1. Always ask permission before hunting on private property. Respect the answer you’re given.

2. If you open a gate, SHUT the gate.

3. Watch where the muzzle of your weapon is pointing and always practice proper trigger discipline.

4. Be sure of what you’re shooting at before you pull the trigger. A large portion of hunting accidents annually occur from not properly identifying the intended target.

5. Use binoculars to glass for game, not your riflescope.

6. When you shoot at game, even if you think you missed, go make sure.

7. If you wound an animal, make every possible effort to retrieve it. Ask for help — extra eyes never hurt.

8. Be respectful of the animals taken. Just because it doesn’t meet your standards of size, etc., doesn’t mean you should belittle another hunter’s choice of harvest.

9. Be sure your game animal is down before you attempt touch it.

10. Take proper care of your meat. Get it cool, get it clean and bag it. Get it to a cooler as soon as possible.

11. Take tasteful photographs of any game animals harvested. Immature or ill-advised media makes us all look bad.

12. Share the roads. Don’t park your vehicle in a manner that prevents passage.

13. Public lands belong to everyone. Pack out your trash. If you brought it in, take it out. If you find someone else’s trash, haul it out, too.

14. Always bury or sufficiently cover human waste and hygienic paper. No one wants to see or step in such a mess.

15. Prevent wildfires. Be aware of restrictions and weather conditions and carry the proper extinguishing equipment.

16. Be encouraging and helpful to young or inexperienced hunters. Young upstarts and adult-onset hunters are the future of outdoors sports. Helping them to succeed helps perpetuate our hunting future.

17. Be willing to share your harvested meat with the elderly or infirm, or with people who don’t hunt but are curious.

18. Be prepared. Emergencies can happen to anyone. Give yourself and others the best chance for survival.

19. Communicate your plans to someone before you leave. Detail when and where you’re going and when you plan to return.

20. Beware of wasps, hornets, rattlesnakes, poisonous spiders, and predatory animals such as bears, wolves and cougars.

21. Retrieve game cameras, stands and other equipment as soon as possible after your hunting season has ended.

22. Have your ODFW paperwork signed and in order.

23. Be aware of road closures and unit boundaries. Obey non-motorized road use restrictions.

24. Be prepared for out-of-stock items in stores, lines at the gas pump and crowded areas like boat ramps and campgrounds. Patience is a virtue.

25. Live it up! Every moment of time spent in the woods is to be treasured, revered and remembered.