Originally Posted by
DennyF
Everyone here in PA receives a postage-paid big game report card that takes about 15 seconds to fill out, if successful. If everyone that killed a deer, did that, no need for check stations and the PGC would have a more complete data base. As it is now, there are enough different types of data collected within their system to make it work, so it suits me.
It apparently also suited those professional wildlife biologists that peer-reviewed our system for the Journal of Wildlife Management a few years ago and found it to be acceptable?
I consider having to go out of my way to lug a deer to a check station, an unecessary inconvenience, even if they had one in the town nearest my camp. That's a 14+ mile roundtrip. The local big buck contest location doesn't even stay open after 7PM now and that would likely be the place chosen, should PA ever go to checks. Might work for those going home after they've been successful and passing multiple stations? I stay for the entire season now.
How many other states with check station systems, have given them up, or are thinking about giving them up? If everyone doesn't stop and have their deer checked, how accurate are their systems?
OH you would enjoy the checkin station I go to. It is a old general store, sports shop, gas pumps, hillbilly tavern all wrapped up in one. Places like that are all over thru the mountains down there. There is a car wash that even sells a license and checks in deer. Even a private resident that does it up the holler cross the creek. Always guys around with deer on their trucks and 4 wheelers. Infact when you check in a deer the general store clerk gives you a coupon for a free beer or soda. Just walk thru the store, gun shop and enter the tavern closet door which is full of mounts and listen to all the stories . I checked my deer in last year a 11:30 at night listening to a local gal sing on a bar table. Left with a homemade pizza and walked thru the lot filled with trucks with deer on everyone. It was late ,but I bet there were at least 40 huntin vehicles in the lot all with deer. They all were having a party cause they did not need to get up the next day to hunt. Only takes a day to get a deer.