Anyone hunt PA this year?

[Star1pup]

I was around Kane on the first day and saw nothing, not even a doe. I've heard a couple other guys with the same story. Anyone else go to PA and have such poor luck?

[ron]

I live in P.A. I know where Kane is. I am about 50 miles south of there. The deer herd is way down around here. Too many tags and liberal seasons have devastaded the deer population. I hope
Ohio isnt following the same trend with the extra tags and seasons. It is hard to kill a doe in this area not many left. Some nicer bucks being shot but I am not seeing any young bucks, so where is the future. Lots of button bucks killed for does.

[geezer]

Hey Ron - i heard that the number of pa residents hunting liscense sold this year is way down. Do you have and information on this?

take care
geezer

[OHBOW76]

I am originally form NE PA an dmy father still ives there. He shot a nice eight point witht he bow, but hunted it every day for 30 days excluding sundays. He hunted way back in on public land. He hunted bear season hard and passed up a bear that proabbly went 100 lbs. I only go back to hunt turkey in the spring and predators in the winter around the holidays. The deer herd is way down from all reports I ahve heard. Thats what happens when the PA gamen commision over-inflated the actual numbers of the deer herd so they could sell more liscences. Its pretty sad, the deer herd is really hurtng there, if you exclude the urban areas around philly and pittsburgh. One big problem is my father ran into guys on the game lands complaingin of the lack of deer, and these are the same guys buying multiple tags and shooting every deer they see, they never learn. PA needs to be subdivided by county, instead of the WMA'S they have. Soem of the northern tier counties need to go back to a 2 week buck only season and three day doe season, or one deer a year, while other counties can go two, the only counties that should be more than two are the urban areas, crop damage areas. If PA has a bead winter the herd will be hurting. The sportsman of PA need to oust that damm game commsiion and fish commission and have one department of fish and wildlife. Right now there are too many appointed buffons running the departments that have no clue about wildlife. In a recent interview a lady that resides on the game commission board didn't even know we had bobcats in PA, and she is responsible for game amanagemtn, gimme a break.

[Star1pup]

I have talked with several hunters who hunted PA this year and have heard nothing good. From the replies on this thread that might just be the case. If they take a lot of deer this year I think it will be closer to me in counties like Beaver. I think the woodland herd up north is in trouble.

I also heard license sales were down this year and I know that 2 groups of Ohio hunters who camp near us did not show up.

I hope we don't over kill here in Ohio. I think the 3 deer limit here in Columbiana County is too many.

[brian]

I hunted Potter Co. the first 2 days of gun, five guys in camp, no bucks. The herd is down but not as bad as other areas from what I hear. All of us saw quite a few deer and non-legal bucks. A friend hunts with 10 guys or so by State College, no bucks, another guy in Halton(between Ridgeway and Marienville) has 13 guys in camp, they did not see a SINGLE buck in two days of hunting. I hunted Sat. in Sharpsville(Mercer Co) and saw 2 sub-legal bucks (4 point to a side there). I agree with what they did re: antler restrictions, I think they gave way too many doe tags and although they tried to educate people about not shooting button bucks, from what I saw, it did not work. Everyone knows the button bucks are the first to go, and they got slaughtered. Antler restriction is great, but why do you need to kill every deer in the woods? There seems to be a backlash toward the PGC boiling under the surface, I think something is gonna change, there is a lot of frustration out there. I'm not into conspiracy theories but I think antler restrictions were implemented in good faith to improve the herd BUT it was quite convenient that it just happened to make the insurance and logging/paper companies VERY VERY happy to see the herd decimated.

[Duffy]

I've hunted private land in Erie and Crawford counties in years past, but not recently. I have heard reports of "less than satisfactory" activity lately.

As a native of NW PA, I have come to find that the deer hunting is not as good as it used to be when I was younger. Call it what you will.

[Buckmaster]

Reports from all my PA contacts. The consensus is that deer sightings are way down and frustration is beginning to set in. I believe you'll see two things next year. PA adjusting some rules and more PA hunters hunting Ohio next year.

[ron]

Geezer...I dont have any numbers for you but I can say
there was alot of empty camps up this way during gun season.
I agree alot more hunters going to Ohio and with a 3 deer limit
not good news for Ohio. Alot of tag fillers running around in P.A.

