Jason N

I don't think it's going to be any worse than usaul. For the most part, I think we're going to see a decrease in liscense sales for at least one year....not people shooting illegal bucks just ofr spite. We all know that the first day in PA you will see many others on public lands. It just isn't that easy to drag a deer past someone without them wanting to see it.

Like said, S.P.O.R.T.

Sportsman
Policing
Our
Ranks
Together

rkml10

I believe that it will remain about the same now as it was in the past. only because as more and more people are agreeing with the point restriction.

buckhunter3

I talked to some game wardens over the weekend at the outdoor show in Erie.
They are not sure yet if you will be able to keep the deer if shot by mistake.
I am afraid if a hunter shoots a buck by mistake some will write on the tag mistake as was suggested at Alts meeting and, then drag it out and if not stopped by a game warden before they they get it into their truck they will just take it home and butcher it themselves and get away without the $25.00 fine.I think that is why they are still debateing on letting a hunter keep the deer if turned in as a mistake.Also some out of state hunters may fined it hard to get a buck and may not mind paying the $25.00 fine if they are assured of keeping the deer.That is why a small fine sometimes does not work.It should be an interesting year to say the least.

BTBowhunter

There will be some mistakes and as BH# said, some will cheat. I can see a small fine for one mistake but I think repeaters ought to be hit harder with each "mistake". I would also hope that the minimal fine would be phased out in a year or two after people have had a chance to adjust.

Just my $.02

MskyKng

I`m not sure if anything will help. 1 week after the season ended I saw 6 dead does on the side of the road. Right out in plain sight!! All that was taken was the hind quarters. I don`t think that they ,poachers really care much about anybody but themselves. So why would they worry about a mezly fine!! I wish I could have seen them in the act, believe me they would have been turned in.

BTBowhunter

Somehow I missed Northjeffs post above last ime I read this thread. Think about the power of what he just said. The average Pa hunter looks at a forkhorn in his scope, wishes it had one more point, looks again, tries to find that third point, it aint there. As the buck slips away he silently says to himself " I hope I see him next year" Then from over the hill.....BOOM. He walks in the direction the buck went and sees an orange suit and the dead buck. Who here thinks that guy is gettin away with it? My guess is that we wont need one WCO in the woods to police this. AS long as they stay by their phones, most of those poachers will get busted.



Edited by - btbowhunter on 03/07/2002 06:48:40

Ruddyduck

I agree that there is enough poaching going on already in Pa.
That being said ,let me make one thing perfectly clear ....THERE IS NO #!*#%!* MISTAKES!!!!!!!! IF A PERSON DOES NOT KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THERE ARE SHOOTING YOU DON"T SHOOT.....END OF STORY! IF YOU CAN"T HANDLE THAT CONCEPT ,PLEASE RESTRICT YOURSELF TO TARGET SHOOTING ONLY.
I read some of these replies it's enough to make me ill. Sound like a bunch of Bill Clinton Supporter ,with attitudes like some posted here is it any wonder the country's heading the way it is. Jesh!

Buck Magnet

Okay RuddyDuck, what if a kid is out hunting for the first year. He has his doe tag, he sees a deer with no antlers at 250 yards standing in a field. His gun is sighted in for that distance and he has a perfect rest. He shoots it and it drops. He walks up to it to find that it is a button buck. What do you want? Do you want his liscence taken away for three years? Do you want to give the kid a 1,000 dollar fine? MISTAKES DO HAPPEN. That is a fact of life.

Good Luck This Season: Buck Magnet
"Hunting is not a sport, it is a passion, it is a WAY OF LIFE"

Ruddyduck

You're wrong!!!! It's not a mistake or an accident. You pass up the shot period if you're not sure. No Ifs Ands or Buts.
I'd have no problem that kid getting his hunting privledges taken away for a while. For one if he's a youngster they are supposed to be with an adult. And if they're over the age to hunt by themselves they should know better.
In almost 38 years of hunting I've never shot something by "accident" or "mistake" .
Maybe the apologists amongst the hunting faternity be better off taking up golf, for they do hunting no favors. I don't apologize to anyone for being a hunter and I don't apologize or make excuses for those that are careless or ingnorant while out in the woods.