Deer season set to draw more than 500000 hunters

Opening day arrives soon after Gov. Tom Wolf signed legislation allowing hunters to use semiautomatic rifles, a decision that will move Pennsylvania out of the “dark ages” as Kim Stolfer, chairman of the legislative committee of the Allegheny County Sportsmen’s League, one of the groups that advocated to change the law, said. A bounding large-antlered buck is still a fond memory for a young writer long ago in Coshocton County, now one of the country’s most famous deer hunting areas nestled in the heart of Ohio.

The Department of Natural Resources says the harvest from the two-day season last weekend totaled 5,930 white-tailed deer. Hunters may only harvest one buck in OH, regardless of method of take or location.

COLUMBUS, Ohio State officials say young hunters in Ohio harvested almost 6,000 deer in the state’s youth gun season for hunting deer. In 1978, I was charged with covering the great outdoors, including the burgeoning sport of deer hunting.

Last year, deer gun season saw 73,399 deer harvested – 576 in Crawford County and 1,222 in Richland County. A few loaded the family vehicle with hunting gear and headed to West Virginia or Pennsylvania, where deer were plentiful. Most hunters are seeing a lot.

A total of 15 disabled American veterans participated in a guided archery hunt at Zaleski State Forest over the October 7-9 weekend. Store shelves will be barren of every box of ammunition in deer hunting calibers imaginable as everyone has stocked up for the big day.

The overall deer harvest in 2C increased from 16,029 in the 2014-15 season to 17,590 during the 2015-16 season.

Thiede adds this year’s season was also one of the safest. A statewide nonprofit program that distributes donated venison to food banks, soup kitchens and homeless shelters, including some in Berks, marks its 25th anniversary this season.Hunters Sharing the Harvest has provided about 100,000 pounds of processed deer meat annually to 20 Pennsylvania regional food banks, which distribute the meat to shelters and other local agencies.Hunters take their deer to 115 Pennsylvania meat processors, where it’s prepared for distribution. December 10-18 is the late muzzleloading firearms deer season, opportunities for hunters with front-stuffing shooting irons to add to Kentucky’s growing deer harvest. And this year, an estimated 550,000 hunters statewide are expected to take part in the firearms season’s opening day, which widely is regarded as an unofficial holiday in Pennsylvania. Bow season began in September and runs through January. Two locations, Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) garage, 1800 South Washington Street, Millersburg, 44654 and Industrial Park, 8254 County Road 245, Holmesville, 44633 have been designated as Carcass Inspection Stations for the sven-day gun, two-day gun and muzzleloader seasons.

Shotguns with semiautomatic actions are already legal in Pennsylvania for certain types of hunting but with the stipulation that the magazine has to be plugged to hold only three shells when hunting for “waterfowl and small game”.

Meanwhile, Kentucky’s traditional duck hunting season is in its early stint, having opened Thanksgiving Day and running through Sunday.

Be aware that other states may have regulations or restrictions on the importation of deer carcasses from Ohio. Participants must be at least 18 years old. In Jefferson County, 1,276 deer were harvested down from 1,404 in 2015.