This month of April will be very important for the Nicola Valley Fish and Game Club; it is in the early stages of building a brand new archery range that will be able to accommodate the needs of all archers and bow hunters. This new range is long overdue, as the old range has, over time, become victim to age and the elements. The new range will be built to the specifications of the BC Sport Archery Association and a walk-through 3-D target range, archery shooting tower, bow tuning bay plus a beginners’ and children’s practice archery range, and a gazebo will complete the project.

To help raise some of the building funds, I’ve decided to donate the proceeds from my popular five-hour whitetail deer hunting seminar. The seminar will be held at the Merritt Civic Centre on April 14, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. with a break for lunch and refreshments. In the seminar, I will discuss a wide variety of topics from scouting to different hunting tactics that will include hunting from stands, spot-and-stalk, using scent and calls, and much more. There will also be a special segment on hunting whitetail deer with bows. The seminar will end with a question-and-answer segment where people will have the opportunity to ask any whitetail deer hunting-related questions.

Why a whitetail deer hunting seminar? Whitetails are rapidly increasing their numbers to the point where they are becoming detrimental to the much more habitat-dependent resident mule deer. To help the mule deer herds increase their numbers, the government has instituted liberal whitetail deer harvest quotas, and hunters should take advantage of it.

Hunting the wily whitetail deer is quite different from hunting mule deer, and for that reason, I chose to share my experience as a whitetail deer hunter of many years with the resident hunters.

This is the sort of event I really enjoy doing, because the money raised will go to a good cause, benefiting a non-profit organization that works hard in all areas of wildlife conservation and providing a voice for the local hunters and anglers. At the same time, the event will educate hunters as well as entertain. I invite you all to this event and hope you bring your family and friends along, too. For more information and to reserve a seat, please call Richard Kitsch at 250-378-4572.