Penn’s Outdoors

Good luck to Dave Grube and Tim Selway.  They will be competing at the Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship representing Penn State.  The championship started today and will go through the 29th.  Fishing competition officially begins on May 28th.  It is being held at Lake Lewisville in Texas.  We’ll try to keep you posted with results as they are available. 

Some of you may think free fishing days are just a “nice” thing for the Fish Commission to do.  But for those of us who care about the future of fishing, they are an opportunity that we must take advantage of.  They are days to introduce others to fishing.   It is the day to take that friend, neighbor, or colleague who says “I fished as a kid but haven’t done it for 30 years.”  We need to be recruiting and the PFBC has given us the perfect recruiting tool.  Now, we have the responsibility to take advantage it.  June 7th is the next free fishing day.  Find someone and get them on the water.  You won’t regret it.

May 25, 2009

Pymatuning is seeing a lot of early activity

I assume everyone have read the articles on the good news from the PGC.  The first piece of good news is that deer harvest numbers were up by 4% this year. Most of the increase is accounted for by increased buck harvest.  While this is indeed good news, I need to see consistent numbers to show that we are stabilizing our deer population. 

Compare the deer harvest by the annual numbers

• 2008-09 - 336,000
• 2007-08 - 324,000
• 2006-07 - 362,000
• 2005-06 - 354,000
• 2004-05 - 409,000

It is doesn’t take a statistician to see the downward trend.  I am not convinced yet that our increase is not simply due to the terrible weather that hampered the first day in 2007-08. 

The second piece of good news is one that I am more excited about.  Hunting license sales were up by about 5,000 from last year (656,474 compared to 651,589).  Again, this number does not prove that the downward trend of hunting license sales is over but it is a positive sign.  In my past writings about the issue, I have always acknowledged that there is a base number of hunters in Pennsylvania that will always hunt.  I would be very happy and encouraged if we have found that base at its current level.

But there is some bad news mixed in these numbers.  Junior and non-resident hunting license sales were both down.  I am very concerned about the junior numbers.  The drop in junior license sales is an indicator that the potential base of 650,000 hunters is on shaky ground.

Only time will tell on both of these issues, but I am choosing to look at the glass as half full (at least for the moment). 

By Timothy Risser from August, 2008 Trip

The smooth water slides down the beach sprawling out like black ink until it meets the moonless, charred horizon haze.  Eyes shutter to dilate, sucking in what little light the stars offer, struggling to put form to figures.  First steps into the endless black slick are met by squeaking pebbles rolling to conform to the foot.  The other four senses are heightening as the eyes continually struggle with black.  Surf salt fills the air, warm breezes swirl the body, and a faint wash slips up and down the water’s edge.  The whole body strains and yearns to identify conventional signs of quarry.  Void of the long-established guidance, fingers begin to sense the warn cork grip which settles and re-centers the mind.  Instinctually, the fluid casting motion begins, soliciting the line to jump off the arbor into a sea of nothing.  The line lays motionless somewhere in the night.  A methodic slow, steady cadence begins retrieving the temptation across the black glass.  Seconds feel like hours as the unhurried retrieval continues and the body anticipates a shattering of silence.  Feeling one cast end begins the relaxing, familiar motion of the next.  Repeating the silent casts and feeling the rhythmic retrieve lulls the mind, bringing forth serenity that is only felt in absence.  That serenity continues as silence canvases the water.

THA-THUP!  Shivers streak up the legs, across the chest, ending in a pounding heart; struck by the guttural eeriness.  Again, THA-THUMP!  The mind fights to regain composure.  Again, THA-THUMP!  The ears tense, straining to identify direction. 

Gripping the rod handle a quick natural snap of the wrist occurs, almost void of thought.  Hands quiver as the wrists struggle to maintain the methodically lethargic presentation required.  The creature swirls and slurps far from the surface!

