If you or someone you know is planning to head out and hunt for the first time this season, you will need to complete an education course before you get your license. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation wants to remind all new hunters that a mandatory hunting, bowhunter, or trapping educational course is the first step to hunting in New York.

Each year, these courses help keep the hunting season safe for everyone and with almost 500,000 licensed hunters spending about ten to fifteen days in the field, that's really important. Each year almost 45,000 would-be hunters take these courses, so they can fill up quickly. Don’t wait, register now.

There's an on-line registration site, so it's easy to see which courses you'll need and which ones are close by where you live. New courses are added all the time, so if you don't see something that fits your schedule at first, keep checking back. You will need to look over the course work and do a little bit of homework before you enter the classroom, so signing up with enough time to complete these tasks is a good idea.

Here's to another successful, and safe hunting and trapping season in New York.

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