Water stories from people who know the conditions.
The gist
This Ocean Life Podcast is an interview-driven show about lives built around water. Conversations move through surf breaks, rescue situations, paddling craft, underwater shoots, fishing, travel, conservation, and the small technical choices that shape a day in the ocean.
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About This Ocean Life Podcast
This Ocean Life Podcast is an interview-centered show about people who have made the ocean central to their lives. Its range is wider than a single water sport. Surfing sits near the middle, but the conversations also reach into freediving, paddling, sailing, foiling, shaping, fishing, underwater photography, rescue work, conservation, and travel. The show is strongest when a guest starts describing the physical facts of a moment. A shallow Irish ledge. A surf ski race where the cliffs are beside the route but the paddler can only watch the bow. A Mavericks tow session with giant walls standing up outside the normal lineup. A water patrol story where current, rock, timing, and a jet ski all matter at once. The copybook idea of an ocean lifestyle is not really the point here. The appeal comes from practical detail: what board was under someone, how the wave was breaking, where the tide or wind changed the problem, how a diver carried props into the water, or how a photographer prepared for another set on the reef. The pace is measured and generous. Guests are given room to tell long stories, while the questions keep pulling them back toward concrete experience. That makes the show accessible without sanding off the vocabulary of people who actually spend time in surf, wind, current, and open water. There is plenty of admiration in the tone, but it is not glossy. Big-wave danger, rescue judgment, injury, fear, and fatigue are allowed into the room alongside stoke, travel, craft, and community. The recent episodes suggest a show especially interested in multi-discipline water people: surfers who shape, photographers who freedive, paddlers who race, fishermen who think about sustainability, and ocean travelers who build friendships around local knowledge. It can be light and friendly. It can also turn serious quickly when the water demands respect. The through-line is not competition or celebrity. It is the specific way a person learns to read the ocean, trust gear, manage limits, and come back with a story worth telling.
Made for: Suits a listener who likes ocean sports told through specific lived experience rather than broad adventure branding. Best for someone interested in surf, paddling, freediving, photography, rescue, gear, conditions, and the judgment behind them.
What sets it apart: The show stands apart by asking for the physical setup first: reef, craft, camera, current, board, wind, race line, or rescue position. Those details make the bigger themes of risk, skill, community, and conservation feel earned.
In their own words
This Ocean Life Podcast. 150+ episodes. Interview-style podcast series capturing the stories and perspectives of people around the world who have based their lives on the ocean. Fishing, free diving, art, music, surfing, paddling, spearfishing, conservation, sailing, anything in the ocean... Hosted by Josh Pederson, from Santa Cruz, California, USA.
As heard by us
Based on 5 episodes we listened to · August 2026
Ocean-minded listeners get grounded conversations about surf, freediving, paddling, rescue, travel, and the craft behind life in the water.
This Ocean Life Podcast sits squarely in Leisure, but it comes at the category from the waterline. The show is built around people whose routines, craft, and sense of self are tied to the ocean.
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Episodes
- 1
Ryan Allen - Irish surf community, the balance of professional success and surfing passion
Hidden gemRyan Allen, a Philadelphia-born surfer who has lived in Bundoran on Ireland's northwest coast for nearly 20 years, speaks with host Josh Peterson about chasing surf from New Zealand's South Island to Arctic Norway and finding his permanent home when a wave was firing right at the Bundoran bus stop on his first arrival.
Mar 13, 2025·52m·3 clips - 2
Shivani Goberdhan - dynamic woman of the water, freediver, ocean paddler, sailor
Hidden gemShivani Goberdhan, a Honolulu-based freediving instructor and multi-discipline water athlete originally from Trinidad and Tobago, joins host Josh Peterson on This Ocean Life to discuss sailing canoe racing, surfski paddling, and her freediving safety curriculum for ocean paddlers.
