kevster10p

has anyone gotten a deer from 2g

Pawildman

Although it is pretty bad in 2G as far as deer hunting goes, I did see some deer hanging at the cabins at Parker Dam on Tues. of the first week.
Our camp killed some deer last year, but went without this year. It's just been getting worse and worse there. The huge antlerless license allocations and now the DMAP program have taken their toll.

PA Bow/Flinter

I didn't deer hunt in 2G this year, but I did head up there for bear season. I went to Lycoming County, SGL 75. During those three days, I saw 9 different deer. Note: I walked about 10 miles each day to see what I saw. So I don't know what the herds were like before, but thats what I saw while up there for a couple of days.

Here's a link to a thread posted before on here about who got what and where, there might be some 2G kills on there.
http://www.huntingnet.com/forum/tm.aspx?m=1333178

DougE

I killed a doe in Parker Dam on opening day of archery season.Then I killed a nice 7 point on the fourth weekend in archery.I had a dmap tag for an area in Sinnemahoning and killed a doe there with a rifle on the last day.I had no problems finding huntable numbers of deer this year

I agree that deer numbers are down in 2G but they aren't as bad as many percieve.I live in this area and spend every available bit of free time in the woods.During archery season,Ihad 9 different bucks,4 adult doe and about 5fawns within range.That's a slow year but I still saw deer most times.I went out on the first saturday of rifle season and drove for one of my buddies.We saw well over 50 deer in about 2 hours on private but un-postedland .On the last dayI filled a dmap tag in Sinnemahoning,Cameron county.I saw at least 20 deer that day by 10:00am.I have firends that own camps in that area and they told me not to waste my time.Since the last day,I've been out every weekend and I'm seeing deer and lots of sign in every place,including public land.I can tell you for a fact that SGL's 93 and 77 both still have alot of deer.

I feel you're pain about Moshannon state forest but the habitat is absolutely terrible in that area.The deer herd exploded in that area after the tornado in 1985 and now the habitat is in the pole stage.There's very little for the deer to eat in that area and as a result,there's fewer deer.Even the stuff growing in the tornado area is mainly non-preferred browse species like beech.When the winters are tough or the mast crop is sparce,deer need browse to sustain them.They simply don't have enough in that area to sustain a large herd anymore.

I'm not going to sit here and tell you there's lot's of deer everywhere.That simply wouldn't be true but there's still more than enough in southern 2g to have a decent hunt.This year we had so much mast that the deer were scattered all over and didn't have to move much.On top of that,pressure was the lowest I've ever seen.Less people moving well fed deer will always mean less sightings.Whether you want to believe it or not,we used to have way too many deer in this area.As the forests matured,they cleaned out almost every bit of browse.At this point when the forest is in such a sad state,it takes very few deer to have a negative impact.

Also,yes there's lot's of coyotes but there's been alot for as long as I can remember.I'm sure they do a number on the fawns and the adultsduring periods of deep snow with a crust on top.That still goes back to the habitat.Healthier does will give birth to healthier fawns that can escape the predators.

I'm in the same boat you are.I remember the days of huge herds but I also recognize the need to balance the herd with the habitat.The habitat is terrible around here and it needed to be fixed.there's still good hunting and will only get better as the habitat changes.I'm seeing positive changes all over this area and in time we'll be able to support more deer and more healthier ones.It won't happen overnight but I'm willing to suck it up and wait.I wish more hunters would do the same.

kevster10p

i have not seen a buck yet up there ive been goin for 3 years the past 3 years weve gone spotlighting and seen on average 15 deer per 3 miles now i havent seen a single one

Pawildman

Yeah--- I recognize the fact that there are areas in 2G that have a huntable deer population, and that the habitat in other areas is abysmal. No argument. My point in the whole matter is the way in which the DCNR is being guided by the current administration. One only needs to read the context of the recent Coudersport meeting to see their attitude towards hunting and those who do it. That information can be found on the post "Pa Wilds" in this forum.
We have a tendency to blame the DCNR that we deal with as part of the problems, and I guess to some extent that is correct. What we may fail to realize is that these people who we deal with directly (District Foresters and their staffs,ect.) are only doing what they are required to do under the current administration policies.
Change at the top level is what is needed. We are being erased as non-entities by these people. Doesn't that make you more than just a little upset? I know it sure does me!!!

