Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Pa. flint lock season

Just came in from hunting with the flintlock. I saw 15 deer including 3 bucks. A spike, a really nice 8 and a really heavy 10 point Didn't have a shot. It's sleeting and dumping freezing rain right now. If it quits I may go out again.

Wow. I only got out once and didnt see anything.

This was my first time too.

Dang! I haven't seen a legal buck where I hunt, in 3 years. Saw a doe bedded down at 110 yards last week, and killed her. Don't see many deer, where I hunt. Gotta find a better spot. All nighttime. Gonna go out Monday, after the storm.

you guys kill me gripe about not seeing deer then kill the only doe you see all season

It ends on Monday due to it being a holiday. I'm on call at work today but I might slip out Monday after work.

GFY. Passed up does for 3 years. By the way, we shot the crap out of does in Southern Maryland. 40 a year off the 400 acre farm I hunted. Plenty of deer. Go figure.

Go hunt Maryland then...Oh yes GFY too!!!!!

The mighty sportsman speaketh. Hunted there for 30 years. Missed Pa, because of the great hunting. Mostly deer and grouse. I gotta say, it has changed for the worse. Southern Md, IS better, at this point. No, I can't travel 400 miles to hunt. The point is, that in my opinion, the Pa deer herd has been managed poorly. You can blame it on shooting more does, but my experience in Maryland is that at least there, it hasn't seemed to have a negative impact. You can legally take 30 does, and 2 bucks a year.

No argument from me on the PGC sucking

In 2019 Maryland sold 120,000 Resident hunting licenses. Pa sold 950,000.

Multiple Md hunters by 8 and you will not be allowed to shot 32 Deer per year.



https://wsfrprograms.fws.gov/Subpages/LicenseInfo/Natl%20Hunting%20License%20Report%202019.pdf

That kill the last one mentality, a long time ago resulted in Pa having to transplant Deer from other places.



The GC keeps passing out Doe tags and some keep using them where they have a difficult time finding Deer. And they wonder why....

I would like to know where some of these "deerless" areas are. I hunt a 50/50 mix of private vs public and have no issues finding plenty of deer and areas that hold deer to hunt.

Not saying your wrong just asking where you guys are.

I agree. I always wonder where these dead zones are? Theres a deer splattered every 50 yards on the road all fall in any area of the state I've ever been in.

Pa sgl 109, north of Waterford. I know of 3 deer taken there, this year. 1600 acres.

That is, of course, true, but Maryland can be divided into 3 distinct areas. Western, central, and eastern shore. Central gets a good bit of pressure. Western, not a lot, eastern shore, a fair bit. Most people live in central md. That's also where most deer are. No limit on does in Montgomery County, for instance, just north of DC.

Never said it was the only doe I saw, by the way. There is a fair amount of action at night. If you guys figure 1 doe every 3 years is gonna ruin the Pa deer herd, I guess it's in worse shape than I thought.

I'm assuming there is pheasant and waterfowl hunting on that SGL?

I don't know if it is a dead zone or not, but we hunt bear in Potter county around Austin. Not too many deer there.

LOL. Its one thing to not see em if you have em.

But I'd be thinking if I only saw one in 3 years here I would assume I didn't have many at all and shooting one or even a buck would be the last thing I'd do.

Finally we have about 5 does around our 100 acres and I still don't have enough to reliably harvest one. Afraid the numbers will go down. BUT we are getting close.

I really enjoy reading on how its different seems like everywhere people go.

And yep I read it wrong too... you are seeing does just not bucks.

We used to have that around here too. But they finally put in an antler restriction and its quadrupled our number of deer finally. Its not perfect but its the best thing that ever happened.

FWIW if the does have fawns you gotta have bucks somewhere.

I've found that quite often you can have areas that does prefer and then areas bucks prefer. Not quite sure why but I guess most of the year they are segregated so it does make some sense.

Buddy of mine used to have a camp over there. They bear hunted that area hard up until the early 2000s when he passed away. They did some deer hunting also. Saw good bucks but never high numbers. Seems the bear hunting was better from what I remember of their stories. His dad passed and last living brother lost the place about 10 years ago.

