Field notes, course updates, and outdoor tips from Alberta Outdoors Academy.
September 29, 2026 · 7 min read · Big Game Hunting
Whitetails are colour-blind to red, wired for blue and UV light, and built to catch movement. Here is what the science says and how it changes your setup in central Alberta.
Read the post →September 29, 2026 · 6 min read · Big Game Hunting
Calling, spot-and-stalk, still-hunting timber and ambushing travel routes — how the four main elk tactics actually play out in Alberta, and why access comes first.
Read the post →September 23, 2026 · 7 min read · Game Bird Hunting
How goose hunting works in Alberta, from the federal permit stack and zone dates to scouting stubble, building a spread and hiding well enough to get shots.
Read the post →September 23, 2026 · 7 min read · Game Bird Hunting
How to find and hunt ruffed grouse, Hungarian partridge, sharp-tails and released pheasants in Alberta — plus the licence stack and WMU rules to check before you go.
Read the post →September 15, 2026 · 7 min read · Shooting/Equipment
Calibre just means bullet diameter — but that's not the same as a cartridge, and it isn't the same as what's legal or ethical for big game in Alberta.
Read the post →September 15, 2026 · 6 min read · Shooting/Equipment
A practical walk through choosing a first hunting rifle in Alberta — starting with the regulations that narrow the field, then the WMU you'll actually hunt, then fit, cartridge and optics.
Read the post →September 7, 2026 · 6 min read · Big Game Hunting
Whitetails communicate mostly by scent, secondarily by sound and posture. Here's how to read that language on Alberta parkland ground, and what to check in the regulations first.
Read the post →September 7, 2026 · 7 min read · Big Game Hunting
The whitetail rut is the busiest few weeks of an Alberta deer season, but the work that makes it pay off starts months earlier. Here's how to plan backwards from November.
Read the post →August 31, 2026 · 7 min read · Big Game Hunting
A plain-language look at a whitetail's scent glands, what each one is thought to do, and how that changes where you sit and how you move in Alberta parkland.
Read the post →August 31, 2026 · 7 min read · Big Game Hunting
How elk move, herd and talk through the Alberta year, what their calls actually mean, and how to turn that into better hunting and safer encounters.
Read the post →August 28, 2026 · 7 min read · Game Bird Hunting
How to tell Alberta's goose species apart, which two rulebooks you need to read, and how to build a dry-field decoy spread that works for Canadas, cacklers, specklebellies and snows.
Read the post →August 28, 2026 · 6 min read · Shooting/Equipment
What the CFSC actually is, why Alberta beginners need it, and how it fits alongside Hunter Education, your WiN and your fall licences.
Read the post →August 28, 2026 · 6 min read · Shooting/Equipment
A plain explanation of the CFSC and CRFSC, who is eligible, how the courses are delivered in Alberta, and how they differ from Alberta Hunter Education.
Read the post →August 27, 2026 · 6 min read · Fishing
Alberta stocks trout in ponds and lakes that can't sustain fish on their own. Here's why the program exists and how to look up this year's stocked waters yourself.
Read the post →August 27, 2026 · 7 min read · Big Game Hunting
A plain look at how Alberta hunting licence dollars, draw levies, aerial surveys and harvest reporting actually feed wildlife management — and what hunting funding does not cover.
Read the post →August 27, 2026 · 8 min read · Big Game Hunting
A practical look at how Alberta's moose draw, season type and partner licence rules shape the way you actually hunt — plus what to plan before you pull the trigger.
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