[Jeff Goebel]

I've hunted Lycoming Co. every year for the past 16 years. What they did to the deer herd in that area is a crime. Talk about complete mismanagement... Way to many doe tags! I am all for antler restrictions, but this was nuts. I hunted 3 days of flintlock last Dec. and saw one doe. I hunt a 3000 acre private club that borders state game lands. Gary Alt's vision of a great PA deer herd was a good idea gone bad. Although I no longer rifle hunt, I know that the club I hunt killed only 3 bucks this year. They used to kill 20. I'm headed back in two weeks for m/l, but I have a feeling that it will be more of a social event than a deer hunt. :( S.E. Ohio seems to be on it's way too. Most counties here down 20-25 percent from last year.

[geezer]

Hey Jeff - i think you may be right about SE Ohio - we may be seeing deer hunting in Ohio at its best right now - hope the powers that be manage it correctly - still a lot of problems trying to get the urban areas under control - but hope they are careful with the rest of the state - part of this years numbers may be due to the warm weather we had in early bow season - i know some guys didn't hunt early on.

take care
geezer

[zoar]

We hunted some game lands in Clarion county and did fairly well concidering it was the second week. I saw lots of deer but few horns. We filled 4 doe tags by the end of the week.

[Zeke]

I'm from PA and have hunted it for 25 years. The numbers are way down from 5 years ago, but some seem to be under the mistaken impression that this was an unforseen event by the PGC. It's exactly what they told us they wanted to do. Because it's a big state with various habitats, it's hard to make blanket statements about the entire state, but in many of the heavily forested Northern tier mountain states, you no longer see herds of 50-60 doe and spike deer running around together on opening day of gun season. If that's what you expect to see when you're hunting the big woods, then yes, it's bad out there. For those, like me, who grew up going to deer camp in the Big Woods, it's sad to go an entire day without seeing more than a tail. But it was also sad back in the "good 'ol days" to go years without seeing anything bigger than a forkhorn, or an oak tree younger than 50 years old. Deer were clearly impacting their environment.

Back around my old home, a more agricultural, privately owned area, there are still fewer deer seen while hunting, but nothing like the Big Woods. There are still healthy numbers of deer, far more than where I have lived/hunted in NY, NH, or ME, and I would guess roughly comparable to that found where I hunt here in OH.

Whether it's a good or a bad thing that it's been done, it was no accident. It was felt that the incredible deer densities found in PA were detrimental to the habitat and preventing forest regeneration, causing drastic agricultural damage, and potential mass die-offs in severe winters. I don't see any comparable overpopulation threat anywhere here in OH, and I don't believe the DNR is managing for herd reduction, so I would not be overly concerned about PA's changes happening here anytime soon.

[Star1pup]

Zeke makes some good points, but I think I'll just hunt Ohio next year. Why pay $101 just to sit in the woods all day? At least when I see a non-legal deer it gets my heart pumping because I hope the next one will be legal.

[OHBOW76]

Some good points by all. I am all for antler restrictions, but I think the whole QDM idea that was sold to hunters by Gary Alt was to sell everyone on the idea of slaughtering the deer herd. Of those that did see plenty of deer in PA was it on public or private land. I disagree with Zeke however on something. I agree that overbrowsing is not good, and I dont want to see herds of 20-30 does at a time moving through the woods. But as much time as my father and I have spent combined the last few years in the woods of PA, you would expect more than 2-3 deer sighted per week. Hell I have seen more deer than that in a week in Northern Aroostook county ME, where deer herds are 2-5 per sq. mile. I dont buy into the whole overbrowsing and destrsution of the forest being blamed on the deer. Someone else mentioned on here about the timber and insurance industries. I agree there is too much influence form those groups that hold an interest in making money off our forests. For instance SGL 57, which covers Wyoming, Luzerne, and Sullivan counties in NE PA, has had a few areas high fenced off to prevent deer form getting in there. These have been up for at least 5 yrs maybe a few more. There is still no vegetation growing on the forest floor, now you cant blame the deer so whats the problem. I think what PA needs in soem of these old forests are a good burn, or at the least aagressive timbering. Pa has a 100 year timbering cycle. They agressively timber every 100 years. It way too long. Think about the glory days of deer huntign in PA. They occurred a few years after massive timbering. Deer are an animal of the edge, the need new growth, and regeneration as they are browsers. Now soem big oaks are good, but many of the big trees on the game lands are way to mature, are non nut or fruit bearing, and create such a thick canopy that sunlight cant reach the forest floor. Its not the deer its the acidic soil from the acid rain that was produced in the Ohio River valley, and forests that are too dense and need to be thinned out. Some of the hunters in PA need to wake up as well as stop worrying about filling every single tag they can get their hands on. I would hate to see some of these PA guys come to Ohio and bring that mentallity here. Remember its the PA game Commssions mission statement to manage habitat and wildlife, and they need to manage the gamelands for game. Sportdsmans dollars bought the land afterall.

