Pennsylvania Tactics thread

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BBH1980
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby BBH1980 » Tue Jan 29, 2019 4:52 am

elk yinzer wrote:My take on the Sunday thing is it is not going to increase harvest that much, and here's why.

There is a common refrain that 10% of the hunters harvest 90% of the game. Statistics materially bear that out, and anecdotally most of us can agree to a remarkable degree in an age where we can't agree on anything.

I'll humbly place myself and a few folks I know in the 10%. I tag out most every year. Is Sunday hunting going to result in me tagging out any harder? Is another tag magically going to appear in my pocket? I don't freaking think so. Does a dead deer care if its killed on Saturday, Sunday, or Tuesday? Dead is dead. It's just about the choice, opportunity, and liberty to hunt when I choose. Yeah I'll probably hunt a little more, and maybe even be a little more selective on shot opps, but largely it just adds flexibility.

Now some guys don't get out much and this may increase their time afield, especially when it is shiny and new. There may be a small increase in harvest particularly if it is implemented in rifle season. But I honestly think the 90%, the guys that don't kill that often, there is a whole litany of reasons they don't kill many deer but I don't think lack of Sunday hunting is high on the list. Dedication and lack of skill are probably top 2 on that list and I don't see adding Sunday tremendously increasing those traits. There may be a small initial uptick in harvest but I think it will quickly normalize.


I agree with this


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BBH1980
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby BBH1980 » Tue Jan 29, 2019 4:54 am

cspot wrote:
BBH1980 wrote:
cspot wrote:
BBH1980 wrote:
cspot wrote:I am in the Western PA part and have some decent private land to hunt. We don't get very many mature buck with the amount of pressure, but there is usually some decent buck around. I have 3 kids that hunt, so I don't get a ton of time to myself. In my experience buck do use the same bedding areas year after year. Now overtime some of that may change with logging, pressure, food etc. Fortunately for me my house sits on a hill and I pretty much overlook the entire area that I hunt which is broken woods and fields. I literally do observation all year around, so knowing why and how they bed wasn't really important to me as I relied pretty much on observation. My scouting consists mainly of just seeing was mast, fruit, and ag crops are around to know where to hunt. It is still tough to get on them sometimes, but after hunting the place for almost 20 years and observing year around, I generally can get on them.

Now we bought a camp in SE Ohio which is all big woods hunting and public land. I am not there alot so I am having to figure things without observation which is taking a little time.


If you need help figuring out Ohio I'd be happy to go out and look at it.... In exchange for some stand time lol That's great man I really want to hit some public out there. Just need to get the time



Ohio makes sense for me as I am only about 25 min from the border. Our cabin is a 2 hr drive which still isn't bad. I often drive down Saturday night after hunting PA to hunt Sunday in Ohio. If you are in the NE you have a haul to make it there. I am starting to figure it out. The last 2 years we have been building a cabin so that has really cut into my scouting time. It is finished so I will have more time. Just wish the weather would straighten up a little.


Yeah this year has been horrible for weather. I'm roughly 5 hours from the OH border. It is a haul no doubt. Sounds like you got a good set up though. If we don't pass the Sunday bill I'm gonna look into NY. I'm about 30 mins from the border


Being able to hunt Sundays has been great for expanding our hunting. I highly suggest you look into NY if you are that close. I think being close enough to be able to do a 1 day hunt really makes it worth your while as then you don't need a place to stay.


If this bill doesn't pass, and we will know here shortly. I'm gonna start exploring some NY public and see whats there.
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby briar » Tue Jan 29, 2019 5:24 am

The thing about PA is the straight Hunter #'s per acre really don't even tell the whole story. A vast part of the state is very sparsly populated, rough country. My guess is Hunter density is pretty low, as is the deer density. On the bookends of the state both # or hunters and # of deer are super high, the amount of public is pretty low. I live between Pittsburgh and Erie and the Hunter density is literally crazy. We have a ton of deer, but a very out of whack buck to do ratio and a vast amount of small chunk private land where most landowners are keeping deer for themselves and family.

