Hunter education fun
for whole family

---

Star-Bulletin staff

One thing the state's Hawaii Hunter Education Program will teach you is how to avoid shooting yourself in the foot.

Two self-inflicted right-foot injuries by unlicensed hunters account for all the gun-related hunting accidents in 2000.

In one case, a hunter was walking with his finger on the trigger and shot himself in the right foot. The other hunter shot himself in the right foot while ducking under a branch.

If they had taken a hunter education course, they would have learned the three cardinal rules of hunting, said Wendell Kam, director of the state's Conservation Education Program:

>>	Always keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction.
>>	Make sure that the firearm is unloaded.
>>	Never put your finger on the trigger until you are ready to fire.

Kam said that anyone who enjoys the outdoors will benefit from the course.

"It's good family entertainment, and we encourage a lot of parents and kids to come."

The course covers firearms and archery safety, survival and first aid, wildlife identification and conservation, and outdoor responsibility.

Hikers and campers can benefit from the training, too, Kam said. The course teaches hikers what they really need if they find themselves hurt or lost.

Several years ago, a veteran hunter who had taken the course told Kam that he used course techniques to find his way out when he got lost, but he generally does not get much feedback.

"Unfortunately for us, we don't get a lot of stories because people don't like to admit that they got lost," Kam joked.

Kam said he would like to see more nonhunters take the course, pointing out that Hawaii has many multiuse areas where hunters, hikers and outdoor sportsmen coexist.

"We have to get people to understand (that) because it's multiuse, we have to give courtesy to other activities," he said.

The courses are free and open to everyone 10 years old and older.

The two-day courses will be offered at the Nimitz Business Center at 1130 N. Nimitz Hwy., No. A-151, on:

>>	July 19 from 5:45 to 10:15 p.m. and July 20 from 7:45 a.m. to 4 p.m.
>>	July 26 from 5:45 to 10:15 p.m. and July 27 from 7:45 a.m. to 4 p.m.
>>	Aug. 9 from 5:45 to 10:15 p.m. and Aug. 10 from 7:45 a.m. to 4 p.m.
>>	Aug. 23 from 5:45 to 10:15 p.m. and Aug. 24 from 7:45 a.m. to 4 p.m.

To register, call 587-0200.