THA-THUMP, Zip… Zip…. Zip!  Line tenses with fervor as it peals though fingers and drag with ease.   The rod presses into the hip and forearm under the sheer strength of the monster’s desire to escape his miscalculation.  Adrenaline pumps as eyes search for any indication, but fail in the absence of light.  Splash, Zip… Zip.  The massive prey dances without an audience.  He battles to find rocks, a ledge, strong current, or anything to release himself.  Biceps start to ball and the shoulders begins to burn.  Zip… Zip… Zip the gladiator fights on, challenging its pursuer with persistent action.  The rod begins working up and sliding down in a common motion that wears the prey while pulling line back inch by inch.  Every inch is met with unwavering resistance.  Zip… Zip… splash! A glint of light reflecting off the water spray encourages a resultant pursuit and reinvigorates the legs.  Feet begin to dig into the sand and push against the creature’s insistent force.  An arduous retreat back the beach produces splashes in the wash; somewhat seen by the eye, but mostly felt through a dancing rod.

Perching the beast on the sand provides a moment to restore the senses and clear the mind.  The break is hurried by the monster’s tail flap and push to find new waters.  Rapidly, feet push towards the quarry while the hands retrieve the last remaining inches of line.  With the battle concluded, a long anticipated flick of the head lamp switch reveals the creature that goes THA-THUP in the night.

.

Matthew Risser with 35” Striped Bass

According to PFBC…

Licensed Pennsylvania anglers fishing the Delaware River and Estuary can now harvest striped bass and hybrid striped bass from April 1 through May 31, a season which has been closed by the Fish & Boat Commission (PFBC) since 1992.

Under the new regulations, adopted by the PFBC at its January quarterly meeting, anglers can harvest two striped bass per day between 20-26 inches during the two-month season. The change is the result of the successful restoration of the striped bass population along the Atlantic Coast. The regulations are designed to allow some harvest of male striped bass, while still protecting most of the spawning female striped bass. For the rest of the year, there is a 28-inch minimum length and a two fish per day creel limit.

The following seasons, sizes and creel limits apply to the Delaware River from the Pennsylvania line upstream to the Calhoun Street Bridge.

Jan. 1 - March 31 and June 1 - Dec. 31: Minimum - 28 inches, creel limit - 2 per day

April 1 through May 31: Size - 20-26 inches, creel limit - 2 per day

The PFBC reminds anglers that these regulations differ from the striped bass regulations enforced by the N.J. Division of Fish and Wildlife in the four months January, February, April and May.

Information on N.J. regulations can be found at: http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/.

For more information, visit our website at www.fishandboat.com.

According to PFBC

Spring stocking on the lower section (Section 2) of Chappel Fork in McKean County has been cancelled due to lingering problems associated with an oil spill that occurred during the 2008 season, according to the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission (PFBC). A February survey of the stream showed that oil still remains in the water.

The PFBC was scheduled to stock the section of stream on March 23, April 22 and May 11. Section 02 is approximately 2.2 miles and flows from the confluence of the North Fork Chappel Fork downstream to the mouth.

Stocking will continue as scheduled on the 4.7 mile Section 01 of Chappel Fork, which lies upstream of the area impacted by the oil spill.

The PGC has been working on a point of sale system for PA hunting licenses for some time.  They are finally one step closer.  I have no problems with the additional 70 cents that the buyer will pay for the convenience of using this system.  This is a smart move by PGC to bring license sales into the 21st century and hopefully will pass through the Senate.  Here’s the press release…

Pennsylvania Game Commission Executive Director Carl G. Roe today offered his praise to the House of Representatives for its overwhelming and bi-partisan support of House Bill 92, which will enable the agency to fully transition to an electronic, point-of-sale license system, commonly referred to as Pennsylvania Automated License System (PALS).

Roe specifically noted his appreciation to House Game and Fisheries Committee Majority Chairman Edward Staback (D-60), who sponsored the bill, and to House Game and Fisheries Committee Minority Chairman Craig A. Dally (R-168), who co-sponsored the bill.

“Transitioning to PALS has been something that our license buyers and members of the General Assembly have been urging the Game Commission to do for a number of years,” Roe said.  “We are excited about the many benefits that this new license sale system will provide to our license buying customers, our issuing agents and the agency.

“I want to thank Reps. Staback and Dally, as well as all of the House members who voted in favor of this measure.  Also, I look forward to working with Senate Game and Fisheries Committee Majority Chairman Richard Alloway II (R-33) and Minority Chairman Richard A. Kasunic (D-32) to gain approval for this bill in the Senate so it can be sent to the Governor for action soon.”

