The spirit of the harvest: keeping the tradition of hunting alive

He might be dressed in bright orange and carrying a rifle, but Darren McGregor doesn't call it hunting.

The Sagamok First Nation man, who is a youth mentorship worker at the Shkagamik-Kwe Health Centre in Sudbury, says that's not the best way to describe the spiritual connection between people and animals.

"Don't say you're going moose hunting, because that's exactly what you're going to do. Hunt around for that moose," McGregor says.

He says it is more about asking an animal to come out and be harvested and being grateful for that sacrifice.

It's the most important lesson he passed along at a recent week long hunt camp for Indigenous youth from the Sudbury area.

"Somewhere along the line, some of our people kind of lost that and looked at creation as a resource and less with sprit and we're hoping to re-instill that," says Perry McLeod-Shabogesic, the director of the traditional program at the health centre.

The CBC's Erik White visited the camp in October, the morning after a very exciting night for the dozen of so young people experiencing hunting for the first time. 

Here's his documentary: