Brody. “I guess this is my environmental movement, in a sense. As much as I catch fish, every fish I bonk, not only will I thank each fish, but in my mind, hopefully that fish is life to save a larger scale of fish. I want people to go home and make conscious decisions about what they do environmentally surrounding the ocean.”
“So, as a guide I also feel like I have a responsibility to be an educator. But it's an education based on experience you know? Sometimes people will ask ‘How much does the whale weigh?’ And I'm like, ‘I have no idea.’ But I've seen that thing for four weeks now and I can probably tell you more about its personality than its weight, you know?”
Book a trip with Brody at Tofino Ocean Adventures.
Stay out longer and go deeper into the wild below with the Benchmade Water Collection.