Antler River Guardians get to know the Thames River

A group of Ontario First Nation teenagers is spending the summer getting to know the Thames River near London.

It's a waterway they grew up hearing about in traditional stories told by elders but haven't really got to know personally and intimately, until now.

They're exploring the river's ecology, scientifically and traditionally.

They use a combination of traditional methods and western science, including state-of-the art GPS technology, to map riverbeds, protect wildlife and survive on the waterway.

The teens call themselves the Antler River Guardians. It's part of a project funded by Ontario's Ministry of Environment.

Antler River is the Chippewa name for the Thames River.

Under a highway bridge between Oneida and Chippewa territory, four teenagers in hip waders made their way across the Thames River. As they did, Jake Albert pulls a mussel the size of his hand off a submerged rock.

"They're part of the food chain, like anything in the river. But we use them as smudge bowls, actually," he said.

Albert said that's one small discovery he and his First Nation peers have made this summer.

Tahlanna Miskokomon has heard many stories about the river.

"My grandparents used to tell me this used to be so clean that you could come up and fill up and drink," Miskokomon said. "Now, today, it's not even good to touch."

The teenagers are learning to make it better.

"It's something that's lacking in most of our water management plans, that traditional knowledge; that connection to the spirit," Tara Tchir, of the Thames River Clear Water Revival, said.