chr103yod

Think about this: Would you drive from a state like VT, pay $120 for a license, what is it $25 for a doe license to hunt here? It's a 6-8 hr drive or would you hunt in WV or OH or IL heck even NJ is better right now. With gas being $3/gal, licenses more expensive, way less deer why would you pick PA to hunt? You would have to either be stupid or have family and friends in PA that you hunt with every year. I just moved back to PA from VT and almost everyone I talked to used to come to PA to hunt, not any more. I don't really think resident license saleswill drop too much, true hunters will hunt no matter what. But if Ilived in another state I wouldn't pick PA for my hunting trip.

germain

I'm sure you guys know alot of hunters in various ages.Yes I do know a good number of hunters who are hanging it up.A high percentage of those people are middle aged and older.Most hunt in the NC and don't feel it's worth the trip anymore to hunt deer.Deer hunting in this state has always been the bread and butter so of coarse it's going to affect license sales.
There's a few pockets of deer here and there in the NC on state land but you better darned well do alot of scouting to find them.With the current gas prices it's tough for people to make the extra three-four hour drives to do that.In the populated areas land is being posted and lost to developement so it's hard to find a place to hunt around home where deer numbers are plentiful.
As for getting youngsters into hunting.Kinda tough to do without smallgame minus squirrels.Here again available hunting land also comes into play.
At the end of the day we will see a change of guard.Either dcnr will get their wish and take over the pgc funtions or the general public will fund a good portion of the pgc.A license increase won't help much because of the offset of lower hunter numbers.Change is coming.

High Country Kid

And the danged fishers are eating them up to. Along with grouse and turkey poults.[:@]

PABuck_HNTR

After reading through the entire post, yes the whole 7 pages I still won't pass judgement on the PGC just yet. Have mistakes been made? Absolutely! Should some heads roll at the PGC? I think so!

One question for Crazy Horse. Didn't Alt resign his position a year or so ago? Why do you continue to bash someone who isn't part of the equation anymore? Doesn't make much sense to attack him when he's no longer a figure of the PGC. I'm not sticking up for him, but he did an excellent job with the Black Bear program in Pa. Maybe he should have stayed in that position instead.

BTBowhunter

Gary Alt made some mistakes, actually he predicted that would happen.
His biggest mistake IMHO were some of the sour grapes statements he made after he left. As far as PA deer management, he came in too late (not his fault) and then he did more good than harm. the problem is that he didnt have the courage to correct his mistakes and move forward. He cut and ran and did it crying all the way.

I still respect his knowledge and vision, too bad he wasnt man enough to finish the job and once he quit, he wasn't man enough to walk away without whining.

As for the guys who still complain about Alt, they're typically the guys that were screaming that we have no deer left at least 15-20 years ago. Heck, some of em have been dead set against doe hunting all their life!

BTBowhunter

I couldnt seem to find when USP was founded but I know that USP has been around since AT LEAST the early 90's and that they have ALWAYS complained that the PGC issued too many doe tags.

Crazy Horse RVN

Round 2 of the antlerless licenses and still plenty of tags left. It would the minority of displeased hunters is speaking.

BTBowhunter

70% are gone as of today. About the same as last year. yes, I guessthe hunters have spoken. They're still buying doe licenses.

I'm surprised, given your love for crunching numbers that you would only just now have noticed that 2B and 2A sell very slowly at first. I believe that the last time 2B, or Allegheny, it's central county, sold out was 11 years ago. Hunters here know that tags will be available for months so they apply to other WMU's where the demand is higher with their first and second application. I've know some guys to wait till rifle season to buy their doe tags here.

BTW, there are plenty of deer here to hunt if the hunter is willing to take the time to get permission to hunt some of the private property that makes up most of these WMU's. There are many farmers around , especially in 2A just begging for more hunters.

patrkyhntr

You missed something, BT. Last year, sales of antlerless deer licenses commenced on August 1. This year, the beginning date was August 7. Therefore the sales you cite did not occur during the same time period.
The short answer is, yes, you did miss something.

BTBowhunter

patrkyhhtr
Are you sure it's one of my posts you're talking about? I pointed that very fact out three posts ago. Actually, I did miss something. I said sales commenced on the 8th and it was the 7th


and as for deerfly,

I have no idea where you got those numbers but here are the Aug 28 2006 numbers directly from the PGC website:

2A
55,000
22,364
32,636
Open

2B
68,000
5,205
62,795
Open

The first number is the number of tags, the second is the number sold as of 8-28-06 and the third is what remains.

Where did you get your information?