I have one legal buck in the area, he's been an 8 point for the last 2 years. From what I see, he works around the hunters using the area, pretty well. I see him occasionally, but not in season. Could possibly snooker him in bow season, if I only worked on HIM. My wife would not be happy, if I didn't give her first crack at him though! Basically, I have to work within her physical limitations, and it's pretty tough. That said, I haven't heard any shooting, and I've been out a lot. Very little shooting in rifle season, as well. Nobody is seeing much of anything. The antler restrictions have not resulted in more bucks, at least on this property. I talk to the warden a fair amount. He told me the take was pretty poor the last few years. Coyotes moved into the area this year too. Can't help.

Potter was an area that for years they passed out Doe tags like candy and the hunters thought it would never end and kept pounding them. They still hand out the candy and they still take it.... Nothing will change until something changes....

There are some nice Bucks up there, but it is no longer a shooters location. If one is going to hunt Potter and some of the surrounding counties, you best like to hunt....

Lots of deer here, but seeing any at all on huntable ground gets tough after the first few days of rifle season. Pressure sends them into heavy cover where most hunters simply won't venture, and onto private land where they're not pressured. Not sure hunter sightings is a reliable indicator of deer numbers; actually I'm pretty sure it's not.

It's very common for me to see deer on the short drive to my local WMW, then not a hair once I get there. There's plenty of cover around housing areas, highway right-of-ways, and other spaces that can't be hunted. Farmers report a lot of damage, but just try and get permission to hunt their land.

We have a late traditional season here now too, but with the weather you're lucky to get more than one day out of four that's worth the trip. I'll start seeing more deer later this month and in February when the crop waste is gone and browse becomes the food source. Doesn't appear to be much winter wheat this year.

To the GFY crowd...…...…… GFY !!!

Hunted 4 days on our own private property. Saw deer every time out and LOTS of them. Could have killed on every hunt. Last time out I watched 5 bucks dogging 4 does.

Bowhunting and posted land has changed the dynamics of public land hunting in Pa. The young guys are more into bow hunting and many of the older guys are buying crossbows. They all get a long season and get to hunt the main rut in nicer weather. And they kill more than a few of the good Bucks.

Posted land is more is less the norm which adds to the pressure on public. Combine it with an excessive amount of Doe tags and public land hunting has changed.

Rifle season other than the first day and the Saturdays, I seldom run into others until they come out for an evening sit. That being said, I saw over 100 this year. Some obviously more than once. But, I grew tired of the public land downturn and hassle. 10 of us lease 1200 acres.

Thumbs up, well done....

This year on the saturday that doe came in, was the most shooting I have heard in years. The funny thing was, noone I talked to got a doe. lol!

What county?

Great job! Never got a deer that I didn't consider a trophy. I appreciate it when they give themselves to me.

The one in the bottom pic pretty much served herself up........ Shortest flintlock kill I ever did. About 40 yards. The top pic was more typical at around 90 yards.

We're in WMU 2D

Me too. Between rural valley and dayton.

2D myself

Either my own in land on the edge of Tidel, or before you get into Templeton. Cousin also has land on the edge of 422 close to Kittanning.

Dayton at one time was overrun with Deer and was primo for Grouse. Have an acquaintance who lives close to Dayton. He gets his Deer, but says the Amish get more than their share.

We've got ample deer where I'm at.

Grouse are next to extinct.

I live in Barnards, lots of dutch around here. Most of them hunt around keystone lake anymore. They do have a reputation. My amish neighbors are pretty good folk. They don't trespass or steal things.

I agree the public land dynamic has changed. Most guys aren't willing to go where they need to, to get their deer out. Even less know how to pack one out.

Archery kills are up, less guys in the woods during rifle. I also believe that the bear hunters have the deer on public pressured by the time rifle comes in and they are well into hiding.

My butcher also said archery was pretty good. Rifle was about half of last year.

I was only out with the muzzleloader once this season, didn't see a deer. Plenty of tracks but no deer standing in them. I may go out tomorrow for a while but may not, it's crusty as all hell around here. No way to slip through the woods without sounding like a brass band. Deer here just don't move on their own during the day so if I don't move, they won't either.