Mar 4, 2025·1h·4 clips - 3
Natalie Bruce - Competitive free diver, USA National Team,
Jan 30, 2025·59m - 4
Alo Slebir - Big wave surfer, Mavericks Performer of the Year, Charger
Hidden gemAlo Slebir, a Mavericks big wave surfer who won Performer of the Year at the Mavericks Surf Awards, returns to This Ocean Life Podcast four years after his debut episode to discuss a landmark 2023-2024 season that produced what he calls possibly the century swell on December 28th — a tow-only day with 80-foot walls standing up unbroken outside the normal lineup.
Mar 9, 2024·1h 1m·4 clips - 5
Dris Mhammedi - Moroccan surfer, world traveler, professional coach using the state of flow
Jul 16, 2023·1h 11m - 6
Vince Broglio - surfer, shaper, big wave water rescue, waterman, artist
Hidden gemVince Broglio, a Santa Cruz waterman with over 40 years of surfing, Mavericks water rescue experience, and a career shaping and glassing surfboards, talks with host Josh about the arc of his ocean life from a Waikiki first wave at age 10 to running jet-ski water patrol on the biggest Mavericks days.
Jun 1, 2023·1h 8m·4 clips - 7
Bill Newton - Hawaiian islands fishing tackle, fishing Oahu, HIFishGear
May 15, 2023·57m - 8
Amber Jade -- free diver, underwater model, world traveler
Hidden gemAmber Jade, a freediver, underwater model, and world traveler based on the north shore of Oahu, talks with host Josh about the realities of underwater photo shoots — including palm frond props that become 'like moving mops' once submerged — and how she travels globally using the Trusted House Sitters app to arrange month-long stays in Portugal, Spain, Dubai, and Oman.
Apr 20, 2023·51m·3 clips - 9
Anesti Vega -- scuba diver, citizen scientist, diving for veterans and the disabled
Jan 6, 2022·1h 6m - 10
Lachie Lansdown -- legend of the prone paddle board, world champion athlete
Dec 21, 2021·56m - 11
Brooke Basse -- diver, spearo, captain, in the pursuit
Mar 18, 2021·1h 3m - 12
CJ Hobgood -- professional surfing, movie making, family, life evolution
Sep 6, 2020·57m - 13
Sam Clothier -- hike and spear, seafood foraging, Wet Mammal YouTube
Aug 28, 2020·52m - 14
Vicky Durand -- Wave Woman the book, Waikiki surfing in the 1950s
Aug 17, 2020·44m - 15
Dr Enric Sala -- National Geographic explorer, scientist, ocean protector, author
Aug 11, 2020·58m - 16
Sean McClenahan -- towing Jaws on the skimboard, big waves and family dedication on Maui
Aug 3, 2020·54m - 17
Stoked Grom Stories: Bella and Leila -- surfing, diving, fun in the Outer Banks
Jul 22, 2020·32m - 18
Dr Gregory Stone -- ocean scientist and conservationist, making cleaner energy from the ocean a reality
Jul 15, 2020·1h 1m - 19
Eric Anderson -- from US Marine to Northern California freediver and spearo
Jul 8, 2020·46m - 20
Madison Stewart -- life dedicated to saving sharks, helping fishermen convert to ecotourism
Jul 1, 2020·45m - 21
Neil Pearlberg -- Off The Lip Radio Show, chronicling Santa Cruz surfing
Jun 25, 2020·46m - 22
Kara Muzia -- So You Want to Be a Marine Biologist podcast, sea turtles of South Florida
Jun 15, 2020·50m - 23
Stoked Grom Stories: Max Hart -- shredding guitar and waves, spearfishing, fishing
May 15, 2020·29m - 24
Envoy:Cull -- documentary film on Australia and 83 years of shark killing
May 8, 2020·51m - 25
Sailing Wildside -- kiteboard adventure trips, Caribbean, Greece, life afloat
May 1, 2020·44m - 26
