Doesn’t everyone love a fresh glass of water? 

I live in my home community, Mattagami First Nation, with my family; we prefer to filter tap water before drinking it. We also avoid buying bottled water to limit our plastic waste.

Years back, my father told me about a spring water source near our community. My parents decided they wanted to start gathering the spring water in 5-gallon water containers. This helped us reduce our tap water use; gathering the water is always a wonderful outing on the land. 

Transportation

For some background, one could take the back road to the spring from my community (the back-road being an old road that branches off from the main road out of the community). Along the way, it passes by the area of the spring and ultimately merges into a small town 15 minutes south down the highway. 

During the late spring, summer, and into the fall, my family’s main transportation to the spring is by truck. We do not take the truck through the back road because it is rough: exposed boulders, narrow paths, and some aggressive inclines. Taking the truck, we can freely place the jugs in the back without the risk of damaging them. 

Going the highway route, you still have to go down a small portion of the back road once you pass through the small town to access the spring. The back road is much more maintained on the town side, but still has some rough spots due to washouts by nearby bodies of water.

We prefer to avoid taking our ATVS/four-wheelers to gather spring water. The jugs do not sit well, or ride well on the ATVS. We have tried our best to secure them with bungee cords, but they slip and fall off. 

As for winter transportation, OFSC (Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Clubs) trails go into my community and are maintained by a person who runs a nearby seasonal camping site. We use skidoos to get spring water and take a sled trailer to hold the water jugs. Taking 5 jugs with us means we are hauling 250 pounds of water back home.

Preparation and Safety

In the late summer and spring, the mosquitoes are horrible when we go to the spring. We always make sure to bring bug spray and wear full-length pants. My family or I will not go out to gather spring water if it is raining, or if it has very recently rained. Rain stirs the water and can make dirt and other debris fall into the spring water and flow into our jugs. We try our best to get the cleanest water on calm, non-rainy days. We find the water to be much cleaner.

In the winter, though, that is a different story. A good temperature to travel would have to be between -15º and -20º celcius. I don’t like operating skidoos on warmer, wetter days. On colder days, we have the risk of the caps freezing to the jugs, preventing us from unscrewing them.

When I take the jugs in the skidoo trailer, I have to use bungee cords. Weaving through the handles and securing them to each corner prevents them from moving and falling out. At times heading home, you have to be careful turning; the weight of the water can cause the trailer to tip over. It is not very easy to flip over a trailer with 250 pounds of water in it. If one of my family members does not accompany me on a water run, I try to get a friend to help. It is much safer to have someone with you; you never know what can happen on the trail. 

Making it a Fun Day Out 

A very common thing in my community, along with others, is that almost everyone has some type of ATV or off-road vehicle. Many of the youth, including myself, would go for big group rides to explore all the trails in the community. That includes the backroad and trail systems that stem off. Past the spring area and moving closer to the town, you can find a restaurant, J&L. I would at times be a part of a group with 5+ youth from my community. Usually, we would bring water bottles in backpacks and stop by the spring to fill them up; ultimately bringing them to dinner with us. After dinner, we always end up going back for more. 

At the dam site, past the spring water, my friends and I would just sit and listen to the running water below us. We would take off our boots and walk across the pavement slab that has water running over it. We would never get bored out there, as there is so much to see and do.

Personal

I take pride in gathering spring water for my family. My parents never had new machines to assist in gathering water. With my parents getting older, my dad couldn’t go out on the skidoo as much as he used to. It was becoming too much for his body to handle, so I took on the responsibility of getting water for my family. Having an 86-year-old grandmother also pushes me to bring water home so she has something clean and natural to drink; I always want the best for her. 

I feel very lucky to have a natural water source so close to my community, allowing me to provide natural and clean drinking water for my family.

Leeon Prince was born and raised in Treaty 9 territory. He grew up in a small North-Eastern First Nation community. He did his schooling in the community elementary and internet high school until moving to North Bay, Ontario for Post-Secondary education. From a young age, Leeon went hunting and gathered water on the land. Now being 19, he is working very hard in his college studies to gather as much knowledge as possible. He strives to succeed in his studies so he can provide and take care of his family for future years to come.

All photos courtesy and copyright Leeon Prince.