I did put a buck and a doe in the freezer during rifle season. Saw 20 during the season. But i was out with the spotlight during Octoboer, saw over 60 in the same area I hunt. Plenty of posted ground around, I think they're hanging out there and rarely move during daylight.

Dale

Crazy how a little pressure changes everything. My first season since moving to PA that I hunted archery season pretty hard. Almost every sit I saw 1-2 bucks and were it not for a “hand fed” Bear I’d have tagged out. I was close to the house on public and had hikers around me constantly. Business trip over the rut and came back to rifle season. I saw a herd with 18-20 doe but had to put miles into the Gorge where others won’t go. Out of 5-6 hunts only saw does a few times. Fast forward to Late Season and I’ve put many miles in and even where I saw does during rifle I’ve only caught doe skirting the edge of light 2 times. If I wouldn’t see them all over my neighborhood and didn’t hunt archery I’d say the population is low. Late season I’ve seen 3 deer in the neighborhood the entire time. Just before hunting opened in general it would be nothing to see 4-5 nice bucks in my yard at 10 am and 20+ does in the one field up on the mountain here. I eve have pics of a neighbor hand feeding them apples. The day before archery it was like someone hit a switch and when not hunting I saw almost none in the neighborhood. The monster I had pics of from my yard disappeared. I thought he was long dead by rifle season but I happened to hike down the gorge a few miles and on my hike out around 3 heard a shot at the top of the cliff. My neighbor’s nephew had a female hunter in his group and she got him coming up the cliff. Even with everyone feeding them they have so much mast and browse on the rhododendron buds so little need to come into the neighborhood.

I’m getting over a cold and during my last trip to CT my back and leg started giving me fits. Getting hit by a car leaves a mark and 5 years later I’m reminded of it. I got up to get out but hobbled a bit. I’ll wait for the sun then hike down the gorge and grab one of my stands. If that loosens me up I’ll hunt the evening. There are some monsters here but they aren’t accessible without a lot of sweat. I’ve found rubs that look like an elk did it but it’s 3 hours in and the 1st hour is nearly vertical. I’m the limiting factor in my own success.

I’ve only hunted/lived here 3 years and my experience ranges from premier private land in Target rich NC, a Colleagues GA plantation, and hard hunting private land in the Adirondack/Berkshire area of NY. I hear things where better here in the past. Judging from the number of bucks I see around the house and the 2 I’ve seen that scored over 140” when killed it seems pretty good but where I hunt you’d mostly need a helicopter to safely access from any public parking. You mostly have to live up here to access the public land and across the gorge there’s a pull off with instant access so I suspect that’s where folks hunt. They’d have to walk many miles to even reach the far side of the gorge I can see from our side. I’m in Carbon County.

I headed out about 3:30 this afternoon planning to sit in woods between our farm fields and the posted ground on the other side of the railroad tracks. Plenty of tracks in the fields and it was all tore up under the hemlock I was leaning against so I was hoping something might move early to start feeding. Lo and behold, about a half hour before sunset, I see a doe moving through the woods but she got into some brush and I had no shot. I was busy glassing the woods for her and spotted another deer but it had an antler. Then a 3rd deer but it had both antlers. Both racks were small forkhorns, I couldn't tell if they had brow tines or not. Didn't matter, I had tagged a buck in rifle season so it was does only for me.

Last minute, last day, and 2 of the 3 deer I see are bucks. Go figure.

Dale

PS, I did kill the log I shot to empty the gun but the first try only got a flash in the pan, the gun went off the second try so I may or may not have gotten a deer even if the doe had cooperated.

Been noticing here, now that the snow is on..........deer concentrations are DIRECTLY affected by where the local coyote pack is hanging out.

Coyotes into an area........deer OUT. Coyotes move their action two valleys over.......deer back in.

Same deal here. Didn't have them here when I was young, and in Pa. They are real stinkers.

They started polluting us about 25 years ago. Lousy bastiges !!!!