Lile Outdoors: Pass it on

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Daniel Lile
  • 14th Flying Training Wing
COLUMBUS AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. --  (Editor's note: This is the first article in a series about hunting.)

There is a deep and rich sense of tradition and conservation that flows in the heart of every hunter.  For me it started from the first moment I found that blood trail of that first big buck, to warming my hands on a steaming shotgun barrel next to a good friend on closing day of duck season last year.

As the winter season approaches, so do many great future memories I, and many other Airmen, will make with the upcoming hunting season. Last year I had never hunted, but thanks to a good sergeant and great co-workers I found myself wide-eyed and ready to enjoy the great outdoors through hunting.

If you are a hunter, pass on the joy and thrill to other Airmen. This is the time to start preparing for the upcoming season, and it is the ideal time for those interested in hunting to pursue it.

If you want to pursue hunting, the first step you need to take is to attend a hunter's safety course. There is one scheduled right here on Columbus Air Force Base Sept. 25, at 7 p.m. in Phillips Auditorium. This will save you a lot of time and heartache rather than scheduling one off base. To attend you need to take an online hunters safety course at hunter-ed.com, that way the actual class is only around an hour and a half as opposed to eight hours, and contact Capt. Richard Stead, 37th Flying Training Squadron, at 404-667-8544 or me at 336-404-8827 to sign up.

There are many legal areas in Mississippi you can hunt in, including right here on base. To get a hunting map of the installation, contact Frank Lockhart, 14th Civil Engineering Squadron and the head game warden on base. While hunting on base, ensure you properly check your weapons in and out of the armory and inform the defenders at the gate that you have a weapon in your vehicle. Off base, there are many locations owned by the Army Corps of Engineering that you can hunt on.

The best way to learn the ropes and start hunting is to talk to co-workers or friends that hunt. If you don't know anyone, contact me. I am happy to help anyone interested in hunting. It is a great recreational activity my friends and I have enjoyed since day one. If you are already an avid hunter, please share it with those around you; pass it on to others so they can also experience the thrill and serenity of hunting so many people have felt.