PGC making it easier to buy antlerless deer licenses starting in 2023

The Pennsylvania Game Commission has received approval for a change in the way antlerless deer licenses are sold. 

Up to this significant change, antlerless licenses had to be purchased from county treasurer’s by submitting the applications and payments in the traditional pink envelopes. But recently passed Senate Bill 431 will now allow hunters to purchase antlerless licenses through the HuntFishPA automated licensing system online or in person at any license issuing agent. The law takes effect in the 2023-24 license year.  

“Allowing for the sale of antlerless deer hunting licenses through other means such as online or through licensing agents will make it far more convenient for hunters,” said Dan Laughline, the Erie County Senator and Chairman of the Senate Game and Fisheries Committee who sponsored the bill. 

The PGC, hunting organizations including the National Deer Association, Pennsylvania Chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen and Conservationists and others, and everyday hunters, supported the bill, which is the final step to fully modernize license sales. 

PGC Executive Director Bryan Burhans, agreed. “There were, in short, a lot of variables in play, and that occasionally led to problems with hunters getting licenses or not. Given all that, the pink envelope system was seen by many as a barrier to hunting participation, especially when it comes to recruiting new hunters. Allowing for antlerless license sales through HuntFishPA will address those issues.”

TROUT STOCKING

Reports from the Little Lehigh Creek are that anglers are catching some sizable trout as a result of the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission’s fall stocking there. 
The PFBC stocked 18-inch and larger rainbow trout from Bogarts Bridge in the Lehigh Parkway section down to the Martin Luther King Road bridge. 

Within the same week, approximately 400 brown trout were stocked in the same sections from fish at the Lil-Le-Hi trout nursery. 

DECOYING DEER DURING THE RUT

Peak rut is primetime for bowhunters to take a trophy buck. And the folks at Montana Decoy recommends using a decoy to draw Mr. Big within bow range. 

The company recommends placing a doe decoy, like their Estrus Betty, about 10-20 yards max from your stand that should be set along trails or near food sources. You want to make sure to have multiple shooting lanes around the decoy. 

They go on to say that there’s a lot of debate among bowhunters on the direction you want the decoy to face. But consider that during peak rut, most bucks will approach a buck decoy head on, and a doe decoy from behind. By keeping that in mind during setup, you’ll have multiple broadside shooting lanes. 

Also, make sure the decoy can be seen from a distance, either on the edge of a field or down a long trail connecting bedding and feeding grounds. 

Finally, if you saved a tail from a past deer, consider attaching it in place of the plastic one that usually comes with a decoy. 
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