RE: How many PA hunters not going back to NC PA this year
 

What Game Land (12, 36) are you seeing this on Rick?

RE: How many PA hunters not going back to NC PA this year
 

Not actually on a game land but very very close to 36 and armenia mountain. Our patch is private however 2 of the bigger bucks I am seeing are on ground that is open to the public just as much as I see them on our side of the posted signs. I have glassed TONS of other deer in this area this year including several on SGL 36 that are very healthy 2-3 y/o animals. I spent a lot of time hunting armenia mountain as well when I was younger, there are lots of great deer in there if someone is willing to actually hike a bit and not sit 100 yards off the road and its all open to public. I am fortunate to have private property now but I killed all but one of my best bucks on land that is open to the public. If people aren't seeing deer where they are hunting, then hunt else where. I drive almost 4 hours to hunt unit 3B from NY because the hunting is good where I go.........and to think all sorts of people live less than an hour of where I hunt which has publicground very closeand complain about no deer. :eek:

RE: How many PA hunters not going back to NC PA this year
 

My group of 3 is not coming back for the first time in 8 years. We have been through the "you will get a deer" in a week of bow season, to last year, nobody took a shot.

We hunted 2G in Potter Co. We always went for the first week of bowseason. We stayed at a set of cabins that when we started were 100% full with long time customers and the associated bed and breakfast was also full. Last year, b&b was empty, as were 2 of the 6 cabins. None of those hunters are coming back this year.

I am 100% sure that given time to scout and more time to hunt we would have filled our tags. However, being non-residents, with a 9 hour drive to get there, that isn't a realistic option. We travelled to PA for a week of getting away to a beautifull area with a good chance at seeing and shooting deer.

We decided to not go back due to several things:
- last year none of us got deer, one guy didn't see one. Year before for 3 of us, we took 2. When we started going 3 of us would take at least 3. However we had seen an improvement in bucks taken, when we started you rarely saw a buck and if so, probably a spike, we have taken 2 8pts in the two years prior to last year.

- doe permits. We could not get them in 2G, last year we did not get any due to them being sold out, we did get DMAP and did get doe permits for the area just north of 2G. This year with reduction in 2g permits, we didn't bother.

Like I said, if I lived there or could even spend some serious time scouting, I am sure I would have filled my DAMP and buck tag in the areas we built several years learning. But now, bucks only, combined with fewer deer in total, we decided it just isn't worth it.

It's a shame, it was a good trip and we may try again in a few years, we will be watching to see what PA does.

RE: How many PA hunters not going back to NC PA this year
 

Here's how I see it. I've been hunting the pine creek area of Lycoming county for the past 15 years and our camp has been in our family since 1890. My great great grandfather used to hike to the same building every year before there were even roads, just train tracks and there is no reason for me to stop hunting there today. Our camp sleeps 32 people and come hunting season we don't have an open bed in the place. We have more fun than I could have all year and even manage to get a few deer. As far as deer numbers I have actually seen more deer around the slate run area than I have in years past. Last year was agreat harvest for us up there and we managed asix point 3eight points and aten point. As far as bear numbers dropping...well, you sure as sh!t could fooled me. This past summer we counted nearly 15 different bear in our yard and harvest number have been climbing. The way I see it, the more hunters that don't come back up because of the declining deer and bear numbers the better. Wait a minute, what am I saying? Forget this whole post, what I meant to say was "you're absolutely right, I haven't seen a deer in the tiadaghton state forrest for years and as for bears...what's a bear?:D:D

RE: How many PA hunters not going back to NC PA this year
 

deerarevery few in 2g.scouting this year has been unreal.everytime i go out to spot for my buck,others are there. more scouting this year than i have seen in years.i have to park my ford truck a distance from where i hunt.if not, they are all over me.same in turkey season.that tells you deer arevery few.most of nice bucks i am seeing, i saw 11 bucks last week, all different ones.4 were running together. only 2 were on STATE FORESTLAND.9 were on PRIVATELAND.same with doe.everytime i come to privateland, 6 or 7 doe.then i go for miles, no deer ..someone said there group is not coming back this year to 2g .many are not coming.they have better hunting at home.i know 12 that are in group and they are not coming back to 2g.they are coming to pa. but not to 2g,they are going elsewhere in pa.

