It’s that time of year!

The 2009 Mat-Su Outdoorsman Show wrapped up this past Sunday and the Great Alaska Sportsman Show kicks off this coming Thursday at the Sullivan Arena in Anchorage.

Spring is obviously in the air!

Now that we’re moving out of a long winter, it’s time to start planning for next fall’s hunting season and don’t overlook the spring bear hunting which will be going full tilt shortly. Two items you might need for either activity are a hunter education certification and/or a black bear baiting clinic certificate.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game’sHunter Education Program is in full swing. Several classes for all three disciplines: basic, muzzleloading, and bow hunting, are scheduled for April and throughout the summer here in the valley. Check the schedule online at the ADF&G homepage. From there, go to the Wildlife homepage and under the Education heading you’ll see Hunter Education. Click on that and you’ll go to the Hunter Education homepage. All kinds of Hunter Education-related information, including schedules, is available on the site.

The big news in the HE arena is that all three courses are or very shortly will be online. Both the basic and the bow hunter courses are available and folks have been utilizing them for a season or two. The muzzleloading course is scheduled to be online in a month or two.

Once you’ve completed the online version of whichever course, you need to sign up for an Online Course Field Day. This exercise is specifically geared for the discipline you took and gives you the opportunity to pass the proficiency shooting portion and exposes you to some things you couldn’t get online.

Once you’ve successfully completed the Field Day, you’ll receive your HE card.

Other HE news is that the muzzleloading program is getting a new student manual. The other two programs have professionally produced manuals which come in the student packet you get when you sign up and pay for the course. The muzzleloading manual has been upgraded and is now also professionally produced. I’ve seen but haven’t read the new manual; however, I expect to be getting a copy in the next few weeks. I’m glad to see the muzzleloading program receiving the same treatment as the other two disciplines.

There’s also a change in the bow hunter program. In previous years, if a student passed the course work but failed the shooting proficiency test the day he/she took the course, their records were held and they could reshoot the proficiency test anytime within a year from the date of the original class and receive the course certification. Starting in mid-April, a student who fails the proficiency shoot may, at the discretion of the instructor, reshoot the proficiency portion that same day.

If circumstances allow, the student can reshoot up to two more times after the initial failure. These additional opportunities allow for a case of nerves, equipment problems, or other unforeseen circumstances.

If the student still fails the shooting proficiency portion after multiple tries on the same day, they will be required to retake the entire course again and pass the shooting proficiency portion in order to gain the certification. Records will no longer be held by the instructor. If you’re planning to take the bow hunter course, practice beforehand and come prepared to shoot or you’ll be repeating the class on another day!

The spring black bear baiting clinics have already started as you read this. One class was held this past Saturday. I think there will be two more clinics here in the valley, but check with the Palmer Fish and Game office to be sure. If you miss all the available local classes, you might be able to catch one in Anchorage, but, again, I’m not sure of the schedules so you’ll have to call Fish and Game to find out.

If all else fails or you’d just prefer to learn about black bear baiting from the comfort of your home, the clinic is also online. Go to the ADF&G homepage and you’ll see a red “Online Bear Baiting Clinic Now Available” heading under the Highlights section at the top of the page. Click on it and you’ll see the course material and instructions on who’s eligible and how to take the course. There is an exam required for the online course, but it is an “open book” style test which you can take as many times as necessary to pass. A perfect score is required to receive the certification online. If you take the clinic in person, no exam is required.

While we’re on the topic of clinics, courses, and seminars, if you attend the Sportsman Show in Anchorage, check the seminar schedule. There will be several seminars put on by Palmer Fish and Game staff about our local fisheries. Several private individuals also provide a wealth of how-to and where-to fishing information in the fishing seminars. There are several seminars about hunting too, so the next few weeks hold multiple opportunities to expand your knowledge about hunting and fishing in Alaska.

Howard Delo is a retired fisheries biologist with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. You can leave him a message by e-mailing sports@frontiersman.com.