[ron]

Zeke....I lived thru the 50 to 60 doe and spike years and I dont hunt Ohio to shoot spikes. I agree with antler restrictions also and sure the herd needed reduced. What happened is beyond that. Know of any other states with a 3 week RIFLE season on there doe herd?? Thats ridiculous. I consider inlines single shot
rifles, because thats what they are, once outfitted with a scope.
They are managing trees up here in the north not deer.

[OHBOW76]

The game commissions favorite saying...."show me the money"!
My cousin is a fish commission officer in PA, and he even shakes his head in disbelief but than he isn't what I would call a corporate man. I just found our form him this year that there was a big push to stock more brown trout, as they tolerate water temp better and are harder to catch after being in the stream a couple days. The commission said no becuase the brook trout is the state fish thats what they should be stocking. Sorry I got off topic, but Ronis right they aren't managing wildlife, they are managing trees. Sportsmans liscence dollars are supporting one giant tree farm, the state of PA. I could go on and on, but I jsut hope that the game commission doesnt ruin the turkey hunting next.

[Zeke]

...I don't want to be misunderstood as a %100 pro-party line or whatever. I just see some of the logical arguments on this topic getting extrapolated into areas that don't make sense to me. Such as the fish example above. I really hope I don't offend you, sir, I just want to point out that the Game Comission and the Fish & Boat Comission are entirely seperate entities, and don't really reflect on each other. I've talked to a lot of OH hunters in the field who thought the precipitous decline in deer numbers were an accidental side effect of the antler restrictions, or some such idea. I just wanted to point out what was being seen, what conclusions were drawn, and what results were being expected by the PGC. Whether these are accurate, good, bad, otherwise, I can see arguments on many fronts. I am also disheartened by the lack of deer sightings in areas I am tied to by tradition, despite the hard hunting I put in. But I also want to see other elements of the environment thriving besides the deer. Do I think the PGC is doing everything the right way? Well, you might as well ask if I think ANY gov't agency is doing things right. Which may be the point of the post about the Fish Comission.

Acid rain/soils is an acknowledged impact on regeneration, probably more significant in the NE corner of the state, where I am not familiar with the woods, only what I hear and read. In my section of familiarity, the deer fences are (were?) significantly different from the surrounding area, showing just how much the previous densities of deer were impacting the flora in that area .

Call it devil's advocate, or whatever, I just wanted to see the debate focused on the appropriate facts at hand,before it degenerates into a world of tangents, false rumors, and bad blood among like-minded hunters, as it already has on another message board. Take my humble opinions for what they're worth (about 2 cents).

[Frank in the Laurel]

Why anyone of you guys would ever spend a single day in this land of false promises and the complete scorched earth policies is beyond me..believe me stay home and make sure that YOUR DCNR does not put into effect anything that changes a single thing...YOU guys have the right idea...PROTECT IT WITH YOUR LIFE!!! YOU KNOW NOT WHAT YOU HAVE TIL' IT'S LOST !!!!

[OHBOW76]

Zeke you didn't offend me but no kidding the game and fish commission are seperate organizations in PA. I am from there, lived their since I was born and moved to Ohio in 1998 as I was in the military. I know they are seperate, just trying to dmeonstrate how both organizations have the same type of knuckleheads running them and making policies. If you read what I wrote I said sorry to get off the subject.The problem is they need to combine the two and hold them accountable. Problem is the commisssions leadership is appointed by politicinas so they give there buddies who have no experience or clue the important positions. Sorry frank in the laurel, I am not sure what your position is on this, I dont quite understand if you are being sarcastic, or these are your true feelings.

