PA Deer Hunting

[BizCT]

Anybody hunt Penn. for Deer? more specifically the Moshannon State Forest (Unit 2G)? Thinking about giving it a shot late october/early November for Whitetail. Its about 5 hours from me, here in NY.

[BizCT]

BUMP.

[Pygmy]

Forget trying to get an antlerless permit in 2G if you are a non-resident..The residents buy them up the first couple of days and by the time NRs can apply they are gone..

I'm not familiar with Moshannon Forest, but I have hunted 2G quite a bit, in south central Potter Co. and northern Clinton and Lycoming...Deer populations are depressed there...Since the  ARs took effect a few years ago, there there are some real nice bucks taken each season, but  it's not an area where you'll see a lot of deer on public land, unless you spend lots of time there preseason and scout out some honey holes.. Lots and lots of public land to hunt, mostly mature forest....Look for deer in the thickest laurel and the hemlock cover you can find..Lots of open woods there where deer are few and far between...

[BizCT]

Thanks for the info.

I am not interested in an anterless tag.

Looking to hunt in Clearfield County in 2G (Penfield area)...I am hearing reports of hunters seeing many bucks in a week's worth of hunting there, over food plots, etc.

[Pygmy]

I'm not familiar with the specific area..

HOWEVER...When I started hunting down in 2G in the early 80s, there were TONS of deer, and all of the hunting camps would have bucks hung opening day... It was not unusual to see 50 deer in the woods on opening day.. However, the great majority of the bucks were " Potter County Trophies"  ... Spikes and crotchhorns... If you saw a 12" 8 point, it was a DANDY....

Nowadays you don't see many deer hanging, but you'll always see a few 18" to 20 " bucks...

Food plots..??  Sounds like some private land action to me... I hunted a parcel of private land near Germania in Potter Co. the last few times I hunted down there...Defintely more deer than the public land I hunted in that area..

Good luck...

[BizCT]

Thanks....Im going 10/30-11/6 for my first crossbow hunt. I'll happily take a big 6, but have seen some trail cam pics of nice 8's 9's and 10's.

[Pygmy]

Sounds like you have some good connections... Good luck  and have fun..It is truly pretty country down there..