Pennsylvania Deer Camp

[Tater86]

How have Fulton county deer numbers been? I’ve heard some very negative reports lately.

We ended up with 7 at our camp since the beginning Muzzleloader. Rifle season was slow the first 5-6 days and then we started seeing a good bit. Probably saw about 40-50 in total for one week. Definitely down a good bit from when I started hunting the area but that is what the state is trying to do since we are in the hub for CWD. Last year we had a 40% positive rate on our deer we took. Still waiting for results for this year.

 

[srr5008]

I've been fortunate enough to have been part of a camp for the last 35 years (since I was 4!). Now I am watching my kiddos start to attend and hang out with the old timers that taught me. Doesn't get any better than that!

 

[rtkbowhunter]

The reason we aren’t allowed to shoot bucks during our early muzzleloader season is because the PGC stated that the herd couldn’t handle the additional pressure of bucks being removed with flintlocks before the rut. That effectively ended any talk of an early firearms buck opportunity yet now 25 years later the archery buck harvest is 3 times higher than it was and they continue to expand the season every chance they get.

This is not entirely accurate. Flintlocks were not the problem. The scoped single shot rifles known as in-lines were. When you have a weapon that has extremely reliable ignition and is capable of MOA at two hundred yards, it's no longer a primitive weapon, but the early rifle season you want. As far as the archery buck harvest, it has increased from ~33K in 2009 to ~85K in 2024. The season is roughly the same length. Perhaps it's because we legalized a weapon rifle hunters were already familar with.