This month, we are proud to say that the story of our very own Bud Jones was published in the Western Mariner.
Born in Campbell River in 1940, it was at the age of nine that Jones started setting chokers, blowing whistles and falling trees with his dad, who worked as a logger – though Jones was far more interested in the passing-by tugs than logging. Ever since the age of 11, Captain Bud Jones’ dream was to be a coast pilot.
Jones’ career began at 15 years old, when he began working on tugs. At 24 years old, Jones began working as a captain for Kingcome, which was owned by the Powell-River company and operated much larger tugs than what he was used to. Jones wrote his first pilot’s exam at age 33, and served until his retirement at 77 years old – making him the most senior BC Coast Pilot, and the longest-serving pilot in the history of pilotage.
Jones had a reputation of being hard-working and safe. He states that his job involved “no drama” as he took pride in completing his job correctly and safely. Bud Jones, we thank you for your service and commitment to the BC Coast Pilots.
