Hunting for Beginners

Get Started

Whether you're looking for a new outdoor adventure, interested in a quality source of fresh meat, wish to contribute to wildlife conservation or just looking for a way to spend more time with friends and family – we've got you covered.

Take Hunter Education

Play it smart - with a Hunter Education course (required if born after Sept. 1, 1971), available online or in a class. The optional “Hunting 101” workshops will boost your knowledge/skills even more.

Buy a Hunting License

Hunting requires a license. 100% of your license fees go to fund wildlife management, research and restoration projects and secures the future of hunting.

Know the Rules and Regulations

The Outdoor Annual has all the hunting rules you need to know. Use the free app without internet connectivity and to carry a digital copy of your license!

Wild·to·Table

Dallas-based travel blogger, My Curly Adventures, and her husband and food blogger, @myculinaryadventures_, joined us and Texas Wildlife Association for a mentored hunt for wild hog. First-time hunters can sign up for mentored hunting workshops like this and spend a weekend in nature learning the basics of hunting and harvesting meat, as well as skills like safe firearm handling. Lodging and food, including wild game meals, is provided.

Watch their video and read the blog post to see what their experience was like, and sign up to be notified whenever mentored hunting workshops become available.

Cook Your Wild Game

Texans have been serving wild game to their families and friends for generations. Hunting is a great way to bring home wild game that is local, sustainable and the original all-natural food.

Wild Game Cooking Videos

Host a wild game dinner party! You'll be ready after watching the experts in these easy-to-follow videos.

Wild Game Recipes

Tasty recipes using fish, alligator, game birds, venison, wild boar and a few veggies.

Locavore Recipes

A smorgasbord of our favorite recipes, from Texas Parks & Wildlife magazine's special section for locavores.

Gain Knowledge & Skills

Feel excited but a little overwhelmed? Then sit back and enjoy these how-to hunt videos on a range of important and fun topics.

Hunting Ethics

What makes an ethical hunter? Plus, the three questions to ask before you take a shot.

Shooting Safety

Firearm safety is critical. Follow these basic safety rules for a safe, and enjoyable hunting experience.

Shooting Tips

How to shoot your rifle in hunting situations, including practical shooting stances.

Prepping for a Day Hunt

Be prepared with food and water, proper clothing, emergency plans, licenses, water sources and more.

Animal Behavior

Most game animals follow a pattern, but there are some variables to keep in mind while hunting.

Hunting Tactics

Familiarize yourself with three popular hunting styles: ambush, spot and stalk, and calling.

Scouting

Learn the types of habitat and deer signs to look for to find the best hunting location.

After the Harvest

Learn the steps to take after you harvest a big game animal.

See more hunting videos on our YouTube channel.

Six Stages of Hunter Development

The longer you hunt, the more your attitude and behavior will evolve. Learn what you may experience.

Find a Place to Hunt

Hunt on over 1 million acres of publicly accessible land.

Public Land

Use an interactive map to search by area or type of game to find Public Hunt locations across Texas.

Mentored Hunts

Drawn Hunts

TPWD offers drawings for adult and youth hunting opportunities on leased private properties and public lands.

Enter “Big Time Texas Hunts”

Only $9/entry to try your luck in this drawing for a variety of premium guided hunts including lodging and meals.

Conservation of Wildlife & Habitat

If you want to walk-the-walk and not just talk-the-talk, it's important to understand conservation and why hunting has been, and still is, an important part of conservation in Texas.

A Conservation Timeline / PDF download

Key historical events related to wildlife conservation in North America—events that continue to shape our attitudes, laws, and policies concerning wildlife and natural resources today.

Wildlife Conservation Education Resources

Wildlife conservation is the wise use and management of natural resources, without wasting them or exploiting them. It regards wildlife as a renewable resource, which properly managed, replenishes themselves indefinitely.

Stewards of the Wild

Want to engage with like-minded people? Join Stewards of the Wild, whose chapters engage 21- to 45-year-old outdoor enthusiasts by offering conservation awareness events, and mentored hunts. Sponsored by Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation.

The State of Quail

Once robust, Texas quail populations are impacted by habitat loss. Learn how interested parties are working to keep quail numbers healthy.

Recovering America's Wildlife Act

Our best chance of saving wildlife species in Texas! Learn abut the landmark legislation that can help protect our natural heritage for future Texans.

Return of the Desert Bighorn

TPWD Wildlife biologists in West Texas are returning Desert Bighorn Sheep to their historic habitat after being extirpated in the mid 1900s.