Stay in Touch with MDC news, newsletters, events, and manage your subscription
Xplor reconnects kids to nature and helps them find adventure in their own backyard. Free to residents of Missouri.
A monthly publication about conservation in Missouri. Started in 1938, the printed magazine is free to residents of Missouri.
Kansas City, Mo. – Outdoor sports such as hunting are a part of America's heritage, with skills and traditions passed down from one generation to the next. The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) offers a variety of free educational programs for people interested in learning about hunting and shooting. Newcomers are welcome.
For example, in the Kansas City area, the Parma Woods Shooting Range at Parkville will offer a class called Firearm Selection for the Beginner from 9 to 11 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 20. The program is free but registration is required.
A first step is determining what type of hunting or shooting an individual is interested in, said Nathan Woodland, MDC range supervisor.
"Are they going to hunt small game, or deer or turkey, what are they going to use a gun for," Woodland said.
Then the discussion moves to different types of guns, actions and ammunition. For example, a light pump-action shotgun may be lighter, but a heavier over-under shotgun will reduce recoil. Personal preference matters a lot, but the classes give newcomers information to help them determine preferences.
Equipment such as scopes, such as those used on rifles for deer hunting, are available in a wide array of power and styles. Sometimes even veteran shooters need tips about fine tuning equipment such as shooting scopes. Parma Woods will offer a class on Selection, Mounting & Zeroing Scopes from 6 to 9 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 18. Registration for the free program is required.
"We will walk through all the different parts of the scope and what the numbers mean," Woodland said.
The Parma Woods Shooting Range offers a variety of shooting and outdoor skills classes throughout the year. For more information, visit mdc.mo.gov/node/283. To register for classes call 816-891-9941.
MDC's Lake City Shooting Range in northern Jackson County also offers a variety of free firearms, shooting, and outdoor skills classes. For information, visit mdc.mo.gov/node/282.
Winter is also a good time for to take the MDC Hunter Education Course. For information on the course and listings of MDC hunting and trapping events throughout the state, visit http://huntfish.mdc.mo.gov/hunting-trapping/hunter-education-skills-training.
