Cross Country Checkup·Personal Essay

How a childhood caribou hunt with my grandfather taught me to respect animals

Nick Wapachee, a member of the Cree Nation of Eeyou Istchee, recalls the lessons he learned hunting for the first time as a seven-year old in northern Quebec.

It is customary for a Cree child to be introduced to hunting at a young age, writes Nick Wapachee

Nick Wapachee pictured in the snow at age 5. (Submitted by Nick Wapachee)

By Nick Wapachee

In 1997, nimushum — my grandfather — invited me to go hunting for caribou during the Christmas holidays.

I was seven years old and I was excited because I'd never hunted such a large animal before.

For a boy from Nemaska, it wasn't unusual to go hunting so young. Nemaska is part of the Cree Nation of Eeyou Istchee, about 12 hours north of Montreal by car.

Seven-year-old Nick Wapachee, left, with his brother Nelson, before a goose hunt. (Submitted by Nick Wapachee)

It was — and still is — customary for a Cree child to be introduced to hunting at a young age. Harvesting animals is a part of the Cree way of life; it is a practice that is still used today to feed families and communities.

Unlike other parts of Canada, where children must be at least 12 years old to hunt, gun laws for the Cree in northern Quebec are governed by a land claims agreement. I could hunt with nimushum by the time I was in Grade 2, as long as I was supervised and instructed by a Cree hunter.

It's a reflection of how important it is for a Cree child to learn to respect the land, animals and water all around them. But I had no idea how hard the work would be.

Hunting with nimushum

It was a quiet and sunny morning when my grandma woke me up from my sleep and told me to get ready for the day.

Nimushum picked up our guns and shells. We left our cabin, 50 kilometres east from Nemaska, and put snowshoes on our feet. The temperature was a steady -25 C.

We saw caribou tracks on the snow and nimushum looked at me, pointing at the trail.

"Let's follow the tracks," he said in Cree.

We walked up a small hill to see what was on the other side. A herd of 20 caribou were standing tall, looking at us.

"Let's hide behind the small trees over there," nimushum said.

Wapachee's grandparents — nuuhkum and nimushkum — at a 'walking out' ceremony. (Submitted by Nick Wapachee)

Somehow, nimushum knew the caribou would come looking for us. He was a hunter all his life, and he gathered his hunting knowledge from his father at a young age.

He nudged me to prepare to shoot a caribou.

"Just as we practiced," he said.

I aimed at the herd and waited for his instructions, but he gently repositioned my gun.

"Look for a caribou that is not in the herd," he said. It's against Cree law to hunt more than what you need.

He told me to put my head near the end barrel of the .22-calibre gun with my right eye looking at the tiny ball in front of the barrel and to make sure it was aimed at the caribou's chest. I found one male caribou in the forest. I took my aim and pulled the trigger.

The caribou fell on the ground instantly. It was an exhilarating experience to get a caribou on the first shot. I couldn't wait to tell my whole family about it.

"Great job, Nick," nimushum said excitedly. "Let's start cleaning them now."

Lesson learned

I was reluctant to stop hunting because I wanted to look for one more caribou.

Nimushum agreed and we climbed the hill to find caribou, but most of them were too far from us.

"Let's walk toward them and find one that's near," nimushum said.

We gave thanks to our Creator and shared one caribou with Cree elders in our community while we feasted on the other.- Nick Wapachee

He instructed me to shoot a male caribou. I took my aim and pulled the trigger.

"No," he said laughing, because I didn't follow his instructions. "I didn't say to shoot the female caribou."

I couldn't tell the difference and nimushum taught me a valuable lesson that day: to hunt only male caribou. In Cree custom, it's important to conserve female animals so there are plenty for other hunters to feed their families.

"This is all we're hunting today," he said. "Let's start working now."

My grandparents' Cree teachings

Nimushum wanted to show me how to carefully cut a caribou. Cutting took us both two days.

We laid the caribou on tree boughs on the snow. Nimushum said to cut through the caribou's hide gently in the middle of its chin and down to its anus.

He warned me not to cut through its guts or urine socket because it would spoil the meat. He taught me how to cut the legs and hips, which are the bigger pieces of meat.

At the end of dressing the caribou, nuuhkum — my grandmother — wanted to celebrate by having a feast with my parents. When I arrived at the cabin, they were happy for me.

Sturgeon is smoked by Wapachee's grandmother. (Submitted by Nick Wapachee)

We gave thanks to our Creator and shared one caribou with Cree elders in our community while we feasted on the other one with my family of five at the camp.

We stored the rest of the caribou in the freezer. It fed us for over a month.

Nimushum's traditional knowledge was passed down by his father, and he wanted to pass it on to me. In 2007, my grandfather had plans for the fishing season with my grandmother but he died in a tragic boat accident.

But his teachings are with me still.

I understand now, I am a Cree person living in two worlds — one in Eeyou Istchee and one in Canada. I'm thankful for the Cree teachings of my grandparents, who taught me to be respectful to animals and the land.