Jeremy’s lockdown diary: Vancouver Island fishing

May 12, 2020

Jeremy Walsh is usually to be found in our Santa Clarita facility. The British-born manager lives on Vancouver Island, Canada, where he’s in lockdown from Covid-19.

Salmon fishing

What’s it like living on Vancouver Island during the coronavirus pandemic?

Life on Vancouver Island has taken a similar turn to cities across North America. The shortages of flour, toilet roll, pasta, after queuing for longer than usual at the shops.

Vancouver Island is about the same size as England but has a relatively sparse population of less than 900,000. Even in the most populous centres like Victoria (the capital city of the Canadian province of British Columbia), without the hordes of tourists it is relatively easy to self-isolate.

My usual weekly commute from Victoria to Valencia in Santa Clarita was cut short in March due to travel restrictions put in place at the border. It may be one of the longest commutes in my work life, but it is more than worthwhile as it allows me to live in two beautiful parts of the world. I swap the natural beauty and wildlife of home, (where I’m often visited by forest critters such as eagles, bears, deer, and the occasional mountain lion) for the polar opposite, a very energetic and cosmopolitan Los Angeles.

Previously I spent 15 years in Vancouver, working for William F White Inc as National Director, Rental Maintenance. Vancouver is where I started to learn how to fish for wild salmon. A few good buddies at Whites, including Garin Josey, had been fishing for this elite species for many years and I decided to give it a whirl.

Catching large wild salmon was only for the privileged few back in the UK. Here in Canada we have some of the best opportunities to catch fish over 40lbs, in wild, raging rivers with only the company of eagles and bears to validate our captures! Good thing really as they can’t dispute the size of the catch.

Is fishing how you’re keeping busy during lockdown?

I grew up fishing on the Leeds Liverpool canal in the North West of England. Back then it was all about just trying to get a bite before your fingers developed frostbite.

Since then I’ve fished for large carp and bass in the lakes around Los Angeles, sturgeon on the Fraser River, steelhead and salmon in British Columbia.

I’ve also fished in very remote regions of Canada, one of the most beautiful being Haida Gwaii where you can catch giant halibut while having a close encounter with a pod of humpback whales and orcas!

These days, time is of the essence, so short trips to my local lake to fish for bass and trout. These sessions don’t always produce the big fish, but the scenery and peace and quiet more than makes up for the lack of trophy fish.

In a nutshell, even before the Covid virus, I was practising self-isolation on the river bank!

What are you looking forward to once lockdown is lifted?

I don’t know how we would have managed if a similar world pandemic had happened ten years ago, but with the advent of technology I can work effectively from home.

I’m still able to respond to technical issues and sales enquiries in real-time. However, working remotely does have its challenges, and even though my furry work colleagues (two old English sheepdogs) are a pleasure to work with, it will be nice to get back to meeting with our customers to discuss how Power Gems can help with their lighting requirements.

It’s difficult to know how the production landscape will look in the aftermath. We will probably see smaller-scale productions initially until there’s a viable action plan for large features. This could place our smaller wattage HMI and LED ballasts in high demand as lower budget mass content is produced during this period. Ultimately though I’m hopeful it will be business as usual very soon.

Now that films and TV programmes can’t be made, you may have the desire to escape into the past. Here’s a picture of Jeremy in 1997 outside Power Gems in Los Angeles alongside Mike Niehenke the then-Vice President of Sales and Karen Kaloust, Office Administrator

We hope it brings you comfort and reassurance during these uncertain times. Or at least, makes you smile.