Passport to Texas

This is Passport to Texas

The average age of Texas hunters is mid-forties. As these hunters decrease their time in the field, some increase their time in the classroom.

06—Some become [hunter education] instructors, and really want to give back to something they’ve enjoyed all throughout their lives.

Terry Erwin oversees the hunter education program at Texas Parks and Wildlife, where there’s a growing need for instructors with special skills.

13—Parks and Wildlife has a lot of constituents who are bilingual, and who just speak Spanish. We are looking for bilingual instructors that are able to teach the hunter education program in Spanish and English.

The Hispanic population in Texas is growing, and Parks and Wildlife wants to ensure this group has access to hunter education, and a great outdoor experience.

11—We certainly could use those instructors to help us reach those constituents that we normally wouldn’t be able to reach. And, we do want to offer them [Spanish speaking constituents] an opportunity to get out in the outdoors and enjoy it.

We have information on becoming a volunteer Hunter Education instructor at passporttotexas.org.

We record our series at the Production Block Studios in Austin.

The Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program supports our show…and is funded by your purchase of fishing and hunting equipment and motor boat fuel.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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This is Passport to Texas

If you plan to hunt this fall, and were born on or after September 2, 1971—you are required to take a hunter education training course. Program coordinator Terry Erwin says there is a way around it—at least temporarily.

13—Anyone who has not been certified by the time they turn seventeen, can go and get a deferral. They must buy a hunting license, and ask for deferral type 1-6-6 at the point of sale.

The deferral allows you to try out hunting as long as a certified licensed hunter accompanies you.

06—And if you like it, go get certified; you have by August 31st of the current license year to do that.

It’ll cost you $10 for a deferral. When the program started in 2005, more than 10-thousand people purchased deferrals—and that number continues to climb.

17—It offers an opportunity for someone who has not hunted before to give it a try and it brings in lapsed hunters. If they’ve been out of hunting for awhile, and didn’t get certified, they can come in, take the deferral, and then have an opportunity to get back into the outdoors.

Texas residents required to take hunter education training may obtain a deferral only once, after which time they must complete the certification course.

You’ll find hunter education information on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

Our show is made possible in part by the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program…funded by your purchase of fishing and hunting equipment and motor boat fuel.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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This is Passport to Texas

It’s easy to get the impression that where Ty Chumley goes, bad luck follows.

09—Lost my house and everything. Got stuck in the snow one time. Three days later got stuck in the mud. Had to walk a long ways until we got a cell phone signal.

Not all his luck is bad, though. Chumley, a tugboat operator from Nederland, bought one chance in last year’s Big Time Texas Hunts Grand Slam category, and he won!

08—I was actually buying some fishing lures at Academy and was checking out when I seen the poster up there. I just bought one ticket for it. So, it was a lucky day.

The Texas Grand Slam hunt package includes four separate guided hunts for white-tailed deer, pronghorn antelope, mule deer, and desert bighorn sheep.

13—I followed that one up and down the mountain, twice. And when I shot him, I thought I’d missed him. I seen the dust fly. Started cussing, and, uh, then he fell down.

Big Time Texas Hunts is back with a diverse range of hunting packages for 2010; entries are available now through Oct. 15: $9 online, or $10 by phone and wherever you buy licenses.

08—You never know. It could be you—you could be the winner this year. I’m entering again. I don’t know if I can win this one again, but I’m going to enter another one.

Money from the sale of entries supports conservation, wildlife management and public hunting. Find details and a link to Big Time Texas Hunts at passporttotexas.org.

For Texas parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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This is passport to Texas

Hunting is a tradition passed on from one generation to the next. Since 1971, teaching the basics is no longer the sole responsibility of family members.

10—Anyone who is born on or after September 2, 1971, and who has attained the age of 9, is eligible to be certified in hunter education.

The course is hunter education. Terry Erwin oversees hunter education at Texas Parks & Wildlife. He says volunteer instructors are the backbone of this popular program.

07—Many of the individuals have gone through the Hunter education course themselves, and found out that they really wanted to give something to the sport.

Volunteers also save taxpayers a nice chunk of change in the process.

07—If you put a dollar value on it, probably in volunteer hours and things like that, way exceeding half a million dollars.

The volunteer aspect goes beyond the classroom; these dedicated instructors also take on mentoring roles.

13—We always encourage every instructor to take at least one or two youth hunting each year that they train. That starts a mentoring process in which that student goes out under the training and guidance of an experienced hunter.

Learn how you can volunteer to teach hunter education classes, visit our website: passporttotexas.org.

The Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program support our series working to increase fishing, hunting, shooting and boating opportunities in Texas.

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This is Passport to Texas

Golfing has often been described as a good walk spoiled. The same has never been said about hunting. Hunting includes a good walk as well as a chance to pass on a Texas tradition to the next generation.

06—I’d like to encourage all hunters to take their youngsters hunting even if they start them out with a pair of binoculars.

That’s Terry Erwin who oversees hunter education at Texas Parks & Wildlife. The idea, says Erwin, is to help kids become comfortable with the outdoors.

09—They can be out there in the woods observing nature, even if they don’t hunt at the time. But as they gain insight and become older, they may want to start hunting.

Hunting is an activity that fathers and mothers are encouraged to share with their children, but learning at a parent’s side is no substitute for a sanctioned hunter education class. With more than 3-thousand classes offered annually, there’s one to fit every schedule.

07—They go on year round, from January all the way up through December. So that’s not something that’s just a seasonal thing right before hunting season.

You will find a complete list of hunter education classes on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

Our show is made possible by the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program…working to increase fishing, hunting, shooting and boating opportunities in Texas.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti

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