Tofino Expeditions founder Grant Thompson was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, and is the fourth generation of a West Coast Canadian marine family. He first went to sea on a Norwegian freighter for a year at 17. After this adventure, he attended university, where he studied photography. During summer breaks, he worked as a deckhand on the small coastal tanker, the MV Imperial Tofino, that delivered fuel to far-flung communities, logging and fish camps along the coast of British Columbia. These summers, spent discovering the ruggedly beautiful islands and fjord-like inlets of the BC Coast, proved formative. As a climber and photographer, he spent his 20s and early 30s technical mountaineering until a chance meeting in 1981 with John Dowd, author of "Sea Kayaking: A Manual for Long-Distance Touring," turned his attention back to the sea. The expedition potential for sea kayaks to explore the wild coast of British Columbia and beyond captivated his imagination.
Through the mid-eighties, he worked in the outdoor sports industry promoting the then "new" sport of sea kayaking. He sat on the board of directors of the Trade Association of Sea Kayaking (TASK), which later became the Trade Association of Paddlesports (TAPS).
In 1988, driven by a strong desire to be on the water rather than behind a desk, he founded Tofino Expeditions Limited in the small town of Tofino on the west coast of Vancouver Island. In 1989, Outside Magazine ranked Tofino as one of the "Great Sports Towns of North America because of the outstanding kayaking in the surrounding area. That same year, he began running kayaking expeditions in Mexico's Sea of Cortez, the first of many international paddling venues. An association with travel writer Tim Cahill led to articles in Outside Magazine, Men's Journal, and other publications that were included in Cahill's books "Jaguars Ripped my Flesh" and "Pass the Butterworms".
As sea kayak outfitting became more popular, Grant became involved in guide education. He was a charter member of The Alliance of British Columbia Sea Kayak Guides and the Association of Canadian Sea Kayak Guides. As a head guide instructor/ examiner for both organizations, he ran guide training courses on the British Columbia coast and in Baja. He served on a committee of three senior guides that drafted the first sea kayak guide training curriculum officially recognized by Parks Canada. Two contracts as an adventure travel consultant for the Norwegian Centre for Excellence resulted in popular sea kayaking and kayaking and e-biking itineraries.
Tofino Expeditions Limited, a wholly Canadian company, still operates all of Tofino’s trips. Still actively guiding, Grant has led kayaking trips in Canada, Central and South America, Europe, and Asia. His photographic work has appeared in many magazines, including Outside, National Geographic, National Geographic Adventure, Sea Kayaker, and Outpost, as well as many newspapers. In addition to kayaking, he is an avid skier, cyclist, stand-up paddleboarder, and fly fisherman.
