What the work of Canadian Rangers looks like from one generation to the next | APTN News

Added: 2026-05-05

[00:00:00]Oh, yeah. Oh, you two, caboose. I know.

[00:00:02]Yes, sorry. Sorry. Out here, knowledge comes from connection to the land and relationships built over time. Gerald Azure ran his first dog race at just 3 years old. And they look up to you like you're their leader. And just being out on the land with them, you feel all of that.

[00:00:20]They're depending on you. You're depending on them.

[00:00:24]It's a give-and-take relationship.

[00:00:28]And for decades, he's been able to apply his traditional skills as a member of the Fourth Canadian Ranger Patrol Group here in Churchill, Manitoba.

[00:00:37]Dubbed as the eyes and ears of the north, the Canadian Armed Forces rely heavily on folks like Azure as the permanent physical presence necessary for Arctic sovereignty. The seasons are definitely changing. So, in the summertime, we have carts with wheels, right? So, because we're finding in our bear season, the snow was coming later and later.

[00:01:00]So, by the end of November, there was a year when we didn't have snow.

[00:01:06]So, we were on the carts with wheels the whole season.

[00:01:11]Another CRPG benefit, seeing the next generation take the lead on stewardship like Austin McPherson.

[00:01:18]He says the work allows him to share the living history of his family and his homeland.

[00:01:23]Churchill has been sold as an and I get it. A lot of people come here for the bears, for the whales, for the northern lights.

[00:01:29]But, that's not all we are. The the the people here have such an incredible story of the history. This is, you know, the I don't want to over overstate it or anything, but the birthplace of Canada, essentially. This place in York Factory that was we were here before Canada was a country.

[00:01:49]And once again, Churchill is a meeting place welcoming the first CRPG's long-range patrol who arrived here following a 5,200 km trek across the high Arctic.

[00:02:00]Lieutenant Colonel Travis Haines relays his gratitude for Indigenous Rangers who help connect northern communities by traveling ancestral routes and demonstrate how Canada is capable and competent in Arctic operations.

[00:02:14]It's not even just like local knowledge that they're they're in. Like they've they're leading these portions. So, like the the danger is actually with them cuz they're the first person that's encountering every obstacle. Uh so, it's not just local knowledge. It's it's local risk-taking that they're providing.

[00:02:30]Junior Canadian Rangers like Charlie Spence waste no time in hosting the guests.

[00:02:35]Um actually, my my patrol leader, Jill, taught me how to make a lean-to fire.

[00:02:40]It's basically one big log with some fire starters, fire burners leaning onto it and then you would make the fire leaning onto it and it it sets fast, really quickly.

[00:02:56]Master Corporal Jill Larkin, leading the local Junior Rangers program, says recruits join as kids and leave as leaders.

[00:03:04]So, we did a couple trips to come check out the area.

[00:03:08]And then and that that also got them comfortable with like the trail and leading a group across the river. Um they've done it before, but the trail kind of changes a little bit every year.

[00:03:19]So, it was good to get them familiar with it.

[00:03:22]And then the whole group got together and we cut wood.

[00:03:27]Whether it's a few years or a few decades, rangers here say they work with the land the way their ancestors always have with purpose, patience, and respect.

[00:03:37]Charlotte Moore Jacobs, APTN National News, Churchill, Manitoba.