Under House Bill 92, license buyers would be assessed the actual transaction fee costs associated with implementing PALS.  Presently, the transaction fee is 70-cents per license or stamp purchased.  This fee would be paid directly to ALS, the Nashville-based company contracted to provide an electronic license sale system for the Game Commission, as well as the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission.

For the last two years, the Poconos region has recorded the biggest harvested bears.

The biggest bear hunted during the 2008 bear season in Pennsylvania was found in the Poconos — same as 2007.

And the Pennsylvania Game Commission said it probably won’t be the last time either.

“The Poconos is one of the last two holdouts for bear populations in the state,” commission spokesman Jerry Feaser said. “It’s one of the primary arrangements of bears in the state.”

The PGC said Wednesday the bear season of 2008 yielded a 716-pound bear killed in Tobyhanna Township.

In 2007, the state’s biggest bear was killed in Dingmans Township. It was 727 pounds.

The Pennsylvania Board of Game Commissioners, in a notational vote, yesterday gave preliminary approval to a regulatory change that would allow hunters to use magnifying scopes on bows or crossbows during the archery deer and archery bear seasons.

At its January meeting, the Board gave final approval to a regulatory change to permit the use of crossbows in archery deer and bear seasons.  Prior to that vote, however, the Board accepted an amendment to prohibit the use of magnifying scopes during the archery deer and bear seasons.

“The agency has received significant public comment about that vote, the Board decided it would be appropriate to revisit this aspect of the recently approved use of crossbows in the state’s archery seasons,” said Carl G. Roe, Game Commission executive director.  “This notational vote will require final adoption at a future meeting of the Board, and we are hoping to have that vote take place at the Board’s scheduled public meeting in April.”

The Board will meeting on April 20 and 21, in the auditorium of the agency’s Harrisburg headquarters at 2001 Elmerton Ave., just off the Progress Avenue exit of Interstate 81 in Harrisburg. A copy of the agenda for the upcoming meeting will be posted on the agency’s website prior to the meeting.

The results from this past year’s bear hunting season continues to demonstrate the excellent job the Pennsylvania Game Commission is doing with the bear management program.  Here are the numbers…

According to official 2008 bear harvest figures released today by the Pennsylvania Game Commission, hunters took a total of 3,458 bears, which included 69 bears during the archery bear season, Nov. 19-20; 2,951 bears during the statewide 3-day season, Nov. 24-26; and 438 bears during the extended season, Dec. 1-6, that was open in select areas of the state.

This harvest ranks second among Pennsylvania’s annual bear harvests. In 2005, hunters set a record harvest of 4,164 bears. Other recent harvests were: 3,075 in 2000; 3,063 in 2001; 2,686 in 2002; 3,000 in 2003; 2,972 in 2004; 3,122 in 2006; and 2,360 in 2007.

“This year’s harvest was what we had expected, as many areas had above-average bear populations,” said Mark Ternent, Game Commission bear biologist. “There were a few exceptions to this, like Clinton and Cameron counties in WMU 2G, where poor acorn crops contributed to a smaller harvest, but elsewhere across the state, harvest generally increased.

“In WMU 3A, the increase was pronounced, as the black cherry crop was good, and there was plenty of standing corn. In fact, we suspect this availability of food may have drawn some bears from parts of WMU 2G into WMU 3A.”

Ternent also noted that bears were taken in 54 counties, and increase from 2007, when bears were taken in 49 counties.

“More bears were taken in counties traditionally labeled as periphery ‘bear range,’” Ternent said. “We have been expecting this expansion, which is reflected in the significant increase in bear harvest in WMUs 1A and 1B.”

The largest bear taken was a 716-pound (estimated live weight) male taken in Tobyhanna Township, Monroe County, by Morgan C. Neipert, of Tobyhanna, on Nov. 25. In all, 12 bears taken by hunters weighed 600 pounds or more, continuing to reinforce Pennsylvania’s status as a major bear hunting destination.

