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I would like to get some info from the members her as to their experience on the deer population in different parts of the state. Where I hunt ( about 60 miles north of Pittsburgh ) I always see deer.


What is it like where you hunt???

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4A public ground - rarely.


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2D: Deer are on the upswing and serious hunters on the downswing.


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2E around DuBois, plenty of deer on private ground, some of it is enrolled in the Game Commission access programs.

2C, No problem finding sign on Game Lands 50 near Somerset. I get out and about for work and see deer quite often. A coworker reports lots of deer around his farm, southwest of Somerset.

Lack of hunters compared to the past in both areas.

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1B large track of private land. If hunt all day and don't see 15-20 deer I feel like I haven't hunted hard enough. Lots of deer, less and less hunters but also less and less non posted land.

MM


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I hunted PA for the first time in quite a few years...private land in 3C in far Northeast. My hunting partner is part owner of the property. I saw 12 deer in 6 hunting days.....two very small bucks. My buddy saw far less than he normally does with one miss at doe on first Saturday. We hunted with his SIL in Allegheny County last Tuesday on our way home...he saw three does to my none. Less shooting than in the past from what he said....take this for what it's worth. Bruce

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In 5B the deer numbers are down somewhat but still good.

In 3B the deer numbers are horrible and hunter numbers are down.

I might add that in 5B the hunter numbers are as high as ever and guys are hunting the second week harder than ever.

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Hunted in 2G for 6 days and 2E for a day. Those 6 days in 2G I saw 9 deer all does, one I didn't get a good look at. This was not sitting in tree stand mind you, actually getting out and covering some territory. One day in 2E I saw one tail. Only hunted half heartedly as it was raining and I was getting discouraged.

I will say this though, I have not seen the amount deer sign in 2G like I saw this year. LOTS of buck sign just couldn't dumb on to one. My personal opinion is that the bear hunters are really screwing up the deer hunting.

Forgot to mention that this was all public ground.

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I hunt east of Dubois and saw 7 deer the first day. It's down a bit since QDM started, as they really hammered the does, but the herd is much more balanced. Back in the day, if we didn't see at least 35 deer the first day, it was slow-but you might look at 35 deer and maybe find one spike buck out of all those.


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I live in 4-C. The deer are slowly recovering due to lack of hunters now and the PGC dropped the doe tags down and doe season to one week in 4-C this year. I usually do OK hunting public land, but there are some areas where the doe were beat into the dirt so hard that they probably will not recover in my lifetime. I usually hunt the second week now, but was out the first Saturday. Judging by the amount of shots I heard (Buck and doe open), I doubt there is an overabundance of deer around here.

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Spent the entire two weeks of "gun" season in 3A. Most days saw several deer, some days quite a few. Lack of hunting pressure seems to be the primary reason for fewer deer seen, especially after the first few days of the season.

Deer numbers in "my" area are about where they were in the early 90s. Easily over 20 deer per square mile, but it's a mix of agriculture and woods, which makes for pretty good deer habitat.

Several times this year saw over 20 deer feeding in the same field at dusk and in more than one location. While I only saw a few small bucks when hunting, some real beauts were killed close by.

If folks still put on a few drives like they once did in the area, hunters would see more deer.


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Originally Posted by mitchellmountain
1B large track of private land. If hunt all day and don't see 15-20 deer I feel like I haven't hunted hard enough. Lots of deer, less and less hunters but also less and less non posted land.

MM


For the most part, this is my experience in 1B also.

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Originally Posted by Teeder
Originally Posted by mitchellmountain
1B large track of private land. If hunt all day and don't see 15-20 deer I feel like I haven't hunted hard enough. Lots of deer, less and less hunters but also less and less non posted land.

MM


For the most part, this is my experience in 1B also.


Me three.

Saw 24 on first day with 3 bucks. Passed on a legal 1/2 rack with 4 pts. I mmmmiiiisssssed a dandy on the first Saturday in the rain. It pains me to say that...........

Dad was out last Saturday and only saw 1 deer - which is an anomaly where we hunt.


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Game Lands within Lancaster County are a big disappointment. I never saw a single deer during rifle season. But I archery hunt a small parcel of private land in Lebanon County and typically shoot a big doe there.

A group of us guys from church head north to Mifflin County for the flintlock season. We see several dozen deer each day but good close shots are few and far between.

Sherwood


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Luzerne County 3D deer herd is dismal.

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Hunted strictly northern 2G. Out of 3 hunters we saw 6 deer, I shot a buck, the other 2 saw doe only. Due to health issues, I havent been up much this year. But between family, friends, and locals deer numbers in our area are down by half or so. Not many fawns seen throughout the year.

In 3 days before the rifle season I put a lot of miles on the Firestones and all my normal areas had plenty of feed. Saw plenty of rubs/scrapes. Talked to local bear hunters and most said they never saw a deer during their drives. That kinda contradicts my sightings of deer sign, but these fella's never lied before.

My personal opinion of my area....I cant say the population is off much from the last 3 years. Its low, but I dont think its lower this year. The lack of fawns throughout this year has me worried a bit though.

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Originally Posted by battue
2D: Deer are on the upswing and serious hunters on the downswing.
+1

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I hunt 2f, all public land, in the corner of jefferson & elk counties. I hunted 1st day & the 2nd day. For the first time in my life, I saw no deer...not even a tail. The weather was not great, with fronts rolling through - wind, rain, then sleet, then snow, then rain again.

I don't think those two days are at all representative of the deer population in this area. There is so much sign and droppings, it's unreal. I spent a good bit of time in the woods in summer & fall and saw deer every single time I was out. My sense is that bad weather & low hunter turn-out led to the low sightings...and


...here's my rant.

There are a lot of hunting camps where I hunt. From Saturday sun-up through Sunday sun-down, there are guys shooting guns like crazy. Clearly some sighting in & others just spending lead. On top of this there are lots of guys who ignore the no-vehicle law and take ATVs and gators into the woods to avoid walking in themselves. As I listened to the shooting all day Sunday and heard multiple ATVs rolling around Sunday & Monday I realized it's no wonder I didn't see any deer!

I cannot wait for flintlock season. The older I get, the less I enjoy the 1st day hunt based on all the distractions and their effect on my hunt.

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2D. Private land. I see enough deer most years. Hunters are getting fewer. The young people in the area have other things they'd rather do I guess.

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I hunted in 3A the first day and a half and didn't see a deer. Lots of sign but not much activity. I had two guys decided to put there their stands close to mine this year for some reason and I don't think that helped matters. I think one of them was chain smoker and I could smell him every time the wind shifted my way. I'll probably go out with my flintlock after Christmas in 4D.

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