It's a fun place to hunt if you just want to hunt deer of any age and sex, but if your after something special, I think there are very few places you have less of a chance than here, unless you have private access and the buck you are after lives there
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby BBH1980 » Thu Jan 31, 2019 2:24 am

So I did some scouting yesterday, hill I scouted climbs 600' over a 1/2 mile span. There are 5 or 6 benches on the way up loaded with oak. The deer sign startedd at the 3rd bench from the top which is where the laurel started as well. I found a big rub cluster where that 3rd bench meets terrain time steep to climb with a couple down trees. Couldn't see a bed but there's fresh snow. I did find a huge track near it though. Are you guys finding they are bedding on the military crest of these benches ? How are you scouting a hill with several military crests ? I assumed the best beds would be on the first one down from the top but I am finding the biggest rubs further down.
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby jmickey » Thu Jan 31, 2019 3:02 am

BBH1980 wrote:So I did some scouting yesterday, hill I scouted climbs 600' over a 1/2 mile span. There are 5 or 6 benches on the way up loaded with oak. The deer sign startedd at the 3rd bench from the top which is where the laurel started as well. I found a big rub cluster where that 3rd bench meets terrain time steep to climb with a couple down trees. Couldn't see a bed but there's fresh snow. I did find a huge track near it though. Are you guys finding they are bedding on the military crest of these benches ? How are you scouting a hill with several military crests ? I assumed the best beds would be on the first one down from the top but I am finding the biggest rubs further down.


Usually the top third is a good place to start. But depending on the cover and terrain it could be lower. To me, it sounds like you are finding sign there because of the transition from Mt. laurel. They are probably bedding on that leeward bench with the thick cover of Mt. Laurel at their back. I’m sure if there wasn’t fresh snow you might of found some old bedding sign.
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby GloryDaysDesign » Thu Jan 31, 2019 3:35 am

Are you guys considering your entry/exit routes when potentially setting up in these newly discovered locations? My issue in Farm/Hill country is always my entry. So tough to get up to the top 3rd of the "mountain" without ruining my hunt prior to it even starting!
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby jmickey » Thu Jan 31, 2019 4:05 am

GloryDaysDesign wrote:Are you guys considering your entry/exit routes when potentially setting up in these newly discovered locations? My issue in Farm/Hill country is always my entry. So tough to get up to the top 3rd of the "mountain" without ruining my hunt prior to it even starting!


Absolutely. For me entry is more important unless I plan on hunting that spot again. Biggest thing is staying out of sight and keeping your scent away from where you know the deer is bedded. So, I try to have a good plan of attack when I scout the area out. I usually keep my approach written down so I don’t forget. If I’m going in blind, I usually take a guess at it by looking at mapping.
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby BBH1980 » Thu Jan 31, 2019 5:59 am

jmickey wrote:
BBH1980 wrote:So I did some scouting yesterday, hill I scouted climbs 600' over a 1/2 mile span. There are 5 or 6 benches on the way up loaded with oak. The deer sign startedd at the 3rd bench from the top which is where the laurel started as well. I found a big rub cluster where that 3rd bench meets terrain time steep to climb with a couple down trees. Couldn't see a bed but there's fresh snow. I did find a huge track near it though. Are you guys finding they are bedding on the military crest of these benches ? How are you scouting a hill with several military crests ? I assumed the best beds would be on the first one down from the top but I am finding the biggest rubs further down.


Usually the top third is a good place to start. But depending on the cover and terrain it could be lower. To me, it sounds like you are finding sign there because of the transition from Mt. laurel. They are probably bedding on that leeward bench with the thick cover of Mt. Laurel at their back. I’m sure if there wasn’t fresh snow you might of found some old bedding sign.


Whats odd is those rubs had really no laurel behind, but there were two downed trees right there that could be used as back cover... to the north the slope dropped to much to actually walk.. looking at it again he in a very slight bowl that I never saw before. Im betting that wind is swirling in there and he is smelling from all areas. The acorn benches are to the south.. I think Im gonna wait for a west wind and go straight up to the south of him... when I come to a flat I will check for acorns and rubs... kinda scout my way up. When I find it Ill sneak close as I can to that bowl then set up.
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby BBH1980 » Thu Jan 31, 2019 6:02 am

GloryDaysDesign wrote:Are you guys considering your entry/exit routes when potentially setting up in these newly discovered locations? My issue in Farm/Hill country is always my entry. So tough to get up to the top 3rd of the "mountain" without ruining my hunt prior to it even starting!