[OHBOW76]

By the way Zeke, the fenced in areas I talk are not rumors, if you want directions I will tell you how to get there. I am not sure of your pint in regards to what I said about them, but I was trying to prove a point in regards to those fences. They have been up for 5 plus years, with no deer getting in there, and nothing has changed, so how is overbrowsing to blame. I think it disproves the game commissions theory thats why the results aren't publicized.I to am all for habitat that benefits all species, but I have even seen a major decline in gray squirrels on the game lands in the NE part of the state. Also Zeke, I take what most other sportsman tell me as more fact than the propaganda that the game commission distributes. If you think all that is fact than you need to rethink your whole stance. I woudl not believe the estimated deer herd numbers that the game comission puts out, and I wouldn't even believe the harvest reports, as PA does not make you check your deer in. You send in a report card, which many guys dont. Its very inaccurate. Unfortunately the demise of PA's deer herd and huntign in general will be due to the guys that take everything the game comission says at face value, without doing there own independent homeowork. I would also not recomend dismissing what other sportsman say as rumor, or not factual. Mnay hunters in PA spend 20 thimes the amount of time the PA game comission guys do in the woods. In fact My father and I went to report a bait pile on SGL 57 to the Game comission office regional headquarters in luzerne county, and the officer in there didnt even know where lake jean was. Its a big lake right next to a paved road that you have to drive by to get to those game lands, how can you be in chrge of a district for 6 years and not even be somewht familiar with that area. What it tells me is that the guy wa snever even up there. Hunters in PA need to worry, need to start questioning everyhting, and need to unite or they are going to be sorry.

[OHBOW76]

By the way the decline in the antlerless deer herd isn't a "side effect" of antler restriction like you seem to think. It 's called deer gemocide, a three week gun season on antlerless does and buttonbucks, plus mutiple tags, plus a month long muzzeloader season, and bad winters and low deer densities in the northern tier of the state is what equals low deer numbers. A "side effect" is a headache, or upset stomach not a mass killing off of a species.

[Zeke]

I wasn't disagreeing at all with the examples you pointed out. I know from talking to others in that corner of the state that there is something else inhibiting regeneration besides the deer. In my section, we don't seem to experience the same problem (my money is on acid rain effects, but I don't know) That's what I was trying to say about making one statement that applies to the whole state...it usually can't be done. Deer are way down in one area I hunt, not in another.

I too would like to see smaller management units. And I would agree a better estimation of population is needed, but at least in the past, check stations would not have been practical with the sheer volume of harvest. Perhaps when harvest numbers fall off in coming years, it's a possiblility?

I don't believe that the decline is a side effect, some others I've talked to out of state have been led to believe this, and I wanted to point out that's not the case, but rather a targeted outcome which has been acheived.

I also agree that any political appointee is inherently inferior to a qualified and educated person of that field. I realize now that was your point, but I misinterpreted it to mean that a bad decision in the Fish Com. was somehow a part of the same deer management plan (which someone else has actually stated before on another site) My apologies for that. I regretted using your statement as my example after I posted that.

Truth be told, I agree with most of what you've said, and I have not once made any sarcastic remarks. If I have any issues in this debate, they lie with others who make up their own facts and take an informed debate into the realm of fanciful lies and name calling. I don't believe you are one of those, OHBOW76.

[Buckslayer1]

I bagged a doe and a small 8 point with the bow. I hunted in Crawford Co. PA. I bagged my buck on the 19 day I bow hunted PA. It was the only legal buck I seen all season. Seen very few deer and I hunted on 4 private farms. It only takes me 50 minutes from my house to my deer stands in PA.

[Lance]

I think the reason for some of the fenced in areas isn't so much to try to enhance ground cover and limit deer browse as to protect the young cherry trees. I know of a couple spots in the ANF that are fenced like that and it's done to protect the young cherry trees from antler rubs and other damage.

PA DNR groups definetly do some odd things in their management practices and seem to be more about the short term $buck$ than managing for longterm success. Especially when it comes habitat managment.

[Pike]

Star, Back In oct. PA. hunting lic. sales were down 12%, I just read another article the other day that said that PA. lic. sales were down 70,000 lic. sold. This includes myself, For the 1st. time i did not buy a PA. lic this year and spent every day hunting OH. some of my friends did the same, some others spent more time in OH. than in PA. and are saying they will only hunt OH. next year.
I dont think 70,000 PA. hunter's quit the sport, they just started hunting another state, and from everyone I talked to our lic. sales will decrease by atleast another 70,000 in 2006. Thank god for OH.
Out of the 31 other PA. hunter's I hunt with In OH. we harvested 15 buck's that were atleast 2.5 year old 8-pt's and hit or missed 4 others and 26 doe's, in PA. we harvested 1, 2.5 year old 9-pt and no doe's. Some of us are heading back out for inline season. Here is a pic of the buck I harvested on the 1st day of gun season. Pike
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v294/jeffpike/2005OH.jpg

[Star1pup]

We have some big ones over here. I just hope the DOW cuts down on how many we can take. I can take 3 in my county and a couple counties allow 4. IMO that's too many.

