As spring rolls in, so do hunting opportunities. Instructors Keith Newburn and Stephen Bartlow plan to teach two separate hunter safety classes — one held in Wallowa in the Oregon Department of Forestry classroom located at 802 W. Hwy 82, the other in Joseph at the Baptist Church located at 107 N. Main St.

Newburn said if the Wallowa class exceeds 25 persons it would move to the Wallowa Gun Club located at 75044 Lower Diamond Lane in Wallowa. He stressed that each class has fewer than a dozen openings left.

Hunter safety classes are offered in both spring and fall in anticipation of hunting seasons. “This spring class is designed to be done right before the special youth turkey hunt,” Newburn said.

The classes offered at each site run on alternating days over a two-week period to give the students time to study material. The classes consist of combination classroom and field days. Field days include both live fire and possibly compass and map reading along with other safety exercises, depending on the availability of qualified instructors.

Newburn said he is often asked if people who take the test online can attend the field day to finish their certification. The answer is no, although they can attend the second class, which is hands-on, attend the field day, then take the test on the last day. The classes require a minimum of 14 hours instruction, but local classes range from 16-20 hours.

Oregon law mandates that everyone under the age of 18 attend hunter education classes in order to obtain a hunting license. Newburn suggested that adults planning to hunt out of state should consider attending the class because some states require a hunter education card to hunt.

Newburn said he welcomes parents to stay and observe classes but also urges them to volunteer their time as instructors. This involves filling out applications at the ODFW website as well as submitting to a background check before receiving instructor training.

Wallowa classes are offered on March 30 and April 1, 3, 7, and 9 from 6 to 8:30 p.m. with an April 4 field day at the Wallowa Gun Club from 9 a.m. to noon. Joseph classroom Joseph classes are offered March 31, April 2,6,8,10 with April 4 field day at the Eagle Cap Shooters range slated to start at 1 p.m. The range is located seven miles north of Enterprise on Ant Flat Road off of Highway 3.

To guarantee a space, interested persons can sign up for the classes either on the ODFW website or at any Point of Sale, which is anyplace that sells hunting or fishing licenses. “If you wait for walk-in, you’re gambling,” Newburn said.

For more information, call Newburn at 541-410-3180 or Bartlow at 541-432-0519.