Its all about the staff

Anyone in the service business knows they are as only good as their staff.  Here at Epic we are the management team that operates several lodges in BC. The guides, the chefs, and everyone else involved work hard as a team to make each one of our operations a success.  It is the same group of guys working the Bulkley/Morice in the fall at Frontier Farwest as it is hiking the many rivers of Haida Gwaii in the winter at Copper Bay Lodge.  Working together throughout the year at multiple lodges and locations makes us a very close knit crew.

In the summer Epic runs Bulkley Basecamp which is a very complicated, logistical puzzle where we set up several camps on the coast allowing us to access prime water during the peak of king salmon runs.  This summer we ran 5 separate camps and fished 5 different rivers utilizing 3 float plane companies across the North.  Without my solid unified team this would of been a disaster.  However we worked hard together and provided some of the best wilderness fishing experiences any of our guests had ever explored. Whether the fishing was hot or cold, the all round experience trumped everything.

Any guide/outfitter who tries to work alone will quickly find out it is far too much to take on. Working alone on tasks like this often leads to feelings of isolation and a massive increase in stress (My grey hairs are multiplying by the day). In a team situation, other team members understand the specifics of the task and offer an outlet for stress. The team also shares responsibility for achieving the task, which helps diffuse some of the pressures working alone often causes. This helps everyone involved to avoid burnout and also increases the likelihood of successful completion of the task.

It has taken a few years to get to this point at our operation but right now we are at the peak of our game.  I have worked at many lodges around the world and each one has peaks and valleys with the staff.  When the right staff stays on for a long period of time a cohesion is created that produces pure magic at a fishing lodge.

This summer was filled with late night beer infused, fireside chats with the guides going over logistics.  Everyone weighs in on a subject and together we make a plan. This team-work carries over to all aspects of our operation and makes for a very special atmosphere.  Anyone who has been to Frontier Farwest over the past couple years has surely taken note of the growth we have made.  I had the vision and my staff made it work.

Special thanks to Joel Gourley, Scott Baker-McGarva, Chris George, Lucas Brennan, Steve Morrow, Evan Quaas, Peter Karnouskos, CJ Jarvis, Michael McLean, Matt Nagler, Michael Brackenhofer,  Mark Drydyk,  Rafe Turner, Brandi Collins

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