Young Hunters Have a ÔBlast' at Kamiah's Flying-B Ranch

By George Fischer - Idaho Department of Fish and Game. Young hunters are the future of conservation and the hunting tradition. Introducing youths to hunting at an early age can ensure that the future of hunting and conservation remains strong. Some dedicated Idahoans are doing just that. Recently, 20 orange-clad young hunters participated in a free upland hunting and safety clinic at the Flying-B Ranch near Kamiah, with help from the National Wild Turkey Federation and conservation officers and hunter education instructors from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game. The Flying-B is a private hunting preserve with some of the best pheasant and chukar hunting in the country. Recent graduates from hunter education courses in Grangeville, Riggins and Cottonwood were selected for their outstanding behavior, class participation, positive attitude, and for their thoughtfully written homework essays. The day started with a safety presentation and hunting demonstration by ranch personnel, followed by an introduction to the Flying-B's world-class pointing dogs. Next, the students received instruction in shotgun shooting and practiced their shooting skills at fast-flying targets at the sporting clay range. Anxious to begin what they were promised, the youths split into groups of four hunters each. Each group was supervised by a dog handler and one or more adult mentors. Parents also were welcome to follow along as the young hunters put their knowledge and newly developed skills to practice, pursuing chukar and pheasant. For safety reasons, only one youth in the group was allowed to load his or her gun as the group's hunting dog pointed a hiding bird. An instructor accompanied each student to assure a safe shot as the bird flushed. More impressive than some of the outstanding shots the students made were the potential shots not taken because of safety issues. Ranch owner Bob Burlingame donated his facility, clay targets, game birds, professional staff and dogs for the day. Several Fish and Game conservation officers provided logistics, shotguns and instruction. The National Wild Turkey Federation provided all the ammunition. Dozens of volunteers were involved from planning to event completion. The clinic's goal was to promote a better understanding of and interest in hunting and wildlife conservation. Principles of safe hunting and ethics also were reinforced through the close supervision by mentors. When youths get an opportunity for one-on-one, hands-on hunting and training in the field, all of the aspects of the hunting tradition, including ethics, safeties, and responsibility, are likely to be passed on. Some youths who are interested in hunting have never been around people who hunt. In fact, many children have not experienced the outdoors, only the Internet, video games or television. While this may be hard to believe for adult hunters who have enjoyed the outdoors their entire lives, exposing youths to hunting at an early age is a critical first step in perpetuating the connection with the outdoors. George Fischer is a district conservation officer for Fish and Game in Grangeville. __________________________________________________________________________ Idaho Fish and Game offers hunting licenses for upland game and waterfowl to new Idaho hunter education graduates ages 10-17, and reduced price hunting licenses and tags for resident and nonresident youths. Fish and Game also offers several youth-only hunting seasons. Children aged 10 to 15 who complete a hunter education course and buy a hunting license and the appropriate permits can pursue turkey, waterfowl and pheasants the weekend before the general season opening day. Several youth-only controlled big game hunts also are available.