Paul Larouche is certainly no flash in the gold pan.
Standing knee-deep in Sooke River with his wetsuit on, he regards the spot as not only his happy place, but his workplace too.
From a curious Langford teenager who found his first piece of gold in Sooke River to the present day, Larouche has never let go of that first rush.
With grit, determination and a keen eye, Larouche has turned his self-diagnosed ‘gold fever’ into a successful career as a modern-day prospector, sharing his journey with folks online under the persona of Pioneer Pauly.
When Sooke News Mirror first spoke to him in 2020, Larouche had 215,000 YouTube subscribers. Today, that number has climbed to nearly a million, with over 310 million views across 336 videos.
Add TikTok, Facebook and Instagram to the mix, and Larouche’s total following now tops over three million.
These days, he gets recognized far beyond Vancouver Island – from Sooke to California and as far as down under in Australia and New Zealand. The sightings are especially common when he’s out and about in his Pioneer Pauly-branded SUV.
“It’s great meeting people, making friends along the way,” said Larouche.
“It’s like everywhere’s sort of home now.”
Larouche even hints at a possible TV show in the works. “Or a movie one day,” he says hopefully. “Something where I get to share the adventure with a higher production value.”
But Larouche takes his success all in his stride.
While he earns a living sharing his pioneering exploits, Larouche insists it’s never been about fame and fortune. Growing up living with depression and anxiety, the outdoors and the search for hidden treasure became both an escape and a way to cope.
That need and sense of purpose has never left him.
Today, Larouche says he still faces “a lot of demons,” including PTSD and panic attacks.
Living also with ADHD, being out in the wilds focused on the hunt, helps quiet the noise, he explains, offering both a mental reset and the steady dopamine boost he struggles to find elsewhere.
“It just doesn’t feel like I’m working,” he said. “When I’m out here, it feels like I’m living again. Time stands still, you’re not thinking of anything else, it’s just you in the moment and it’s just priceless.”
His openness about those struggles – and how his adventures support his mental health – has struck a chord with viewers.
“I like sharing the fact that like I’m not perfect,” Larouche said. “People say you’ve got to be healthy to get out or be in the right mood, but the truth is you just have to get out, and that stuff comes from that.”
Parents have also told him that his videos have encouraged their children to get outside and learn new skills.
”I’m proud of the people that I’ve inspired to get outdoors,” he said.
With the price of gold surging to record highs in January, following a bumper 2025, Larouche is aware folks may be tempted to try their luck at panning.
It’s one of the reasons he purchased the mineral rights to a stretch of Sooke River running through Sooke Potholes Regional Park.
Ownership means curious newcomers can give it a go without worrying about ‘claim-jumping’.
“That’s really the only reason why I have this one, so that the public can use it,” said Larouche. “Because who’s to say that if someone else had it, they’d let people on it, right?
“Just by me having it, it makes me feel better that there’s a place where people can go. It’s kind of where I first learned too, so that makes sense to me.”
But for those dreaming of striking it rich, Larouche offers a reality check: it’s far from easy money.
Using methods such as panning, sniping and metal detecting, he’ll often dedicate 40 hours working a single stretch of the river.
“You’ve got to check the high benches, the low benches, the bedrock, upstream, downstream,” he said.
Even after hours combing through every nook and cranny of the riverbed, you may still come away empty-handed.
“But it doesn’t mean there’s nothing there, you just don’t have enough data,” saids Larouche.
“So it’s a lot of hard work.”
As for the value of his gold haul collected over the years, Larouche is coy. Most of what he finds are placer nuggets, which Larouche says are more valuable than fine gold, and would likely fetch a premium price from dealers.
But with enough money rolling in from YouTube ad revenue, Larouche keeps every piece he uncovers.
“People always ask me for the value of it, and it’s hard for me to do that because it’s more sentimental,” he said. “Even if I got double for what it’s worth, it wouldn’t be worth it to me, because then the money just sits there and it’s meaningless essentially.”
Instead, Larouche prefers to use his finds to relive experiences or create content. In one recent video, he leans into ASMR (autonomous sensory meridian response) handling $96,844 of gold nuggets.
“I could make jewelry with it, maybe I’ll do that one day,” he pondered. “But for now, I just like to play with it.”
For more Pioneer Pauly content, visit: www.youtube.com/@PioneerPauly.
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