You may wonder what this site is all about, why it’s called what it is, and why you should care.
To be quite honest, the name came to me one day when I was thinking of T-Shirt slogans, something that I do more frequently than I’d like to admit, mostly while driving around town or on road trips.
At it’s core, it borrows from the infamous “Great White North” slogan of “Bob and Doug McKenzie”-fame, and if you’ve ever watched SCTV you’d be familiar with it. If not, you’ve probably heard of it since it has become a rallying cry for 37 million Canadians over the decades, and even I take that slogan to heart.
The “Free” part is the interesting part for me. I love the feeling of freedom that I experience when hiking in the mountains, leaving civilization behind while “lost” in the woods hunting for that elusive elk, or fishing a pristine lake in my home province of Alberta. This is what initially came to mind when I came up with The Free White North, and that’s the banner under which I wanted to promote fishing, hunting and outdoor skills for people that may be considering trying those out for the first. The goal is to pass on what I’ve learned so that more people get outside and enjoy our amazing wilderness.
I grew up fishing and hiking in the Rockies, but had to learn about hunting as an adult, and I have met many people who have asked me lots of questions when they found out about my new hobbies. I call myself an “adult onset hunter”, and you’ll probably hear me say this a few times in my YouTube videos or in an article. I thought it might be a good idea to start a web site, post some articles, and maybe make some helpful YouTube videos for those people like me, that didn’t grow up with it but were very interested in learning more and giving it a try.
It wasn’t until I started competing in different sport-shooting disciplines that the “Free” part took on another meaning for me. I know that our friends and neighbours to the South (the ‘Ole U.S. of A.) claim that they are the “free-est” when it comes to most things, but I would say that freedom, at its core, is the absence of anyone being able to tell you what to do as long as you’re not harming anyone else or forcing someone to do something against their will. Maybe that’s a naive and libertarian view on life, but that’s what I believe in at my core, and most likely will for the rest of my life.
Needless to say, navigating Canadian Firearms laws as a law-abiding citizen can be a frustrating endeavour, but I’m happy to comply if they just leave me alone and let me use my firearms responsibly. I agree with the need for a national licensing and certification system, and I agree that background checks are an important part of that system. The general public doesn’t want someone to have a gun that shouldn’t as much as I don’t. I want a properly vetted and trained person in the stall beside me at the range, not someone a mental-illness, or a history of violence and a criminal record as long as a CVS receipt.
So, with that all said, you will find this site to be an interesting mix of outdoor and survival skills (because, you know, you can never be too ready), fishing and hunting tips for beginners. You’ll also see some articles that I hope will entertain and educate you about what it takes to be a Legal Gun Owner in Canada, and the massive burden of responsibility that goes with that.
Thanks for visiting and I hope that you find the content useful!
