 "Photo: Courtesy Jeff Ornellas")
 "Photo: Kevin Beardsley Photo")
 "Photo: Courtesy Jeff Ornellas")
 "Photo: Kevin Beardsley Photo")
If you’re looking to escape from the stress of school life and chaos of downtown Spokane, Gonzaga’s new club may be for you.
In its first year, the Hunting and Fishing Club has about 30 active members and is growing steadily.
Club president Jeff Ornellas came up with the idea for the organization while sitting in his economics class. He realized the school had no established system to meet people who, like him, love to take advantage of hunting and fishing opportunities the outdoors has to offer.
“Just because we’re in the city of Spokane doesn’t mean people can’t get out and enjoy the outdoors,” Ornellas said. “We’re trying to make people realize it’s really not that difficult to get out there.”
The club offers a wide variety of opportunities for anyone. Whether you’re an expert hunter or are interested in beginning fishing, the club can help in your endeavor.
While Ornellas and his friend Jason Hensley were fairly experienced hunters, they had no way of finding others with similar interests. This need for a network of students is one motivation behind starting the club.
For the less experienced, the club takes on a much more educational form.
“The main thing we stress is getting the hunter’s card,” Hensley, vice president of the club, said. There is an online test as well as classroom options to acquire the hunter safety card. The material covered includes information on preventing accidents, gun safety, basic first aid, wildlife conservation and more.
The hunter’s safety card is a great introduction to hunting. It’s also required. Washington state law mandates all individuals to show proof of basic hunter education before purchasing a hunting license.
Hensley also wanted to encourage people to get their cards quickly so they wouldn’t miss any of the seasons. Many begin in fall, such as deer, elk, forest grouse and turkey.
When creating the club Ornellas knew that safety was going to be an issue.
“We spoke with campus security, and they wanted to make sure people were being safe,” Ornellas said.
Most of this safety concern stems from students owning and handling rifles. “We told the club it’s not worth the risk of having guns on campus, especially with the things that have happened at other schools.”
Students have a couple options to be safe with their rifles.They can either store them at off-campus housing or at Brock’s Gunsmith located on Division.
Living off-campus, Hensley didn’t want to take any risks.
“I went out and bought a $500 gun safe,” he said. If you plan on making hunting a life-long hobby this is a great investment, otherwise Brock’s will hold your gun for $5 per month.
Ornellas wanted to be very clear that it is not a problem if you have little to no experience. He has helped people get their license, and even assisted in picking out the right gun.
If you don’t see yourself hunting, then fishing is always a possibility. Unlike hunting, fishing can be done in larger groups and is a much simpler process to get prepared for. All you need is a rod, reel and fishing license. The price varies from $8 to $24 depending on whether you buy an annual license or on a day by day basis. Most sporting goods stores, marinas and some convenience stores sell fishing licenses.
Once that’s out of the way you just need to find a spot. The club can help with that.
“For fishing the biggest thing is knowing where to go,” Ornellas said.
Ornellas and Hensley are both enrolled in Gonzaga’s fly fishing course taught by Stann Grater.
Grater has lived in Spokane for most of his life and knows the ins and outs of the area. This is his second semester teaching at Gonzaga, but he’s been a fly fishing instructor for more than 15 years.
Ornellas is hoping to eventually organize trips with Grater and Gonzaga students, combining an excellent resource with eager new anglers.
If you’ve been looking for a getaway from your endless homework, look no further. Hunting and Fishing Club is about experiencing the natural world at its finest.
“It’s about being out in nature,” Ornellas said. “Most of the time you don’t actually kill something.”
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