Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting PA Deer Season To Open On Saturday

The Pennsylvania Game Commission has voted 5-3 to open the statewide firearms deer season on a Saturday. The change is effective this year.

Oh man, this thread will be good for at least 30 pages.

When they first started talking about this, there were some people on here that thought the world was coming to an end. They might get an extra day to hunt, but it made opening day on a Saturday instead of Monday. Personally, I always thought the Monday thing was a little off. We open on Saturday here.

Everyone I know up there loves the idea.

Intended to get more college students out to hunt, since the poor dears will be home that Saturday, but can't be around the following Monday. Maybe help a few more adults that can't get Monday off and kids whose schools no longer close on the first Monday. They are desperate to stem the loss of hunters and think this will help? Despite the fact that more than one poll indicated a clear majority of deer hunters didn't want the change.

Our current board of commissioners have decided old goats that still drive hours to hunting camps are dinosaurs of the past and no longer matter.

Even though we probably still make up a third or more of current deer hunters. One stat I read during the controversy leading up to this decision, is that only about 25 to 30 percent of deer hunters still travel to a hunting camp for rifle deer So this will benefit those who hunt close to home and the afore mentioned groups.

For decades we got camp open on the Friday after Thanksgiving, visited a bit with camp neighbors, went small game or turkey hunting on that Saturday and got prepped for the Monday opener. Out the window now.

Gah

You can still hunt, visit on Monday.

Heard about it right away this morning. Nothing but bitching back and forth since. Small business going to take a hit same as when they changed the bear opener. Guys no longer had to take off on Mon-Wed. Schools and employers no longer need to offer Monday off.

All a push for Sundays. Nothing to do with people and time. Dept of Labor statistics dont lie. Majority of people dont use all their vacation, and the few without vacation is just that, minute compared to the majority.

Personally, I hate it and how itll affect not only tradition, but small business. Not too happy that there will be potentially hung over hunters just over the ridge from partying the night before. With Monday starter they could sleep off Fridays/Saturdays escapades on Sunday. Now theyll be out in full force. Yay.

Ill still do my thing, get my deer after the majority will go home. Am afraid ill lose Monday holiday off and have to burn another vacation day, but oh well.......anything to keep the greedy no priority bastards happy.

Is Sunday hunting still prohibited?

Is Sunday hunting still prohibited?

Machs nichs to me. I don't bother hunting PA until end of first week or the second week anyway. Most of the PA guys I talked to were for it. They screwed up in not including Sundays in the new regulations, IMO.

One thing it will do for us in MD is yank the PA guys out of our woods that first Saturday, hopefully. Historically there's been a large crew of PA guys that swoop down to the Game Lands I hunt to score an extra day of hunting, and all the while blasting anything that moved and actually put on drives right through where others were hunting. (I mean, c'mon. Drives on opening day morning for pete's sake, on public not private land where it's acceptable?!)

I'm disappointed. I've previously stated my position ad nauseam.

It is what it is.

added
It's a bummer, that's what it is.

It's change, for change's sake.

Pretty much it in a nutshell.

This drives me nuts I’m fairly young and disappointed with the way things are going hate to hear arguments that I love to hunt just don’t want to use my vacation to do it. I believe all this is going to back fire on PGC with not getting them any more license sales because that’s what they are digging for I hope that Sunday hunting doesn’t pass when this gives them no change in license numbers

How many College students will head home after classes Fri, to hunt Saturday,then head back Sunday for class Monday? Not many. When my daughter was at university, if she could hunt she did. If it wasn't prudent she didnt. Believe it or not,college came first. Still will I bet. It's 2 to 6 years of your life on average. No body will die missing a deer season of two. Megan usually hunted the first Saturday and a couple days within the two week season. Probably as much as most of the folks that voted to change the opener do.

If this is really about students and folks without vacation,why no Sunday hunting?

We've got to appease the "get to do everything" generation....


This is just the rifle season opener. They should have left well enough alone.

During the "debates" on Sunday Hunting what was one of the biggest arguments? "I dont have vacation and work Saturdays" So the GC gives them Saturdays....the more I think about this schit the more pissed I get. If they wanted another Saturday give us a 3rd week. Reduce the doe allocation to reflect the extra week and BOOM everyones happy again. Again, this has not a damn thing to do with time, and everything with setting up Sundays.

Said it a million times, quit phuggin around with Sundays and put it on the ballot!! Along with disbanding the GC and combining agencies. Its time!

This whole argument never ceases to amuse! same with the sunday hunting arguments. the thought of lobbying to not hunt more is astounding to me.

Denny, im sure as President of PFSC you sat in many meetings. Your opinion, honest question, no BS.....did we, the average hunter ever have a say? Our emails mean nothing?

I'm delighted. If only obviously.