FROM OCEAN TO LAND & REVERSE WITH LÉA BRASSY
Last summer we met with surfer & environment activist Léa Brassy. Here is a recap of our conversation, talking about surfing, diving and farming. We hope to encourage new passions. through this inspiring portrait.
SALT WATER : You’re a self proclaimed Ocean Adventuress - what does that title mean to you?
LÉA BRASSY : Adventuring means going beyond my comfort zone, being curious, daring, exploring. Surfing is often adventurous: surf trips, bigger waves, challenging environment or colder climates. Diving is an exploration, you never know what you will see, neither how you will feel holding your breath nor what you will get. What I do in the Ocean is often the opposite of a normal predictable sporting activity as it’s full of surprises and therefore I used that wording to describe what I enjoy doing out there.
You’re a woman of the water. Surfing, diving, spearfishing. Can you tell us about how you discovered this passion?
I grew up swimming at the local swim club. At school I was training twice a day for competitive swimming. At age 12, my brother took me surfing with his buddy. We were surfing empty cold and windy beach breaks in Normandy. I loved to be immerged in the wilderness, although it was mainly rugged.
At that time I was scared of depth. It’s in 2013 during a surf trip on the North Shore of Oahu that I asked my Patagonia fellow Ambassador Kimi Werner to take me diving. We had the most beautiful experience diving in clear water with the sound of singing whales. Thanks to her I also speared my first fish that we shared for diner. It was the oceanic version of what I used to do with my dad as a kid, picking up wild edible plants and fishing off the spring. I was hooked with this new way to enjoy the ocean. A much calmer and personal way.
How do you feel your psychology changes when you enter the water to surf or dive?
In daily life, my thoughts are prolific, always reflecting back or projecting in the future. When I enter the water, my thoughts tend to slow down and my attention to focus on the moment. I would compare it to a meditative state, as my entire self is dedicated to be here and now. In spearfishing, it also comes with a natural hunting instinct, I feel, think and act as a predator and I forget everything else that can be happening in life ashore.
What does the average day for you look like?
My average day is never the same, and it’s probably what I like so much about my lifestyle. I have the luxury to organize myself around the forecasts in order to make the most of weather and waves. My activities are totally dependant on conditions, whether it’s in the ocean or at land, so adaptation is the only way to get anything achieved. I love that it’s keeping me in close relationship with the natural rhythm of seasons and the cycle of life. I don’t surf or dive everyday though, unless conditions are epic. Beekeeping and farming are time consuming activities so I must dedicate it a decent amount of time too. These days, I wake up early to my daily kundalini yoga practice in which I find a precious balance. I also commit one day each week to learn beekeeping with a professional beekeeper on her apiaries.
What values has surfing taught you that you apply to your everyday life? And reverse.
Surfing has taught me to live in the moment and be present at what I am doing. It has also taught me that when conditions are good, I should make the most of it while it’s possible. Those are very precious pieces of advice in life in general.
Life has taught me to be thankful for what I have because it can disappear in a blink and therefore to patient, positive and hopeful. Applied to surfing, it’s a decisive attitude in order to score the magic moment.
From Ocean to Land can you tell us how you going with farming and bees.
2021 is my second year as a beginner farmer and beekeeper. Producing my own food has been in my plans since I was a teenager. I only had a vague idea of what it meant to have hands in the dirt for real though. My grandparents were feeding from their gardens but I would only participate in the rewarding harvests. It turns out It’s a lot of work. There are a ton of mistakes to be done. But the successes, even small at times, are extremely rewarding and meaningful.
The veggie garden has grown a tone this year. It’s a project I share with my boyfriend. We invested in a 12m2 green house where we plant all the seedlings in spring then the tomatoes in summer. We have tripled the growing areas, from 60 to 180m2. The soil is rather poor and we need to keep feeding the regenerative process. We did terrible with tomatoes and cabbage, but were successful at salad, beans, squash, indoor tomatoes, chilli pepper, potatoes and hemp. We grew beans I had kept from my grandfather garden, they were 10 years old!
My apiary is doing amazing. I had a terrible start of the season with only 1 bee colony that survived the winter and it swarmed in February. I decided to commit 1 day a week to seriously learn beekeeping from professionals. There is so much to know. I have a beekeeper girlfriend who works with organic practices and she is very welcoming to share her knowledge in exchange to my working force. It was a great idea and I would recommend that to get started. I now have 3 colonies in production. I have harvested 100 kg of honey this season. I created 2 new colonies. My passion for bees is growing extensively. It totally fits my needs: to spend time in the wilderness, to be intellectually active and to have intense physical workout. But it also makes sense to me to produce quality food and provide shelter to such amazing and necessary insects.
Have you/Who are your role models & What keeps you moving (fighting) ?
I look up to people who live a life close to Nature with drive and focus, yet stay straight to their values, authentic, empathetic, compassionate and sensitive. To name a couple, there is Pierre Rabhi and Liz Clark.
You recently led a fight against the construction of a surf park in Saint Jean-de-luz. What is your opinion on wave pools?
My personal opinion on wave pool is that they are not necessary. They reflect arrogant stance of mankind towards Nature. We have better projects to build with our natural and financial resources. Time has come to focus on projects that have real social and environmental benefits for communities, not only financial benefits for investors. There must be greener wave pool projects than others, but they remain a waist of resources. Surfers have surfed without wave pools since the beginning, so it’s not a big deal to keep living without it. I understand it’s fun and obviously efficient for competitive training, but these reasons are no longer tangible if we consider the huge challenges we are facing. Along with all the citizens, surfers need to change their paradigm too.
What’s on the horizon? Are you currently working on any new projects?
My “oasis” as Pierre Rabhi describes it is my current big project. It means finding happiness in living a simple and healthy relationship with my environment.
Any advice to people wanting to follow in your footsteps and begin homesteading?
Learn from expert people through donating your working force and time. Gathering experiences and knowledge is a great way to get started. It helps find what suits you, and avoid beginner’s mistakes. And it’s fun!
Shot over consecutive mornings during the long, recent run of North Coast autumn swell, In the Family of Things is Dave Rastovich in his element, doing his thing.