The bear harvest by WMU for all three seasons combined (archery, 3-day, and extended), including 2007’s harvest results in parentheses, were: WMU 1A, 21 (7); WMU 1B, 67 (29); WMU 2A, 1, (1), WMU 2C, 227 (238); WMU 2D, 166 (94); WMU 2E, 117 (50); WMU 2F, 246 (224); WMU 2G, 729 (545); WMU 3A, 313 (186); WMU 3B, 392 (214); WMU 3C, 177 (145); WMU 3D, 199 (193); WMU 4A, 145 (100); WMU 4B, 43 (42); WMU 4C, 105 (54); WMU 4D, 456 (184); WMU 4E, 53 (54); and WMU 5C, 1 (0).

Harvest by county and region, with 2007’s figure in parenthesis, were:

Northwest: Clarion, 65 (24); Venango, 64 (39); Jefferson, 62 (38); Forest, 60 (55); Warren, 59 (71); Crawford, 31 (4); Butler, 13 (9); Erie 10 (2); Mercer, 6 (0); and Lawrence, 1 (0).

Southwest: Somerset, 103 (85); Indiana, 66 (31); Armstrong, 50 (43); Fayette, 43 (78); Westmoreland, 37 (40); and Cambria, 40 (10).

Northcentral: Potter, 294 (106); Lycoming, 252 (139); Tioga, 236 (121); McKean, 141 (103); Clinton, 139 (171); Centre, 129 (60); Clearfield, 115 (81); Elk, 92 (62); Cameron, 75 (118); and Union, 59 (27).

Southcentral: Huntingdon, 134 (72); Bedford, 80 (61); Mifflin, 56 (21); Blair, 51 (35); Snyder, 44 (19); Juniata, 22 (14); Perry, 14 (6); and Fulton, 13 (8).

Northeast: Bradford, 102 (86); Pike, 73 (82); Wayne, 107 (78); Luzerne, 59 (62); Sullivan, 135 (57); Susquehanna, 40 (49); Columbia, 24 (39); Monroe, 54 (35); Carbon, 35 (31); Lackawanna, 39 (28); Wyoming, 56 (26); Northumberland, 6 (2); and Montour, 1 (0).

Southeast: Schuylkill, 41 (14); Dauphin, 23 (6); Northampton, 4 (4); Lehigh, 2 (0); and Berks, 1 (0).

Here’s an email that I received this week.  Please check out Bob’s site.

My name is Bob White and I have started a new fishing forum called the PennsylvaniaFishingForum.com that you and your readers may be interested in joining. The forum is for Pennsylvania fishermen by Pennsylvania fisherman.

I would like to personally invite you and your readers to join in, make some friends and share you insights on fishing in the great state of Pennsylvania.

I look forward to you visiting us soon!

Tight Lines!

For everyone out there that thinks smaller deer herds in Pennsylvania is good for the future of hunting, you might be risking hunting as we know it.  What is being considered at Valley Forge provides another case example that should serve as a wake up call for hunting advocates across Pennsylvania. 

Valley Forge officials plan a large sharp-shooting operation to kill up to 1,300 deer during the next four years, eliminating more than 80% of the herd and maintaining a much smaller pack through contraceptives.

That will leave the deer herd at about 300 across the park.  This is a huge number of deer to be killed.  But this is not limited to the small non-huntable land at Valley Forge.  There are parts of Pennsylvania where similar drastic herd reductions have been taken off of public hunting land through current deer management strategies.  The justification that has been used is similar to the reason being used to justify the operation to kill deer at Valley Forge.

Administrators say lethal actions are necessary because deer are devouring so many plants, shrubs, and saplings that the forest cannot regenerate.

“Our goal is to restore a natural, healthy, functioning ecosystem,” said Kristina Heister, park natural-resource manager. “We feel we need to act now, and we need to act quickly.”

Deer, public enemy #1, must be eliminated to save our forests. Whether at Valley Forge or in Potter County, I have yet to be convinced that deer herd numbers need to be devastated to accomplish balance.  I refuse to view deer as public enemy #1 when not recognizing other influences on the ecosystem.  At Valley Forge, what about auto emissions, construction and tourists?

Don’t forget the contraceptives part of this story.  It is the most important for the future of hunting in PA.

In other places and with other species, maintaining smaller herds through contraceptives has proved problematic. Even after four years, Valley Forge officials expect to shoot 20 to 50 deer a year indefinitely.