[ron]

Star1pup.....have to agree there. With the liberal doe tags and influx of hunters Ohio is heading in the same direction as P.A. Killing 15... 2.5 year old 8 points does not help for the future of the big ones either. I wonder of the 26 DOES how many were button bucks. Forty one deer, not to be a smart a__, but sounds like typical P.A. hunters. Thats beyond ridiculas.

[Pike]

ron, First off, I posted 15 bucks that were ATLEAST 2.5 year old 8-pt.'s, of those 15 buck's, 8 of them were 3.5 years of age or older including my 8-pt, the biggest being a 160 inch 13 pt. and wether you believe me or not many of us wouldnt even consider shooting a 2.5 year old buck.
Also we did not harvest any button buck's this year, but last year we did harvest 1 out of the 22 doe's we took last year. PA. hunter's are no worse or better than OH. hunter's and I knew that prior to ever hunting OH. because of the many OH. hunter's that have been hunting in PA. for decades.
I think the ODNR. does a great job!! Last year OH. had the best deer harvest ever and so far this year the harvest is only down by what? 5,700 deer? And I guarentee you that the very warm temps on the 1st day of gun season this year had alot to do with the slighty reduced harvest compared to almost a perfect 1st. day in 2004. If the 2004 record harvest decreased your over winter deer herd by any noticeable amount there is no way you would have such a great 2005 season up to this point. Pike

[OHBOW76]

Lance, trust me, the fencing had nothing to do with protecting young cherry trees. The guys who were erecting the fence were asked by my father what it was for and they told him that at the time the Game comission was fencing off small 2-5 acre plots and collecting data on effects of browsing.

Pike, no offense but 41 deer is a bit much. Can guys from PA not go out of state and practice any kind of trigger restraint. I ran into guys form PA on guided hunts in Northern Maine where there are low deer densities ( 2-5) per square mile, and they drive all the way up there and shoot spikes. I'm sorry but growing up and hunting in PA and then hunting many other states while in the military, there is something about PA hunters having to fill every tag they can get their hands on.

The ODNR needs to cut back the number of deer that can be taken by an individual because there liscence sales will offset it with all the non-resident liscences being bought.

[Hot Dog]

i got envited to hunt by my wifes friends husband but i had to work i got a good job doen what i like and thats cutten meat at the local processor it dont pay reel good but it aint bad either if i went hunten with bob then i might loose my job cause i need to work for 6 monts before i get any vacaten days

[Jeff Goebel]

I hunted flintlock in Lycoming Co. near Hillsgrove and the Sully Co. line over New Years. This was my 17 straight year to hunt PA. I have never seen such a balanced deer herd. Zero bucks-Zero does! And I was hunting 2000 acres of private land! (bordered by state game lands on 2 sides) I actually did see a doe and 2 fawns on the last day driving off the mountain. If this were not a family and friends event at our camp, I would never hunt PA for deer again until the herd in the Northern tier is somewhat restored. With what I've seen in PA the last three years, we can expect our NR tags here in OH to skyrocket! Along with leasing, crowded public lands...etc :mad: Oh yea, I only saw 6 roadkills on 80 between Youngstown and I-180. I used to see a hundred :confused:

[jci36]

I wa wondering how there restricted buck hunting was going. Sounds like a big mess!

[OHBOW76]

The restricted buck hunting has nothing to do with the problem. It was the greedy Game Commission over inflating the deer herd numbers and than justifying the over issue of antlerless liscences which led to a over harvest of antlerless deer. It was justified by the propaganda of overbrowsing, and QDM. QDM is a good thing but they sold what they were doing to sportsman as QDM but waht it was really was an all out slaughter for two reasons, license sales and revenue, and to appease the timber/insurance industries/companies.

Goebel I love the balanced deer herd comment 0 does and 0 bucks. Lol!!! I traveled on I-80 from OH to NE PA early fall and christmas this year and didn't see one roadkill in PA. In fact I saw a roadkill bear in the early fall but no deer. My father who is retired and hunts about everyday, saw more bear than deer this year.

[Jeff Goebel]

OHBOW, I agree. I was all for PA's AR and HR. But they went way too far!!!!

