RE: wheres' the deer?
 

There are a FEW big deer in the mountains of North Central PA, but heck, I can find those types of numbers of large deer here at home, and we have squat for deer! We hunted hard for 10 days in PA this year in an area we've hunted for over 20 years, and came away with nothing for the second year in a row. Before you say maybe it's just because we are bad hunters, well I can say we have much hunting experience and regularly put deer in the freezer and on the wall, even in states with low numbers---In PA we always used to have at least 3 or 4 out of 5 guys harvest deer up to 8 points 120+ class deer, tho many were lesser bucks and of course does. We go to PA to SEE many deer and have fun SEEING them and throwing some in the freezer or on the wall in the process. Unfortunately this seems to be gone now in the area we hunt, due totally to the retarded (IMHO) amounts of tags that have been given out the past three years... If we want to hunt BIG deer, we simply go to IL and KS as that is a no-brainer. If we want to sit for a week in HOPES to see a big deer, we'll stay home. Nothing wrong with wanting to harvest a big buck, but you cannot wipe out the entire herd and think for a minute that all you'll have left is big deer..... It simply means you'll have LESS deer.

This year in our region of PA we heard that many of the locals didn't even bother to buy a tag, and the ones that did in our area were all hunting the same two or three bucks that survived from last year-- standing room only! I dunno how the management program is working in other parts of the state, but the deer have been simply pummelled in the part that we hunt, and with everyone now hunting the few "Big" deer that are left it won't be long before there are none, especially when you put parties of 25 guys out after them during rifle season.... So much for the AR's working well or having any impact....


Bottom line to me is that without a decent population of deer, you are not going to be able to grow enough decent bucks to sustain the hunter numbers/interest no matter what stipulations you implement on antler size. Plus you have to worry about "mistake kills" as well....(I saw how THAT works this year too from one of the locals--a quick $25 to the warden and that was it, no loss of license, didn't take the deer, etc! Others just simply "shoot first and ask questions later" and if illegal leave the deer to the coyotes and bears. Locals say this happens alot too. Flat-out poaching has decreased some according to the locals tho, which is a great thing.)

I feel if you cut a herd from 30 deer per square mile down to 10, 5, or even 2 as the PGC and DCNR and insurance companies would like to see everywhere, there will be far fewer sightings of ANY deer--- that includes big deer, small deer, legal deer, illegal deer, ANY deer, and once the few big deer are all killed off, what are you left with?? It doesn't take Mr Wizard or a large smokescreen of Baloney from whomever wants you to believe them to figure this out. I am thoroughly shocked and disappointed in what has happened to the hunting in our region of PA where we have been going for over 2 decades, and I can safely tell you that it will probably be awhile before we go back during deer season.

Good luck to the rest of you guys and gals this season, but beware of any type of significant HR or the smokescreens used to promote it----it takes far longer to build/bring it back that it does to eradicate. Pinwheel 12

RE: wheres' the deer?
 

I live and hunt in in Central Pa and also hunt in North central Pa like Pinwheel 12 and I could not have said it any better what he just said. The deer hunting in pitiful, and the game commission wonders why there are less hunters every year. Just give us a few more seasons and a couple thousand more doe tags that'll solve the problem

RE: wheres' the deer?
 

a few saw it last year, a few more will see it this year.

I use my best friend as a good forecast. He builds houses and employs 4 guys. They in turn work with several subcontractors, drywall, plumbing etc... all from one county. Religious hunters they hunt often. Will work long hours for two days in order to skip out at lunch the third.

Anyways.... I asked him how the beginning of archery has been for him (he hunts a different area than I am) and he said all the guys are reporting an off year. No buck harvested yet, and very few opportunities for doe. Usually by now 2 or 3 at least have a doe in zip locks, no do yet.

My scouting is not showing muc, and my tailcam pics are slow.

I predict more folks will see what tky &pinwheel are experiencing rather than the 'dream season' that Vern Ross predicts.

RE: wheres' the deer?
 

a few saw it last year, a few more will see it this year.

I use my best friend as a good forecast. He builds houses and employs 4 guys. They in turn work with several subcontractors, drywall, plumbing etc... all from one county. Religious hunters they hunt often. Will work long hours for two days in order to skip out at lunch the third.

Anyways.... I asked him how the beginning of archery has been for him (he hunts a different area than I am) and he said all the guys are reporting an off year. No buck harvested yet, and very few opportunities for doe. Usually by now 2 or 3 at least have a doe in zip locks, no do yet.

My scouting is not showing muc, and my tailcam pics are slow.

I predict more folks will see what tky &pinwheel are experiencing rather than the 'dream season' that Vern Ross predicts.

Its all in the numbers.

RE: wheres' the deer?
 

I agree with you guy's. The deer population is way down. I hunt in sullivan county NY bordering PA. The bitter winter of 02 and 03 has all but wiped out the herd in my area. I use to have about 8 doe bed down in my back yard every day. In feb. of 02 I pulled into my drive way and 2 deer walked right up to me. A doe and her yearling buck. The deer were at the brink of starvation. They walked with in 2 feet of me blinded by starvation. I went inside my house and grabed a bag of cheeze douddles and went outside and the deer were eating right out of my hand. 2 min. later they regained there sences and backed away 20 yards. This is just an example of how bad the winter was. I also saw about 100 deer yarding in a field about a half mile down the road. They looked very weak as if they were ready to die. There were so many deer before the 02 winter because of the very mild 5 winters before. There population was above the carrying capasity of the land. One harsh winter and BAM. Can you say WIPE OUT.