Contraceptive use as an alternative for hunting continues to become a more scientifically viable option as their effectiveness improves every year.  It is within the foreseeable future that contraceptives will be able “manage” low deer populations across Pennsylvania.  Supporting suppressed deer populations to the extent that we have witnessed in many parts of PA only allows this alternative to come sooner rather than later. 

I continue to receive feedback that I am an reactionary alarmist or that I am anti-Pennsylvania Game Commission.  I am certainly not the later and don’t consider myself to be the former either.  I am anti current deer management strategies as I feel they place the future of hunting on perilous ground.   If that makes me an alarmist, so be it. 

I love it when poachers get nabbed.  This one happened near me. 

Two Lancaster County men have been charged with poaching deer last month on Milton Hershey School land along Swatara Road, the Pennsylvania Game Commission said Wednesday.

Shane Shue and Jeffrey Trogdon are accused of the act. 

I was cruising around YouTube as I am going through the post hunting season blues.  I found this great video by a young hunter.  The buck is taken in Maryland and not Pennsylvania, but the quality of video is really good.

Is there a type of hunting that you feel goes beyond ethical to the point of not being hunting anymore?  I have asked this question before but am always reluctant when I do.  Here’s what I wrote previously…

As hunters, we often are reluctant to criticize any parts of hunting in fear of lending support to those who wish to do away with all of hunting.  I am very aware that even this small blog can be used as anti-hunting ammo if I say the “wrong” thing.  But beyond anything, this blog is meant to take an honest look at fishing and hunting in Pennsylvania and beyond.

I saw some videos on YouTube this week that brought the  issue up for me again.  These videos are from Chestnut Ridge Whitetails.  They have two preserves. One is in the Poconos region and the other is near Emporium, Pennsylvania.   Take a look at the first hunting video and then I’ll comment.

The buck have tags in their ears.  That is the part that got me the most.  This looked like hunting for cattle.  This is a preserve that is fenced in. 

Here is more explanation about the preserve…

Notice how the owner refers to “our pen”.  Here is what their web site offers as the advantages to a preserve hunt…

• Deer Size: On our whitetail deer and elk preserves the deer and elk are able to grow bigger and stronger than in the wild. Our buck’s antlers are larger than you would typically be able to find in this part of the country.
• When you book a hunt with our guaranteed deer hunts at our hunting preserve, you will also get to choose the class of deer you wish to hunt.
• There are no seasons on a preserve - you have the freedom to hunt whenever you wish - autumn, winter, spring, summer.
• No hunting license or tags are required so there are no hidden trophy costs
• Guaranteed high quality, healthy, CWD free, disease free meet.
• Limited space or time can hinder a hunter from going out. Our deer and elk preserves are the answer to both of those problems.
• Hunting on our preserve can be a group or family activity. Stay in our lodge and make a vacation of it. With so many exciting fun attractions in the area everyone will have fun.
• Why should you hunt on our preserve? Typically other deer preserves contain their deer in small areas which takes away the challenge and sport of the hunt. We do NOT confine you but give you full reign of our large preserve (of course if an easier hunt is what you want then we have ways of accommodating your challenge level).

If you are after a Boone and Crockett trophy, the hunt will cost you between $2,000 and $12,000.  A doe hunt costs $300 according to their web site.

From a business perspective, I don’t have an issue with what Chestnut Ridge does.   If they have a customer base of people that are willing to pay them to hunt their property, I don’t fault them for doing this.

But here are my standard questions for judging where a particular type of hunting should be supported by hunters…

1) Is it legal? - In this case, deer hunting on a preserve is legal. 

2) Does it promote an ethical harvest? - Anti-hunters don’t comprehend that good hunters have as a primary concern an ethical kill without suffering of the animal being harvested.  In this case, preserves offer the ability to effectively and efficiently harvested a deer.

3) Is it sporting? - This is the one that can be very subjective.  Sporting, to me, is defined by the degree of skill and technique that needs to be administered by the hunter to harvest the animal.  For me, hunting preserves fails to demonstrate any significant degree of sporting effort by the hunter.

So for me, hunting preserves fails the test.  Hunting a preserve at least of the type described in the videos for Chestnut Ridge is not something that I can support from a hunting perspective.  I could not kill a deer in a pen with a tag in its ear and call that hunting. 

Agree or disagree with me?  Sound off in the comments section below.

[Any comments with name calling directed at another poster will be edited.]