Francesca Trotman -- protecting waters and wildlife of Mozambique, alternatives to shark finning
Apr 24, 2020·50m - 27
Erin Carey -- family sailing in the Caribbean, trans-Atlantic crossing, S/V ROAM
Apr 15, 2020·56m - 28
Sam Hart -- ocean paddling, Coolangatta Gold and M2O competitor
Apr 9, 2020·43m - 29
Stoked Grom Stories: Cooper Sisters -- sailing South Pacific, surfing, diving, life afloat
Mar 22, 2020·41m - 30
Greg Norman Jr -- kiting, surfing, spearfishing, world travel
Mar 14, 2020·49m - 31
Shannon Quirk -- big wave world tour, empowering women in the water
Mar 3, 2020·1h 9m - 32
Chris Fuentes -- a better insect repellant, spread of insect-borne diseases
Feb 28, 2020·41m - 33
K.C. Scott -- fishing, diving, spearfishing, art
Feb 14, 2020·54m - 34
Guy Harvey -- blending art and science of the ocean, spokesman of marine life
Feb 5, 2020·47m - 35
SV Delos -- 10 years of sailing adventures, 45 countries
Jan 28, 2020·51m - 36
Noah Oppenheim -- fisheries management, the human element of commercial fishing
Jan 24, 2020·57m - 37
Surf Expo Stories: Part 2 -- More from North America's largest watersports and beach culture retail show
Jan 14, 2020·30m - 38
Surf Expo Stories: Part 1 -- North America's largest watersports and beach culture retail show
Jan 14, 2020·35m - 39
Nik Strong-Cvetich -- Save The Waves Coalition, protecting surf ecosystems
Jan 8, 2020·1h 11m - 40
Lin Pardey - 200k miles of sailing, dual circumnavigations, book author
Jan 3, 2020·1h 15m - 41
Heavy Water Stories -- storms, injuries, big waves, general gnarliness
Dec 11, 2019·39m - 42
Adam Paskowitz -- legacy of nomadic family life, reality of plastics in the ocean
Dec 6, 2019·57m - 43
Maria Fernanda -- big wave surf photography, fins and a camera
Interview with Maria Fernanda, a big wave surfer and photographer, discussing her experiences in heavy surf and ocean life.
Nov 29, 2019·54m - 44
Scott Kennedy -- jack of many trades in the ocean
Scott Kennedy shares his bluefin tuna fishing story and discusses his life as a multi-discipline ocean sportsman.
Nov 18, 2019·1h 4m - 45
John Kowitz -- underwater photography, world travel, ocean conservation
Interview with freediver and underwater photographer John Kowitz about his experiences with hammerhead sharks and ocean conservation.
Nov 6, 2019·51m - 46
Zeb Walsh -- prone paddling Bass Straight, winning Molokai 2 Oahu, big wave rescue training
Zeb Walsh recounts his 15-day paddle across the Torres Strait in a handmade dugout canoe and other ocean endurance feats.
Nov 2, 2019·52m - 47
Greg Lewandowski -- boat captain, scuba instructor, freediver, fisherman
Interview with Greg Lewandowski about his life and work in ocean activities including scuba diving, freediving, and photography.
Oct 23, 2019·47m - 48
James Casey - winning Molokai 2 Oahu, foiling, coaching, surfing
Interview with world-class stand-up paddleboarder James Casey about his victory at the Molokai Tuahu race and his career in ocean sports.
Oct 17, 2019·1h - 49
Animal Stories — sharks, rays, and whales
Host Josh Peterson compiles five favorite animal stories from past guests, featuring encounters with sharks, manta rays, and whales.
Oct 11, 2019·34m - 50
Hayley-Jo Carr -- scuba diving, coral restoration, Bahamas
Interview with marine conservationist Haley Jo Carr about coral restoration, scuba training, and ocean conservation in the Bahamas.
Oct 1, 2019·56m