Plenty of deer where I hunted, but I heard more shots opening day than I ever have before. The shots after opening day were few and far between.

Still quite a few roadkills happening near me, and the gunners are shooting everyday.
I am starting to see a marked reduction around camp in 2f though, but I chalk that up to the fact that there is a predator behind every tree as of late. I have not seen much hunting pressure there in several years. From what I gather there are quite the number of bears, yotes and bobcats. I heard a rumor that a boar exceeding 500 pounds was hit by a truck near my place, during the week before bear season.

That surprising Greg. I know we're in different parts of 2F but the deer population seems to have taken a small uptick in my corner. Just one more case for smaller WMU'S I guess. BTW we got the predators too!

Bob, in the last two years, we have seen the presence of bear sign explode, and at the same time, the deer sign has plummeted. It seems like the minute the bears moved in, the deer skeedaddled. The sighting of mature does without fawns has become commonplace.
I couldn't make it up there for bear season, but my Dad and brothers went. It really ticked me off that although the sign is everywhere, not a single shot was fired that they could hear.
We are probably going to revisit an old haunt of ours in another section of the ANF next season. I really think the GC should make a special one year of concurrent bear/deer season to get the bear numbers under control up there.

All of this is really nothing new though, as we have always adapted by hunting various areas up there in response to changing conditions in the 30+ years that I have been going up there. The absolute worst deer hunting we ever saw was always Emporium though, no matter how many times we gave it a shot.. RIGHT SPROUL?? LOL!

Definately would say the deer are down too low in 2G where I hunt.

BTBowhunter, I see what you are saying. But that is part of my point, down here in the Mon Valley there is so much hunting pressure and I (my family) have a piece of land that is posted but adjoins unposted properties. If some people were sportsman and would respect posted signs and stay off that property it wouldn't be bad. But some people can't read I guess. I don't know much of the Allegheny Valley but I do know that on opening day of rifle this year I along with my dad and a friend we hunted our property and only heard 5 or 6 shots among the 3 of us. Do you think that it could be some of these WMU's need to be changed or adjusted a bit? A friend of mine hunts near Raccoon State Park every year and on opening day he never even saw a deer. I also understand that it depends what property you hunt, but are there really that many deer that they need to put out 68,000 doe tags for 2B? I did just notice on the PGC website that 5C there are far more doe tags but that is the only WMU that sells more than 2B at 113,000(don't quite understand that but I have never been there and I know nothiung about that area). Possibly 2B could be split in half from the Allegheny/Washington County line? I do not know as I am not a specialist in these arreas. But then again alot ofpeople would most likely say that the specialists don't know either...

Buckin I think that there is almost universal agreement between hunters that we really need smaller WMU's and that differentiating between public and private land would help a tremendous amount too. Sadly that approach would be more expensive and the PGC can't even get a reasonable license increase as it is thanks to the likes of the USP and a few other vocal minority hunters.

Welcome aboard PAhick.

Always good to see a new member!!:biggrin:

I would agree that the GC could do a better job at managing, in the terms of smaller WMU's, but their hands are tied monetarily and they are held hostage in essence, by the radical and very vocal minority obstructionists that seek to advance their single-minded agenda.

BTW Livbucks, I almost forgot to mention that Mark Ternent has been quoted recently as saying that our bear pop. appears to be bigger than once thought and an expansion of the season similar to the NE part of the state is likely "sooner rather than later"

Now if they'd just expand archery bear into the early deer archery:wink: things'd be really great!