RE: PA Antler Restrictions change??????
 

Yea i love hunting up there , such an experience. But my cabin is the only log one between the boat shop , and theres a blue house on the other side of the pines seperating our yard from theirs. I might try an archery hunt or two up there this fall. The only thing is u cant use a stand that will damage the tree. so i might take up a ladder stand , put some towels between the grips andthe bark , and chain that sucker on .

RE: PA Antler Restrictions change??????
 

Public land hunting in PA can be pretty productive. If you are willing to go in farther and earlier than others and stay all day, when the people get up and move around in the late morning things really start happening quick. Can make for some good action.:D:D

RE: PA Antler Restrictions change??????
 

That is true but you also have to consider where that public land is located in relation to the general population of that area as well as accessability. The SGL that I tend to frequent the most receives quite a bit of pressure because it is relatively close to the 3rd largest metropolitan area in PA and also because there really is not an area of it that is not within 500 yards of road access.

Still, if you don' t mind walking a bit uphill or through some thick stuff then you can generally get away from most of the crowds.

RE: PA Antler Restrictions change??????
 

i agree with the public land and going far......we go about 2 miles..we walk for atleast 30 mins one way.....closer to 40-45 depending on our speed and conditions of the weather......its a hike.....its on the cut game commision trails and gaslines...but still thats a long ways with all the gear....but in 3 years we took 4 does and a 6pt out of it with only hunting it 3 days from daylight until about 9am every time......its a GREAT hole.....if we cared about horns we would both bad decint bucks yearly im sure....biut if its a deer were shooting it.....except this year.....i want a nice buck...but i might not hunt there this year....ill have to see..maybe i can con dad out of his spot and i can sneak into it!! lol....not to many guys go back that far....i mean we see a few.....but not like 100yds from the road!!!!!!we use all them guys coming in off the roads to push the deer to our thicket....it works like magic...........i got my doe lst year beacuse someone tried a 2 man drive......a poster and a driver.....well.....the deer snuck out only to run right by me......full speed....no time to look for horns....but she wasnt faster then me!i heard hte guys saying ya ill sit here you go walk around down htere....i got my gun ready and withing 10 mins i was tagging my deer.....i hope we have snow for hte opener again.....that was great.....it made dragging 3 deer out alot easier!!

RE: PA Antler Restrictions change??????
 

DL, a lot of guys use a climber or hang on with ladder sticks or something of the sort. I don' t think scratching the bark on a tree constitutes " damage" or illegal activity. There are plenty of guys using climbers and hang ons in the ANF. If it' s " unlawful" then there are many, many outlaws around here. Anyone want to chime in on this??? Any experiences?

RE: PA Antler Restrictions change??????
 

i was always under the understanding that as long as you dont spike the tree or use screw in steps you were ok.

RE: PA Antler Restrictions change??????
 

Rem, that' s pretty much what my understanding is too. Is there anyone out there with actual experiences?

RE: PA Antler Restrictions change??????
 

Well 2 yrs ago me and my dad were out in the woods awaiting first light on opening day , when a guy and a kid came in and climbed the same tree about 50 yards away . so after first light we left. well after hunting til about 11 we decided to head back for lunch, when we saw 2 game officers coming up the logging trail. They then asked if we had seen the people using a stand also and what area we saw them in. we pointed to the area and said we saw them at light in there. After lunch we were heading back in , and saw the game officers carrying 2 stands back to where they were parked. But i have no idea if they were taking the stands or what, thats why i didnt think u could use a climber or nething. jsut maybe a ladder .

But if anyone has other expierences lets hear em....