RE: How many PA hunters not going back to NC PA this year
 

3B here too, lots of great bucks around. Better and better.

RE: How many PA hunters not going back to NC PA this year
 

I too was hunting in parts of 2G and 2F by the early sixties and what I saw sure was a lot closer to what BTBowhunter observed then the way Sproulman remembers things.

I too remember daylight arriving on opening morning and thinking my goodness there is no way you could shoot at a deer because of all the hunters. That was because all of the hunters in the state had to come to the north central third of the state because that is the only place that had huntable deer numbers even if the majority of the deer did only weigh 40-80 pounds.

I also remember seeing dozens upon dozens of antlerless deer running back and forth past hunters all day long with almost no change of seeing a buck bigger then a small fork antler.

I also remember hunting turkeys in those same big woods areas when there were few hunters and darn few deer moving around or being seen, much like it is today when I hunt turkeys in those same mountainous locations as the days of yore.

What has changed the most is the lack of hunters coming north and running around moving deer past other hunters all day. That is probably mostly due to the increased deer numbers over the other two/thirds of the state that was void of deer back in those good days that some of us old timers remember.

For many the past is like a grammar lesson, they find the present tense and past perfect. For some of us though we have been seeing the changes while also looking for and striving to understand the reasons for the changes.

Dick Bodenhorn

RE: How many PA hunters not going back to NC PA this year
 

I have hunted the 2F area for the past 22 yrs we have a perm. cabin and it has been in the "Family" for well over 30 yrs and I don't care who says what the deer numbers are so far below 10 yrs ago it isn't even funny it is down right scary and sad. This will be the first yr that I will NOT be giving the PGC my money to ruin the PA wildlife. I was in full support of the AR and still am but there overall deer reduction idea is pure BS. Being a non Res. for the past 11yrs there was many of them in the old system that I wasn't able to get a doe tag and that never bothered me becuase I would sit a stand and see deer all day. And I am sorry to break your little fantasy world bubble of your RSB but the lack of seeing deer has nothing to do with less hunters. I used to hunt up deep in what we call Gillias run (next hollow east of Big Bear run acroos the river) During gun season yes you used to see alot of the orange army but I never saw another hunter in there bow hunting but I used to see anywhere from 50-100 deer sitting in a stand all day. Most were not in bow range but I always had deer moving around that ridge. The last couple of yrs I was lucky if I saw 1-5 deer a day. Watching the same big Oak ridge that was full of acorn and would of been full of deer if they were still alive. I do still plan on driving up to spend my weekend with the guys as I have done since I started hunting and I might have to let these Educated Idiotsruin our wildlife but I don't have to let them ruin my camp life. I personaly know of 27 other people from Ohio that I either hunted with or work with that are refusing to buy a license in PA and some are even refusing to come over there at all anymore. Most including myself are hunting OH and WV this yr and prolly from now on since they seem to understand how to manage a deer herd. These are from my personal viewings and my personal opinions and of those opinions of people I speak with.

Trytan74

RE: How many PA hunters not going back to NC PA this year
 

How's the habitat around the Portland mills area?

It's funny you mention Ohio.I hunt private posted land in Ashtubula county that has very limited access.On a good dayI may see 5 or 6 deer a day.I don't do much hunting in 2F butI do hunt 2G on SGL 77where it borders 2F.I still see plenty of deer.In fact,I always see more deer around this area than I do when I huntinOhio.How many deer deer some of you need to see to have a successful day?I never heard so much whining and complaining in my life.Iknow a couple people that live and have camps just past the old game school.None of them are complaining about no deer.

Anyone that thinks the lack of pressure isn't having an effect on deer sightings is simply out of touch with reality.On top of that,last year we had a huge mast crop.A well fed deer is a tough animal to hunt because they don't have to move to find food.Without anyone pushing them around,sightings will surely be less.

RE: How many PA hunters not going back to NC PA this year
 

Ghosts of dead deer past are even harder to hunt.