Metro Area Pheasants Forever - Youth Page

Minnesota's Next Pheasant Hunters

Pheasants Forever believes the future of conservation and our hunting heritage depends upon today’s youth having the desire and opportunities to carry on the ethical traditions of this organization. At both the national and chapter level, Pheasants Forever is investing in sound programs enriched with events such as youth mentor hunts, conservation events and habitat projects. Below you'll find information about the wide range of youth programming Metro Area PF provides metro area youth. From wing shooting training, providing mentored hunt opportunities, or sponsoring local high school trap teams Metro Area PF strives to reach and involve youth in our state's rich hunting tradition, igniting passions and creating future conservations to ensure a strong pheasant hunting and habitat legacy.

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FIVE-STEP WINGSHOOTING PROGRAM - SIGN UP HERE !

The Metro Chapter Wing Shooting System is specifically designed to pass on the fun and excitement of wing shooting for youth by building five simple steps for success. Each of the steps moves seamlessly to the next and culminates in hitting more targets. The system is easy to use AND easy to remember! Each student will learn to properly shoot a shotgun. Our five-step system will teach students their dominant eye, establish foot position and appropriate posture, how to mount a shotgun, point at a target, concentrate on a target and ultimately break a target. The system is designed to give the student the basics so they feel comfortable carrying and shooting a shotgun before entering a field to hunt. In addition, our program provides the foundation for a student to advance his or her skills in a shooting sports program.

2023 Five-Step Wingshooting Program

Introduction to Wing Shooting is "FREE” to all participants. When you go to the signup page, you get a ticket. The ticket is free. The ticket gets you to the registration page. You must register for each individual session you want to attend.

Each session is limited to 24 students, there is one session per Sunday.

• Session 1: Sunday, May 21st / Noon - 2 pm
• Session 2: Sunday, July 9th / Noon - 2 pm
• Session 3: Sunday, August 6th / Noon - 2 pm

STUDENTS MUST CHECK IN 30 MINUTES PRIOR TO THE START OF THEIR SESSION

2023 Sign Up

LEARN TO HUNT PROGRAM

This program requires students to have first completed our Wingshooting Program and also to have completed MN DNR gun safety. The goal of Learn to Hunt is to develop all the skills necessary to hunt safely on your own. Students will be expected to watch online videos at home (homework!) in order to maximize class time shooting and being afield (See the videos below). This program is divided into three sessions, in order to be invited to hunt real birds students must signup for and attend at least two of the three sessions.   The material covered will change from week to week with an emphasis on developing shooting skills at the clay target range. Students who complete the class will be invited to the Shawn Garlinghouse Legacy Shoot on Sept. 12th and a pheasant hunt in Marshall, MN. behind our dogs in cooperation with the Lyon County PF Chapter's mentored-hunt day in October.  Below you will see some of the topics covered over three weeks. There is a $30 non-refundable fee for participating in this program.

Tentative Goals of Learn to Hunt

Review the 5 step program

Practice safety afield (fence crossing, shooting lanes, line hunting)

Learn safety with all types of shotguns

Learn instinctive shooting basics as taught by Robert Churchill

Practice shooting "pheasant type" targets (straight, quartering, & crossing) 

Introduction to flushers and pointers

Basic map work to find public hunting (OnX, map books, DNR websites)

Doing a three-person line hunt afield.

Clothing options for hunting

Cleaning and cooking pheasants and grouse

How to read a field  

Each session is limited to 24 students; there is one session per Sunday

• Session 1: Sunday, May 21st   Noon - 2 pm
• Session 2: Sunday, July 9th   Noon - 2 pm
• Session 3: Sunday, August 6th  Noon - 2 pm

Participants attending and completing both program dates will qualify for a free pheasant hunt at the Minnesota Horse and Hunt Club and the opportunity to spend the day hunting wild pheasants in Marshall, MN with food and hotel lodging provided at no charge.

