They also act as guides, scouts, and subject-matter experts in such disciplines as wilderness survival when other forces and Army components are in their area of operations.

Canadian Rangers are paid when formally on duty according to the rank they hold within their patrol and when present on operations or during training events.

They are paid in accordance with the standard rates of pay for Class-A (part-time) or Class-B (full-time) Reserve forces, except when they are called out for search and rescue missions or domestic operations (such as fighting floods and wildfires), when they are paid as Class-C Reserves and receive the full Regular Force pay and benefits.

Formed on March 3, 1942, the Pacific Coast Militia Rangers were volunteers who patrolled, performed military surveillance, and provided local defence of the coastline of British Columbia and in Yukon against the wartime threat of a possible Japanese invasion.

[4] The Pacific Coast Militia Rangers were disbanded on September 30, 1945, after Japan's surrender in the Second World War.

Items that a Canadian Ranger could be reimbursed for include snowmobiles (called light over-snow vehicles, or LOSVs, in the military), all-terrain vehicles, watercraft, trailers, pack horses, sled dog teams, and a variety of tools and equipment (such as radios, chainsaws, generators, and the like).

Since 1947, the Canadian Rangers were issued the Lee–Enfield No 4 rifle in .303 British calibre, with each user being provided with 200 rounds of ammunition every year.

[citation needed] At the outset of the Second World War, the rest of the Canadian Army was equipping with Enfield rifles, Bren guns, Webley Revolvers, and Browning-Inglis Hi Power pistols and Canadian production of these weapons was badly needed for overseas service.

As a stop-gap until Enfield Rifles became available in numbers for issue, some 3000 Winchesters and an estimated 1800 Marlins were promptly acquired direct from North Haven (likely all these firms had on hand).

The bolt action Lee–Enfield was then issued to the PCMR as the standard rifle later during the war and it continued to be used by the Canadian Rangers when they were established in 1947.

Due to the economy of the .303 (there were thousands left over after the war) and the robust nature of the rifle (especially in conditions such as extreme cold), it was not replaced for use even after being taken out of general service in the remainder of the Canadian military in the 1950s.

Owing to the decreasing availability of spare parts, the replacement of the Lee–Enfield rifle had long been expected, and in August 2011, after user requirements had been determined,[5] the Canadian Forces officially issued a tender request for a bolt-action rifle compatible with 7.62×51mm NATO and .308 Winchester ammunition.

Thirty-three initial examples of the new rifle based on the CTR were delivered to the 4th Canadian Ranger Patrol Group (4 CRPG) in Victoria, British Columbia, in June 2015, while Canadian Ranger instructors from across all CRPGs concurrently attended "train-the-trainer" training at the Small Arms section at the Combat Training Centre, CFB Gagetown, New Brunswick.

Feedback from the Canadian Rangers was generally very positive, with only minor adjustments required, and was incorporated in the final production rifles.

The rifle features a heavy-taper stainless steel barrel, a detachable 10-round double-stack box magazine, custom iron sights calibrated from 100 to 600 metres, a specially laminated wooden stock with a unique reddish-grey pattern in the wood grain, stainless steel construction with extra corrosion resistant coatings, and enlarged trigger guards and bolt handles so they can be used without removing gloves.

The conduit between the CRNA staff and the ACOS REs is the director Army Reserve (DARes), a full colonel.

Prince Charles (since September 8, 2022, Charles III, King of Canada) was made honorary head of the Canadian Rangers and he and his wife, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall (now Queen Camilla), were each given the Rangers' red sweatshirt and baseball cap by David Illituk of Kugaaruk, Nunavut; Joseph Catholique of Łutselk'e, Northwest Territories; Michael Cameron of Salluit, Quebec; and Kelly Suits of Carcross, Yukon, at Rideau Hall on November 10, 2009.