Mark Nale

With less than a week remaining in the extended bear season, and only four wildlife management units open, bear harvest figures in Pennsylvania are low.
Based on preliminary figures furnished by the Pennsylvania Game Commission, this year’s bear harvest will be several hundred bears lower than last year’s take of 2,920. That’s the lowest in 16 years.

Bear hunters stepped out into early snow across most of Pennsylvania’s bear range for the opening day of the regular firearms season. The northcentral region had a dusting to several inches in the higher elevations, while some counties in the northeast and southwest mountains received a foot or more of snow.
Even with the excellent tracking snow, bears were slow to come into the Quehanna (northern Clearfield County) check station on the opening Saturday.

The calm, cold weather, and a colorful morning sky provided a great backdrop for the opening of Pennsylvania’s general elk season Nov. 4. Sixty-eight fortunate hunters drew permits for this limited hunt, however, the opening day rewarded only 11 hunters with elk.
The elk check station was held on the grounds of the Elk Country Visitor Center in Benezette. Hunters are required to check their elk and supply samples for study and testing.