Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s Annual Take a Friend Hunting Contest

Erin Crider (mentor) and Ashley Lozano (mentee) spent last hunting season together hunting waterfowl, upland game birds and turkeys. They submitted their story and photos to the Take a Friend Hunting contest and received gift cards to SCHEELS.

Encouraging hunters to share their love of hunting

For the third consecutive year, Colorado Parks and Wildlife is encouraging hunters to take a friend hunting. As a reward for hunters sharing their expertise and love of hunting, CPW has created a contest for mentors who take the time to pass on their knowledge, with prizes for the mentor as well as the mentee.

“I often run into people wanting to hunt but they just don’t know how to start. Most of them just need a mentor to help out,” said CPW Hunter Outreach Coordinator Bryan Posthumus. “It is so easy to ask your friends, co-workers, or family if they want to hunt and help them get started. Quite a few started out small game hunting. Many of the hunters last year are planning on hunting with their new hunting buddy this year.”

Mentors can take a beginner hunter out or mentees can encourage an experienced hunter to teach them how to hunt and enter to win some great prizes by submitting a photograph and brief story of their time out in the field. Submissions will be judged by their ability to inspire and are due by Feb. 8, 2022. Mentor and mentee must be at least 18 years of age.

To be eligible to enter:

  • Mentors must be at least 18 years of age or older at the time of entry and must hold a valid 2021 Colorado hunting license (the “hunting license”).
  • Mentors must have held a Colorado hunting license in at least 3 of the last 5 years (2016-2020).
  • Mentees must also be 18 or older at the time of entry and hold a valid 2021 Colorado hunting license.

Mentees must also either have:

  • never had a hunting license until 2021,
  • only had a hunting license in 2020 (e.g., a second-year hunter) or
  • not had a hunting license in the past five consecutive years (i.e., since 2016).

Both individuals must follow rules and regulations in the 2021 Colorado Hunting Regulations; this includes possession of all appropriate licenses. Employees of Colorado Parks and Wildlife, and their immediate family (spouse, parents, siblings, and children), and household members of each such employee, are not eligible. Contest participants must follow all applicable Colorado hunting regulations.

Prizes will be awarded at the end of the contest to the winners of the photo/narrative competition. All prizes are non-transferable. No substitution may be made except as provided. The winner is responsible for all taxes and fees associated with prize receipt and/or use. Please check the website at https://cpw.state.co.us/takeafriendhunting for more details and an updated list of prizes!

To learn more, see the official rules and find out more about how to Take a Friend Hunting in 2021.

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