Cost: $30 total / COVID GUIDELINES WILL BE FOLLOWED

Participant Requirements: Must have a firearm safety certificate and be 12 – 18 years of age

Learn To Hunt

Dates & Times:

• Sunday, May 21st / Noon to 2 pm
• Sunday, July 9th / Noon to 2 pm
• Sunday, August 6th / Noon to 2 pm

Location: Minnesota Horse & Hunt Club

Free Mentored Pheasant Hunt (for grads of "learn to hunt")

Date & Time:

October 8th, 2023

Location: Minnesota Horse & Hunt Club

Free Marshall Mentored Wild Pheasant Hunt

Date & Time:

October 2023, Date/Time TBD

Includes:

• One night’s lodging
• Meals
• DNR conservation officer hunting presentation and discussion
• Trap shooting
• Mentor guided hunt
• Bird cleaning demonstration

2023 Sign Up

LEARN TO HUNT HOMEWORK VIDEOS

Each Session has some short videos attached as homework. Please watch the videos for the section you are about to attend before you come.

Session One

Five step shooting program review

Video not available yet

Loading shotguns: pumps, double barrels & autoloaders.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaGMxE6AeHE&index=4&list=PLmmUOkEp9FbI8Ndk5Sm3g9H83qNxVcm3B

Basic instinctive shooting. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1y-e4Sw0t0&index=5&list=PLmmUOkEp9FbI8Ndk5Sm3g9H83qNxVcm3B

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCnOGIGrKE8&list=PLmmUOkEp9FbI8Ndk5Sm3g9H83qNxVcm3B&index=6

Session 2

Clothing basics 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAWsvxxIjOc&t=48s

Cleaning pheasants

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qP0lH6FL5Bw&list=PLmmUOkEp9FbI8Ndk5Sm3g9H83qNxVcm3B&index=2

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdyyMJL_LXE&list=PLmmUOkEp9FbI8Ndk5Sm3g9H83qNxVcm3B&index=3

Hunting safely in the field

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbZmKbT9PYs&t=0s&list=PLmmUOkEp9FbI8Ndk5Sm3g9H83qNxVcm3B&index=2

Crossing a fence safely

Not available at this time.

Session 3 

Finding birds in the field

https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/hunting/pheasant/tips.html

Hunting with pointing dogs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_p3PVWYhm4

Hunting with flushing dogs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLaWDy4y8CE&t=10s

Getting a license, talking to conservation officers

This video is not available at this time

Safety going afield review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbZmKbT9PYs&t=0s&list=PLmmUOkEp9FbI8Ndk5Sm3g9H83qNxVcm3B&index=2

SHAWN M. GARLINGHOUSE YOUTH LEGACY HUNT

This event is dedicated to Shawn Garlinghouse. Shawn’s passion for hunting and his love of the outdoors inspired his family and friends to create and fund a legacy shoot in Shawn’s name. Those funds, which were so thoughtfully contributed, provide for a free hunt and shoot day for kids at the Minnesota Horse and Hunt Club every fall since 2013.

The Shawn M. Garlinghouse Youth Legacy Hunt is the culmination of the wing shooting program for youth participants who have attended all of the Learn to Hunt sessions. Selected participants have all exhibited the ability to carry and shoot a shotgun with a degree of proficiency and confidence. More importantly, these young shooters have all practiced outstanding firearm safety, displaying a sense of maturity beyond their years.

For all our youth hunting participants we wish you many future safe and exciting hunts. We hope that you are able to utilize your legacy hunt experience as a catalyst to build a future of lifelong hunting memories.

A special thanks to Tom & Ann Garlinghouse; parents of Shawn, and to Mike Setran, founder of the Shawn Garlinghouse Legacy Shoot and the Five Step Shooting System. Also, a big thank you to the volunteers from The Lake Country Retriever Club, members and friends of The Metro Area Pheasants Forever Chapter along with the Minnesota Horse and Hunt Club for making this event possible.