Hunter education students using the online course program have one more opportunity to complete the required field day portion of the training before firearm deer season begins Nov. 15.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources has added three more field day opportunities, all held Nov. 12 at no charge.
Hopkins, Allegan County
Hopkins District Library, 118 E. Main St.
9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Nov. 12
Preregistration is required. Contact Natalie Bazan at 269-793-7516 from noon to 5 p.m. or Cpl. Ryan Rademacher at 231-578-1313 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
No lunch will be provided. Students should bring their own snacks.
Republic, Marquette County
Township Hall, 279 Kloman Ave.
9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Nov. 12
Preregistration is required. Contact Cpl. Dave Painter at 906-284-2400 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. or Julie Graff at 906-875-6622, ext. 112, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
No lunch will be provided. Students should bring their own snacks.
Flint, Genesee County
Crossroads Village warehouse/dining room, 6140 Bray Road
9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Nov. 12
Preregistration is required. Contact Cpl. Peggy Ruby at 586-405-5359 from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. or preregister by email at rubyp@michigan.gov.
No lunch will be provided. Students should bring their own lunch and drink.
Only students completing their hunter safety class online will be accepted to these field days. Students need to preregister with the contacts provided in the class information. Online students must show their voucher of completion before attending the field day. In addition, a parent or guardian must accompany a child under the age of 10.
A field day is required after the completion of an online course; however, it must be scheduled with an instructor prior to starting the hunter education course. Michigan offers three approved online hunter education courses, www.hunter-ed.com/Michigan, www.huntercourse.com and www.hunteredcourse.com/state/michigan. The online courses have varying fees but are all priced under $25.
“Students will go through various exercises to learn and demonstrate safe firearm handling in addition to either live or simulated fire,” said Sgt. Steve Orange, recreational safety, education and enforcement section supervisor in the DNR Law Enforcement Division. “They will also learn firearm carrying positions when in the field and hunter ethics and laws.”
At the end of the field-day training, students must pass a written exam. Upon successful completion of the exam, students will be issued a hunter education safety certificate, needed to purchase hunting licenses.
Michigan has three types of hunter education courses: traditional classroom, home study and online. Anyone born on or after Jan. 1, 1960, is required to successfully complete the course in order to purchase a Michigan hunting license or hunt out-of-state. Exceptions are made for youth under the age of 10 who are hunting with a mentored youth hunting license or hunters older than 10 who are hunting with an apprentice hunting license. New hunters can hunt under the apprentice program for two years before they are required to take the hunter education course.
