firstcoueswas80 Report post Posted December 3, 2022 Whats the secret? My son finished his class last week and looking for a field day course for him. AZGFD only has courses listed through December. When do they list more courses? This doesn't seem like very many field days. Is there a way to get notifications of new courses listed, or just keep checking back and hoping to find one with open seats for him to attend? 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bigorange Report post Posted December 3, 2022 One kid I had to take to Sierra Vista. Just had to watch the website. I’ve heard if you contact them they’ll work kids in. my other kid I took to the YOU hunter Ed camp. That was a good experience. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
206 Report post Posted December 3, 2022 More field days will be offered after the new year. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CatfishKev Report post Posted December 3, 2022 When kids have tags coming up sometimes you will get an email or a notification that they have a field day set up but it's mostly just for the tag holders not one that they have advertised so maybe you could call game and fish and ask Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CatfishKev Report post Posted December 3, 2022 Well at least that has happened to me one time so I assume it happens other times Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AZHunter1 Report post Posted December 3, 2022 It's a mess....I had 1 kid take his in Showlow, 1 in Tucson, and 1 in Phoenix. Don't know why they don't do more classes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hoss50 Report post Posted December 4, 2022 I am headed to Tucson next week to get my kid thru his field day. It was the closest one at 2hr20min drive time. Next closest was Safford or Kingman... It would be much nicer to get a day in Phoenix, but they don't have any openings soon, and when I signed up for the backlog list for the Phoenix Date we were 37th on the alternate list... I emailed G&F and they said they are doing what they can. I asked if they could start a class that would charge a fee so they could maybe hire a company or instructor and they said it was against the rules if the federal money Grant's for the program. They said they don't enough trained volunteers, but they also said they don't have any classes to train more volunteers... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Crazymonkey Report post Posted December 4, 2022 My dad is a hunter safety instructor in California and he tells me it's hard to get new instructors .Most are retired gentlemen and do it for the enjoyment of teaching the next generation. When they do finally stop teaching it's almost impossible to replace them.I was asked many years ago if I was interested in teaching or helping out here in Arizona and had to pass as I don't have enough time to dedicate .Please remember most are volunteering there time and most will make room for the younger kids . 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zeke-BE Report post Posted December 4, 2022 Im in Gilbert and had to take the course in Safford. The classes fill up right when it opens. I had to keep the page open on my computer and refreshed the page 2-3 times a day to look for an opening. Then Safford open up. But yeah I wish 3rd parties to make these. I would of paid for that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AZHUNTER05 Report post Posted December 4, 2022 We faced the same issue. The classes fill up extremely fast. I believe they release the new classes on Tuesday’s. I was able to get my son signed up by waking up super early in the morning and finding an open seat in the class. You just have to continually check the website for open field days. Good luck, Cameron Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Coues247 Report post Posted December 4, 2022 This all started when they forced local hunter ed teachers to jump through all kinds of stupid hoops to be able to teach the classes. Most decided it wasn't worth it and stopped doing them which has led to what we have now with hundreds if not thousands of people trying to get maybe 100 spots in a class every couple months. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
firstcoueswas80 Report post Posted December 4, 2022 I was told that they allow youth to hunt without the completion of the field day, as long as they have passed the course? 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Coues247 Report post Posted December 4, 2022 33 minutes ago, firstcoueswas80 said: I was told that they allow youth to hunt without the completion of the field day, as long as they have passed the course? Correct but people still want their kids to get the bonus point. Also counterintuitive to require hunter ed for kids under 14 but because of their incompetence they just wave the requirement. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hoss50 Report post Posted December 4, 2022 51 minutes ago, firstcoueswas80 said: I was told that they allow youth to hunt without the completion of the field day, as long as they have passed the course? Yep, the child won't get the lifetime bonus point though until the field day is completed. That is why I am driving to Tucson this week, so in February my son will have his hunters ED bonus point for the elk draw coming up. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tropicalmulch Report post Posted December 4, 2022 On 12/3/2022 at 2:17 PM, firstcoueswas80 said: Whats the secret? My son finished his class last week and looking for a field day course for him. AZGFD only has courses listed through December. When do they list more courses? This doesn't seem like very many field days. Is there a way to get notifications of new courses listed, or just keep checking back and hoping to find one with open seats for him to attend? We got on the waiting list for a class that was full and got an email for the next class before it was posted on game and fish website. Maybe try that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
