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Lehigh valley outdoors

By Nick Hromiak

Pennsylvania's rifle deer hunting season opens Nov. 27

11/20/2021

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The much-anticipated rifle deer hunting season will have its traditional post-Thanksgiving Day opener on Saturday, Nov. 27 and continues on Sunday, Nov. 28, one of the three and final Sunday hunting days this year. The season then runs through Dec. 11 closing only on Sunday Dec 5. 

Then there’s the post-Christmas season for flintlock and extended firearms in Wildlife Management Units 2B, 5C and 5D. 

New this year is that properly licensed hunters can take either an antlered or antlerless deer anytime throughout the season and anywhere in the state. This is a change from last year when just 10 WMUs allowed concurrent buck and doe hunting 

Added to this, the Pennsylvania Game Commission says they made it possible this year for hunters willing to use antlerless tags to get more of them if the allocation hasn’t been sold out. It adopted a regulation change allowing hunters to hold up to six antlerless licenses at a time which is up from three previously. According to the PGC, this is designed to give hunters desiring to take deer the opportunity to do so and maybe even let last-minute license buyers to get in on the action. 

The PGC claims that last season there were more than 16,000 antlerless licenses remaining in mid-November in WMUs 2A and 4A. Hunters, they say, who already had three tags couldn’t buy anymore even though no one else wanted them. 

As for field conditions, the PGC reports that land managers have found abundant soft mast crops like apples crabapples, hawthorn, black cherries and many berry-producing shrubs, all of which deer love to eat. Find these and you should find deer. 

According to David Gustafson, Chief of PGCs Forestry Division, many areas of the state report the best apple crop in years and supplies of hard mast also look good.

Gustafson went on to say that white oak and chestnut oak acorns, other deer favorites, are abundant and widespread everywhere except where gypsy moth defoliation was an issue this spring. And in those areas white oak acorn crop is almost nonexistent. 

“In spring we sprayed some State Game Lands to control the moths and we’re seeing the best white oak group acorn crop in several years, while areas that weren’t sprayed on neighboring properties that suffered significant defoliation failed to produce,” Gustafson said. 

Gustafson adds that acorns from trees in the red oak group – namely red, black and scarlet oak – are widely available as well with a few exceptions. Plus, he says, heavy frosts in certain areas in spring 2019, limited production of red oak acorns. But in some places, you’ll find red oak acorns high on the mountains where winds prevented the damaging frost, while the lower slopes have none. 

On the positive side, Gustafson said hickory nuts seem at near-record levels with many areas of the state seeing more than at any time in the last decade. They’re also good in a cake. 

Hunters hunting in Special Regulations areas are advised that buckshot is no longer permitted for deer hunting, but the PGC approved short-range straight-walled cartridges in place of buckshot. However, the PGC won’t be enforcing the change since it was approved after the Hunting/Trapping Digest for 2021-22 was printed. But hunters should be aware of this change. 

Deer seem to be everywhere these days. And places you wouldn’t expect them to be. Unfortunately, many of those spots are off-limits to hunting like my buddys home on Buckingham Drive in Salisbury Township and close to Lehigh Parkway. While sipping his morning coffee, an 8-point buck and a doe it was following walked right up to his patio door window. And he neglected to take a photo. 
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Pennsylvania's rifle bear hunting season set to open

11/17/2021

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As we’re in the midst of the prime hunting seasons with pheasant, rabbit, grouse, squirrel and archery deer seasons underway, the latest opener is the statewide rifle bear season that runs Nov. 20; Sunday Nov. 21 and Nov. 22-23. 

The season reopens again on Nov. 27; Sunday, Nov. 28; Nov. 29-Dec. 4 in Wildlife Management Units 1B, 2C, 3A, 3B, 3C, 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, 4E and 5A. In WMU’s 2B, 5B, 5C and 5D, the season runs Nov. 27, Sunday, Nov. 28; Nov. 29-Dec. 11. 

While bears inhabit big Pocono Mountain woodlands, it’s not surprising that some drifted down to Lehigh County. 

During the 2020 bear seasons, Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) harvest records show that in Lehigh County the archery season showed that three bears were taken, the early season recorded two, the extended season had one and muzzleloader season resulted in one. 

Over in Northampton County, the archery season resulted in eight bears, the early season six, extended two, muzzleloader season six and the regular firearms season one. 

While these hunting seasons are ongoing, the fishing season has slowed in area streams but according to Willie’s Bait & Tackle in Whitehall, anglers have been doing well on catch-and-release largemouth bass at Leaser Lake. Anglers are throwing live shiners and Rapala crankbaits. Bass range from 2-4 pounds with some five pounders reported. 

Chris’s Outdoor Sports shop in Mertztown echoes Willie’s Leaser report by having customers telling him they’re hitting nice largemouths there, however no muskies. But Chris says that will change when we get colder temperatures and the toothy fish will go on the feed. 

Otherwise, Ontelaunee Reservoir has few reports but there is a Facebook posting of a nice buck swimming across a portion of  the lake last week. The hot spot though is Blue Marsh Lake in upper Berks County where largemouths, smallmouths, some stripers and dandy crappie action has been taking place. One customer said he caught 56 crappies one day last week on fatheads and crappie jigs. Stripers on the other hand are favoring shiners and large crankbaits. 

Down at the Jersey shore, enormous amounts of bunker are fueling striped bass action that has been epic, insane and historic says the fishing reporters from On the Water Magazine. 

Their reports include Tackle World in Rochelle Park who reported bass are everywhere with keepers mixed in with jumbos from Raritan Bay to Island Beach State Park. Capt. Phil Sciortino Jr. at the Tackle Box in Hazlet, said bass fishing is just nuts especially Raritan Reach around Buoy 19 that was loaded with bass. Stripers are hitting Mojos, flutter spoons, shads and live bunker. 

Tak Waterman shop in Long Branch said Raritan Bay is still lit up with linesiders that are chasing flutter spoons, Doc spoons, shads, livelining and trolling. The fish are between 20 inches to 50 pounds 

The Reel Seat Bait & Tackle in Brielle, reported striper fishing is pretty consistent. Boat anglers are getting fish in the 40-pounds class by jigging shads, livelining and trolling 
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As for beach action, it picked up especially at night for anglers throwing metal-lipped swimmer lures. 





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    Author

    Nick Hromiak has been an outdoors and automotive  writer for over 30 years. He's been published in numerous national and state-wide outdoor magazines and newspapers. 

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