How's the PA rifle season been?...

[Bob Macioch]

Just copy and paste....all you need to know on why Pa has gone from one of the best states to hunt whitetail to what it is today

[deaddoc4444]

TR   I hear you    sounds like we are in the same BOAT in both areas    Mine is in Bradford not Tioga  but not far  from Tioga  
   I lve in 5 D also
        Used to have many places to hunt  in 5 D   but not any more .  
    The Gas Drilling in 3B  is part of it. The secondary   tangent to the Drilling is that the farmers who leased out got so much money  fo the leases  they are NOT planting   SO deer dont have much to feed on   NO ACORNS this years  the squirrels  are even thin  in 3B now  LOL

[deaddoc4444]

BOB I disagree!!  It IS  herd MANAGEMENT    THEY managed it to death!!!    ON PURPOSE, in a lot of places  .      Game commission   should be re named to   AUDOBON adjunct !!!

[Bob Macioch]

Your right deaddoc4444.I didnt think it was possible but in some areas in the northern half of the state the PGC said there are only 1-2 deer per square mile left.

[Gregg S]

Thanks for posting that info. Bob. Things are pretty bad here in N.E. Pa. It will take a long time to get back to the way things were, even with the proper game management.

[deaddoc4444]

BOB   its pitiful      We made sure we all bought Doe tags for 3B   so we WOULDNT USE  them.       Its going to take  LONG time to  rejuvinate the herd .   NO turkeys EITHER .

[MikeW]

This is strange to me, my son moved there about 2 years ago, his step father owns a small farm(100 acres) and he is telling me that there are deer all over the place along with turkeys and some bear. I can't remember the name of the town right now but it's within an hr's drive of Harrisburg and my son tells me he sees deer at least 3 times a week driving to work.

I have an invite to come hunt his farm any time I want.

????

[Craig]

Hey guys, the PGC didn't do it. It was all the hunters that listen to them that did it. They are the ones that made the Northern Tier what it is today. The game commission didn't kill a deer. Hunters did. Blam them.

[Bob Macioch]

Sorry Craig..WHO GAVE OUT TOO MANY DMP'S!THE PGC...hunters rely on the PGC biologists  who should rely on science to tell them how many deer should be killed in a given management unit.They failed us miserably and now were left to pick up the pieces and build the herd back to acceptable levels

[wollelybugger]

Not only are the number of deer going down but the number of hunters are going to go down with them. More and more hunters are giving up and not buying licenses. I still am trying to get a grip on why they don't cut the doe licenses by at least 50% and go back to hunting does for only a couple of days.  I go to Forest county and its a shame to see those old hunting cabins falling in from lack of use. Looks like tough times ahead. The PGC is going to get rich from the Marcellus shale and don't need hunters anymore.lol

[bmfer]

I saw some last Saturday. I hunt private land though. I almost jumped out of my treestand when a guy on the next property shot. I was sitting in my stand thinking, I can't compete with these guys with my bow, so I stayed home today. I'll wait for late season, thanks.

[Craig]

bob you are right the PGC gave out too many DMP's but still the PGC did not shoot the deer. Hunters did.

[Ron Vought]

I agree Craig. They could issue a million more tags and the hunters will keep taking the deer but will complain when they are no longer seeing them. Hunters in PA need to take the management into their own hands if they want to see deer but it will never happen so I can only hope the PGC lessens the amount of antlerless tags issued.

[10point]

I live and hunt in WMU #2G ( North Central Pa. ).This area used to be known as the "big woods" in Pa. and large numbers of hunters came here ( from the big city ares) to hunt. Back in the 90's I would see an average of about 8 to 10 deer per day during rifle season. This year I hunted 8 days and saw a total of 1 deer,,,, same as last year. We no longer have the influx of hunters and in fact I have seen very few hunters for the past few years. Tha Pa Game Commission does not seem to care about any of this because they have a new revenue source from the Marcellus Gas boom. We now have gas wells all over our state game lands with wide access roads running through what used to be pristine wilderness.

[pauljr]

Guys its time for us to do whatever we can to make the game commission and hunters get there heads out of there backsides. we are the ones dropping the strings and puling the triggers. We have to band together and lert the does walk. I was just watching october whitetails remembering what it was like bowhunting when that movie was new. I want that back. I took my 10 year old daughtter out during gun season 3 days and she couldnt have shot a deer if she wanted. Now im not sure she will want to go again. She told me the deer are all gone i want to go to sleep. I didnt tell her but shes right.

[MikeW]

Originally posted by pauljr:
Guys its time for us to do whatever we can to make the game commission and hunters get there heads out of there backsides. we are the ones dropping the strings and puling the triggers. We have to band together and lert the does walk. I was just watching october whitetails remembering what it was like bowhunting when that movie was new. I want that back. I took my 10 year old daughtter out during gun season 3 days and she couldnt have shot a deer if she wanted. Now im not sure she will want to go again. She told me the deer are all gone i want to go to sleep. I didnt tell her but shes right.

Reading that produced tears.

[Ron Vought]

Its been a sad story here in PA ever since the concurrent rifle season was implemented under the so called deer management program. I too lived in 2G (Potter County) and witnessed the decline in the deer herd as 10point mentioned. I now live in SE PA where there are deer in abundance on private land where the PGC can not touch them with antlerless tags. Its a real shame and have no clue what the solution is to all of this other than what pauljr mentioned about hunters being responsbile, The problem is  hunters in PA will continue to buy antlerless licenses and try to fill every one of them versus throwing them in the garbage.

Ron

[Red Beastmaster]

It's a good thing we have lots of squirrels!

[pauljr]

I forgot to mention the antlerless tag I purchased is going in the trash. I will hunt late season for a buck but wouldnt shoot a doe on a bet. My total for this year is 5 does seen all year and I hunt as much as anybody can with a job and family. The deer are gone.

[Barry Rowland]

I hear you 10pt.  I live in 2G as well, saw one hunter, and finally saw a buck last night.  It just isn't like it was a few years back.  I can remember seeing orange all over the mountainside and shots everywhere, but not now.  I'm looking forward to the late season!!