Thats always a risk.. I am finding trails right on the crest of each bench that I am betting are gonna be great during the rut. Hill and farm are the hardest to get close. I also hunt rolling hill private and its amazing.. every bedding area watches a human access... like clockwork.. the biggest one beds on a nob over a swamp in plain view of the road and access road to the property.. hes about 60 yards off that corner where they meet. When someone comes he disappears in the thick of the swamp. My goal in hill is as Dan says is to go in wind to nose straight up the hill so my impact is minimal...
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby comeback_kid » Thu Jan 31, 2019 6:59 am

Hey guys, I'm from SE PA here and have been on the beast almost 2 years. The one thing that seems consistent, at least in my area is the need for thick cover for these bucks to want to bed there. I think it has something to do with pressure and population/hunter density here. I am mostly hunting farm country. In general, where I find buck beds is in very thick areas.
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby Bowhuntercoop » Thu Jan 31, 2019 9:27 am

I killed so many bucks in laurel beds. Depending on the hunter pressure I would have bucks bed on the lower 1/3 when guys were hunting the easy to find saddles and traditional pinch points. Laurel throws a lot of hill country bedding and tactics off if you ask me.

Other areas without the thick laurel you can walk the upper 1/3 and it’s txt book bedding. Entry and exit are crucial for hill county and the most overlooked thing I see with guys is thermals. I killed a lot of my bucks with a iffy off wind and setting up just off to one side of their beds. Either on the same line or slightly below in the afternoons.

I’ve gotten a pile of pm from pa guys. I need to get on a computer and sit down and start some kill threads and respond more to just general tactic threads. I’m really bad about just lurking and keeping to myself. Will gladly help any of y’all out though.
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby Mike32 » Thu Jan 31, 2019 11:42 am

^^ I'm all ears coop!!
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby bigredneck61088 » Thu Jan 31, 2019 12:29 pm

Subscribing.... live and hunt Ohio but my wife’s family has a cabin in the 2F Allegheny National area. I have yet to kill a buck out there but don’t spend the time I should. Seems from the cameras I have ran buck to doe ratio is way outta whack in that area. Slowly but surely been pounding ground and getting closer to killing a mountain buck
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby thepennsylvanian » Thu Jan 31, 2019 10:43 pm

bigredneck61088 wrote:Subscribing.... live and hunt Ohio but my wife’s family has a cabin in the 2F Allegheny National area. I have yet to kill a buck out there but don’t spend the time I should. Seems from the cameras I have ran buck to doe ratio is way outta whack in that area. Slowly but surely been pounding ground and getting closer to killing a mountain buck

cameras are not going to give you an accurate ratio picture in that area, unless you are running a ton of them. even then i would doubt that your getting enough data to calculate b/d ratio. the deer densities are so low in that area that many bucks will achieve maturity, making them even harder to catch on camera. the area is just vast. however, i have found that even though the densities are low, the hunting is worth the time. many of the guys that hunt up there complain about the deer numbers, always referring to the 19070s when they would 100+ deer in a day, yet rarely see a rack buck, let alone a mature buck. the hunting is tough, yet worth it!
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Re: Pennsylvania Tactics thread

Unread postby JShea » Thu Jan 31, 2019 11:55 pm

Bowhuntercoop wrote:I killed so many bucks in laurel beds. Depending on the hunter pressure I would have bucks bed on the lower 1/3 when guys were hunting the easy to find saddles and traditional pinch points. Laurel throws a lot of hill country bedding and tactics off if you ask me.

Other areas without the thick laurel you can walk the upper 1/3 and it’s txt book bedding. Entry and exit are crucial for hill county and the most overlooked thing I see with guys is thermals. I killed a lot of my bucks with a iffy off wind and setting up just off to one side of their beds. Either on the same line or slightly below in the afternoons.

I’ve gotten a pile of pm from pa guys. I need to get on a computer and sit down and start some kill threads and respond more to just general tactic threads. I’m really bad about just lurking and keeping to myself. Will gladly help any of y’all out though.



Looking forward to that!


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