Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Pennsylvania homecoming

Thanksgiving morning at about 4 a.m. I'll be heading out for deer camp in Pennsylvania. We go to Indiana and pick up my son. Friday morning we head down to Youngstown, Ohio and stay with my brother overnight. Saturday morning begins the pilgrimmage to Clearfield County, Pa. for the absolute best deer opener there ever will be. Bright and early Monday morning the Pumpkin Army will ascend the mountains of Penns' Woods once again. Shots will ring out, memories will be made. To all the Pa. boys, it's gonna be good to back home on the hill. 'Can't wait be there. Good Lord willing, I'll be there when my boy fills his first tag this year, with Dad's old 99.

Good luck to everyone, and we'll see you soon. Have an Iron City Light ready and waiting. I'm really thirsty, boys!

I'm gonna miss another PA season.

Where at in Clearfield County?

The folks in Pa. Sure have a great whitetail hunting tradition. Good luck on your hunt!

Boone Mountain between Beers Road and the Boy Scout Camp. The camp's been in our family for all most 70 years now. Sadly, all the original members are gone. None of the other guys had kids that showed any interest in it, so the camp came down to me and my brother. My brother's days afield are probably done. Knee surgery and other ailments have taken their toll. We're struggling just to hang on to the camp right now. Keep your eyes posted guys-it may be for sale next spring.

We're struggling just to hang on to the camp right now. Keep your eyes posted guys-it may be for sale next spring.

+1, didnt think it would ever happen that I would not be home in PA for deer season again but it has been too many years since I roamed the mountains of Potter county!

I am hunting Texas Dc 4 to 8 but it sure isnt like being home ...

Our guys started hunting together right after WWII, in 1946. Dad, and one of the others had all ready hunted Clearfield County before the war. Originally they stayed with a local woman who took in hunters for the season. The lot for the camp was purchased for $50.00 in 1949. At the time, there was a 200 acre working dairy farm for sale in the area for $500.00. No one had any money, so our little piece of heaven was all they could afford. There were 5 original members, all veterans of WWII. They all served overseas, in both the Asian and European theaters. The camp was built out of hand me downs and anything the guys could scrounge for free. It started out as a simple one room cabin. Over the years, a kitchen was added and then expanded, and a dining room eventually went in. Back in the heydays of Pa. deer hunting, we'd have 10 to 14 guys in camp. Harvests were good. The camp accounted for many deer, bears, turkeys, and lots of small game and trout during the summer. My first deer season was in about 1975. It took me ten years to notch a tag. If my grades weren't good, Dad didn't let me go to camp, which meant I had to hunt back home in Ohio with a full choked 870 and slugs. At the age of 21, on the 2nd Tuesday of the Pa gun season, a spike buck simply appeared in front of me from out of nowhere, and I took my first deer. Sadly, this would be Dad's last hunt. He passed away the following spring. He was the last surviving member of the original crew, the Olde Guard, as we like to call them. Now, it's down to me and my brother. My son will hunt with us this fall. Ironically, he's been hunting for 10 years and hasn't filled a tag yet. We hope this will be his time to shine. He will be carrying a very special gun. Dad's beloved old 99, chambered for 300 Savage, and topped with the iconic K-4 Weaver. I can only wonder how many millions of deer have found themselves in the crosshairs of a K-4 topped Savage.

Here's to all the camps that will be coming to life here shortly. May the hunting be good, and memories even better. Good luck guys.

Wish you nothing but the best of hunts.

Iron City aka "Red Dot"? Boys that stuff will ruin your taste buds. Pick up some Yengling, try Black and Tan, and move up more than a little while still keeping it Pa true.

I can't believe that with all the folks always looking for a place to hunt, and your camp is down to just a couple folks. Do you want to keep it going? Have you thought about putting an ad on Craig's list?

For crying out loud. That's all you PA boys think about is beer. My dad, who is full blooded Hungarian, is the same damn way. I always thought it was because of his heritage or maybe because that's all they drank in the Navy, but now I know it's because he's from PA. Happy hunting to all you PA guys....:

Will be roaming around the old familiar hills of Armstrong Co. Just talked with family up there and the they have gotten 2 inches of snow so far today.

Good luck and a safe season to all.

Up 66 out of Kittanning for maybe 5 miles, then turn left onto Ridge road. Run it for 3-4 miles and hunt the country that looks down on the Mahoning. You would almost be in Templeton.

Then perhaps further North around Tidal, which is where I'm originally from.

How about that thumbcocker. I'll be between Georgeville and Smicksburg. That old creek hill is rough,but it's been my stomping ground for like 34 years now. You know any of the Wells family?

It is. The creek hill has been timbered at least twice in the last 20 or 25 years. BIG rocks and steep. Not too much human intervention anymore. Everyone is holed up in hunting blinds. If there isn't a natural reason for deer movement it can be pretty slim pickings. The Amish kill deer for sure. On the up side,they hunt like beagles. Stir them up pretty good sometimes.

I married into the Wells clan. Been hanging out in that country since 79. Before the timbering started,that was some beautiful real estate. You could still hunt it then. Now it's brier and devils club.
Good Luck!

Dayton also has a fine riflesmith.

You went all the way to PA and hunted one day?

The goal was to break-in the Montana .300Savage on a Buck, but since this field had the opportunity for something long I used a Nula 7mm-08.

You went all the way to PA and hunted one day?

GG-


Waxing eloquently in the months preceeding this and the MN hunt - only to put in one day each has earned you the new nickname "One-Day-GG".

Congratulations.

Stretched it out a little for me at 358. Leupold 6x42 with a CDS dial. A little too high shoulder. She dropped, but had to walk up and end it.

She was a big Doe.

Sorry I didn't meet up to your expectations that I spend every waking moment in the woods. I get in as much time as I can, and this was a FAMILY trip back to where I'm originally from. I see this doesn't measure up to your expectations, but I had to do frivilous things like go to the cemetary and put flowers on my mother and father's grave, visit with my dying cousin, meet up with my buddy who's house burned down last year-you know-lots of nonsensical non-hunting stuff. I'll be sure to go over my itinerary with you when I do my next trip home. By the way-this was the first time I'd been home in about 5 years and had a LOT of catching up to do.
Believe it or not, sometimes there's more to the trip than sitting in the woods for 6 days straight.