[Pike]

OH. bow said"""Pike, no offense but 41 deer is a bit much. Can guys from PA not go out of state and practice any kind of trigger restraint. I ran into guys form PA on guided hunts in Northern Maine where there are low deer densities ( 2-5) per square mile, and they drive all the way up there and shoot spikes. I'm sorry but growing up and hunting in PA and then hunting many other states while in the military, there is something about PA hunters having to fill every tag they can get their hands on.
none taken, but unfortunately I was mistaken to find out when I started hunting in OH. that OH. hunters are NO different when it comes to shooting small bucks then PA. hunter's.
There is also no difference between us when it comes to hunter's wanting to shoot every deer they see as you claim.
Just look at buck slayer he shot a small 8-pt ( not that Im putting him down or anyone else that harvested a deer legally) and also a doe in an area that he admits has few deer, not one of our group harvested more than 2 deer (the same amount buckslayer did in PA.) I am also willing to bet that buckslayer's buck is smaller than any buck we have taken in the 4 years we have hunted in OH.
If you look at the thread that asked if anyone would shoot a buck they were after all season after it shed its antlers, I can honestly say I have never hunter with a hunter from PA. that would answer" YES" to that question, infact I was shocked to see how many hunter's on this site from OH. would.
You can also look at your 2004 season, OH. hunter's harvested 217,300 deer out of an estimated 400,000 deer hunter's, That is a 50% success rate which here in PA. we have never acheived.
Now since we both know in OH. just like in PA. many hunter's go without harvesting a deer each year, which means OH. has alot of hunter's that will try to fill every tag they get their hands on.
I wish it was different in OH. but it is not, 4 years of hanging out at the local check station's and hanging around my friends from OH. and their families shows me it there is no difference between hunter's from PA. and OH., infact the only difference I see between the two is that hunter's from OH. have always been more willing to shoot doe's over the years and have always considered a doe to be a trophy some even consider a doe to be as much of a trophy as a buck, and until recently many hunter's from PA. wouldnt lower themselves to shoot a doe, this misguided view has changed for many of us over the years but there is still alot of us that would never and will never even consider it even though it is vital to have a healthy herd and habitat. Pike

[Buckslayer1]

Pike -- and OHbow76 -- Yes I did shoot a small 8 point in Pa. this year. I have bagged my Pa. buck the last 18 straight years and 20 out of the last 21 years. If its a legal buck he"s down. I also bagged a real nice 8 point in Ohio this year with my bow. The only reason I bagged a nice one was because he was the first buck to come near me. By the way I bagged a spike and a 4 point in West Virginia this fall to. This gives me a total of 102 bucks with all there racks on my den walls. I'am proud of them all.

[Pike]

Buckslayer, Sorry if you took my post the wrong way, I was not trying to put put you down in anyway, just poinitng out to OHBow that there isnt much difference between PA. & OH. hunters, OHBow and ron that commented on how many deer we harvested in OH. etc. and how PA. hunters shoot everything that moved, I just used you as an example of how there is isnt any difference, because none of us harvested more than 2 deer a peice in OH. just like you did in PA. and that just as many hunter's from OH. are content harvesting the 1st legal buck that steps into range. ( I would never judge or put down another hunter for shooting what they consider a trophy etc. because who am I to tell you or anyone else how they should enjoy our sport) I have also read numerous other's post on this site about being tagged out for the year or harvesting numerous deer but I guess OHBOW and ron who commented didnt see their post's, unless they just had a problem with us being non residents etc. Congrads on a great year in multiple states. Pike

[Buckslayer1]

Pike-- No offense taken. I hope you keep hunting Ohio. I hunt Crawford Co. PA. Only 45 minutes from my house.

[GobblinChimp]

I am not sure I see the problem some people see in Pike. 41 deer between 31 or 32 hunters does not seem that high to me. If they went nuts in a 3 deer zone, they could have taken 93 deer. They held out for mature bucks and took no button bucks while managing to take 20+ does. Additionally, they put $4619.00 into the DNR by being non-residents versus $1333.00 residents would have paid. I am sure they ate at some local restaurants, fueled up at local gas stations, and maybe stayed in local motels. I am not sure I see the bad side here. If suddenly 1 million former PA hunters show up on Ohio's opening day and a drop in deer harvest is noted, I think it would be wise to start talking about limiting NR licences issued. Until then, start depositing a percentage of the NR funds in an account earmarked to purchase more public hunting land. Let the NR fees improve hunting for all Ohio.