Although I grew up in Germany, I had a lot of exposure to hunting, and North America, at a young age. My father started outfitting in Europe, Asia, Alaska and Canada in the 70’s and would occasionally take me along. It became clear to me very quickly that British Columbia was where I wanted to live, and outfitting was what I wanted to do.
I finished my schooling and apprenticeship in Germany and in 1987, at the age of 19, I and my then girlfriend Manuela made the move to Canada and never looked back. Now with our two boys, Rene and Christian, we run a very successful outfitting operation that spans two guide areas as well as operating a fantastic fishing lodge all in Northern BC.
Both our boys have been accompanying us on our adventures since they were born. They could cast a line, shoot a bow or gun, build a fire, clean a grouse and skin a bear before they went to school.
Our dogs are also a big part of our family, the hunt and our business. Although they are great pets and family members they are bred and trained to track wounded game. We pride ourselves by hunting ethically and lawfully. We respect the game we pursue and the traditions that surround the hunt. Some of them stem from First Nations history or thousand year old European ways of hunting but all have the same thing in common, they honor the hunt and the animal.
Guide outfitting is a way of life. It is a commitment that goes beyond getting a job done or running a business. It comes with a sense of ownership and pride to the exclusive areas we operate in. The game that lives within these areas represent our future and we care about their populations, habitat and the watersheds everything depends on.
We look out for negative impacts from other tenures, we lobby government for sustainable use and conservation, and we spend countless hours in meetings discussing how to regulate and manage the land, fish and wildlife.
Someone said “Find a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life”. For us we found it!
Good hunting,
Michael Schneider
