Do I need to take the hunting safety course before applying for my PAL

[Mad Hatter]

A hunter safety course is a totally different thing, and varies from province to province.

I just finished my AB Hunter's Ed Course. Learned a lot. Much better to take a class with real people and real instructors as you will learn more and learn better. I'm big on classroom. IMO just challenging a test doesn't give you everything you need to know. Would you want a 16 year old who has never been behind the wheel of a car to challenge the test, pass it and then go on the street without any practical instruction?

[Haywire1]

If the hunters ed course, or the cfsc had the same amount of useful info as the driver training course it would be amazing. While I will accept that the hunters ed course has useful info for those who have never hunted, or been outdoors, or taken a basic first aid course, the cfsc is full of errors, misinformation, as well as many factual errors.

And being in a classroom does not equal good training either. The instructor cabelas hired to teach the csfc course informed the class that using a pistol mag in a rifle was illegal, nr firearms need to be trigger locked at all times, and transported in a locked case, it was illegal to shokt on crown land without a hunting license, I spent more time going over the correct laws and regulations with my wife than she spent in the course

[Mad Hatter]

If the hunters ed course, or the cfsc had the same amount of useful info as the driver training course it would be amazing. While I will accept that the hunters ed course has useful info for those who have never hunted, or been outdoors, or taken a basic first aid course, the cfsc is full of errors, misinformation, as well as many factual errors.

And being in a classroom does not equal good training either. The instructor cabelas hired to teach the csfc course informed the class that using a pistol mag in a rifle was illegal, nr firearms need to be trigger locked at all times, and transported in a locked case, it was illegal to shokt on crown land without a hunting license, I spent more time going over the correct laws and regulations with my wife than she spent in the course

Point taken. But then there are the good cfsc instructors like I had; ex- Calgary cop and prison guard, currently a gun owner, raised in the NWT, hunted all his life... Guess I just had a good experience.

[Edward Teach]

I took the hunter course after getting my PAL and because I already had it, I didn't have to do the gun handling portion of the hunting exam. This was in BC.