DougE

Sure it makes me upset.That guy was out of line with some of his comments.You'll always have that with any government agency though.As far as Rendell goes,if more people would vote,that anti-gun attorney wouldn't be our governor.

I'm very good friends with the district forester for district 9(the area around your camp).I can assure you he's far from anti-hunting.He could have expanded dmap over the pastcouple of years but he chose not to.They were starting to see adequate regeneration in certain areas so they backed off.there is no denying the fact that the habitat in many areas of Moshannon state forest cannot handle the huge number of deer it ince had.The fact that they greatly reduced the herd in these areas is no big government conspiracy to end hunting.We need to fix the habitat in these areas if the hunting is ever going to get better.

I understand that you're seeing fewer deer around your camp but take a look around and try to see what the deer are eating.There's not much there anymore.When I start scouting for new placesto hunt,the first thing I look at is the habitat.Before I look for deer sign,I look for potential food sources that will likely attract deer during hunting season.Big woods deer adapt from year to year as the forest changes.A great spot one year could be a complete bust the next.

DougE

Kev,why are you hunting where you're not seeing deer or sign?Just because they were there one year it doesn't mean they'll be there the next year.Deer in these parts adjust to changing food conditions.As the mast crop changes,the deer move.As new areas get logged,the deer move.My suggestion would be too look for areas logged in the last few years.They draw deer like crazy,especially when there's a good mast crop.

I have a friend that owns 200 acres in Sinnemahoning.It's rough,steep country that he bought just for the timber.He had it logged in 2001 and dmap'd the property to keep the deer in check because the deer were hammering all his new growth.This property is open to the public and is bordered by state forest land.With the exception of his property,the woods are wide open with nothing growing but laurel andmountain blueberry.I have several friends that have camps in this area and they all told me not to waste my time hunting there because they didn't see a single deer all week.These guys hunt the wide open woods where they can see for hundreds of yards.

Without ever setting foot on this property,I took a topo map that had the logged areas marked and hiked for 1.45 minutes to find some deer.I never cut a trackthe entire way up the mountain but when I got to the timber sale,I saw tracks everywhere.Within 2 hours I had over 20 deercome by me and I killed one.Upon closer investigation,the only thing that was growing at this point was black birch and striped maple.Since the habitat was so stressed all around this area,all the deer concentrated there,eating everything within their reach.Within a few years,themapleand birch will be out of the deer's reach and it will be a lousy place to hunt.At that point,I'm sure everyone will be complaining that the PGC shot all the deer off and that simply isn't the case.The habitat is managing the deer in these places,not the hunters.

kevster10p

my dad has a camp up there so he goes up there more then in md and i have only hunted up there for turkey and deer 2only seen deer while turkey huntin

DougE

What area is his camp in?Big woods deerhave to be hunted different because the food sources constantly change throughout the year and from one year to the next.It's unreasonable to expect deer to hang around an area with no browse unless there's a good mast crop.Unfortunately mast crops are not reliable from year to year so you need to manage deer based onyear round food availability.Many areas up here do not have that year round browse so we had to harvest more deer.I can also tell you for a fact that the winters of 2003 and 2004 where very hard on the deer,especially in the mountains because we didn't have adequate browse.We lost alot of deer those years and fawn recruitment suffered greatly.The lower deer numbers we have today are just as much due to the condition of the habitat as they are the high antlerless harvests.We need to fix the habitat before we can allow the herd to increase.That's a fundamental principle in game management.

I realize many areas have few deer but the deer are out there in huntable numbers.You need to think like a deer and hunt where they're most likely to be.I haven't killed a deer from the same stand in 26 years.