Decision Time

Dave · December 10, 2010, 10:27:26 AM

Went on a state managed hunt on Wed with three other guys (a friend, Tom, my brother,Steve, and his friend Wayne). Everyone (125 of us) had to check in and go through a safety orientation. The park is only 1700 acres, and 1/2 of that is either open fields or safety zones. We were all limited to buckshot only and could only hunt from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. They also have about 12 designated parking areas that you are assigned to, which spreads the pressure accross the park.
It's about 6:50 a.m. and a nice 8 point is standing 30 yds away. After a minute or two it sort of feels my presence and gets out of Dodge. A minute or two more and I'd have probably heard a shot indicating game on. I slowly moved down the jogging trail in the direction it went and about 7:02 waylayed my first doe (also the first shot of the day.) I gutted her and about 15 minutes later I hear shooting down to my right. Here comes a herd of about 8 Kojacks. Tom had joined up with me and took out two of them, and I another two. Buckshot is some NASTY stuff inside of 35/40 yards. Just like shooting a rabbit in the land of giants.
Memo to self - need to start drinking decaf.
Steve and Wayne had seen a few, but no shots fired. We got together, had a bite to eat and headed out to do some pushing. Tom and I did about 3 to 4 drives, but didn't move anything. Both of us were overheating and figured we'd sit once and let them do a short push. I'm on watch thinking this isn't right - Tom and I have done all the shooting and now we're on watch. This just isn't righ.....WT"L" something's coming. Hmmm, it's only a yearling, don't want that one. Now if Steve or Wayne were on watch, they'd get to fill a ta.......Whoa, what's that. Bones. Yes, bones! And in the words of SEMP in a prior post, he describes the action just perfectly. "Bang, flop."
I walk up to it and see something ain't quite right with the back leg. Ahhhhh, WTF.

It must've got drug under a car and peeled off the skin completely from the knee down its ankle (?). It was rancid- green, pussing and oozing with a lot of stink.

Now it's decision time.
I tagged the deer as required, but it is not edible. It's hard to see, but the buck was emaciated with very very little meat left on it's frame. I can get a replacement tag, but would forfeit the deer - rack included, or I can take the deer and say bye bye to my buck tag (only one buck tag per year in Pennsy). The rack is actually a lot bigger than it looks here.
There are only a few days left in our gunning season, and then winter archery comes in after X-mas.
It was a hard choice, but let me get one more pic of it before it gets hauled off with the game commission.

(You can get a better look at it's condition in this pic. This was not gutted, either).

I pushed the rest of the afternoon and we ended up getting 9 b/e us (only the one buck - which I forfeited, so I guess we got 8). The total harvest for everyone was 125 deer.

The Pennsylvania Game Commmission does an excellent job in handling these hunts (several of them happen throughout the state once a year, and it's a very delicate public issue - especially in the more congested S.E. area of the state). My hat's off to them and all involved in running these hunts.

KySongDog · December 10, 2010, 11:05:36 AM

Very nice write up and pics too.

I think you made the right decision. But I am surprised the PA game commission wouldn't allow you to keep the rack given the condition of the deer.

pitw · December 10, 2010, 11:15:16 AM

Wow, I couldn't imagine 125 hunters in three square miles

. I'd have been in a bunker but I'm glad you are the type to take it on and even have the presence on mind to take pics to share with us

. I'd have turned that buck in as well and your laws sound like ours on the deal.

HaMeR · December 10, 2010, 12:11:08 PM

That's a nice rack for sure. I would have done the same thing. I deer hunt for the freezer & don't see any reason to waste a buck tag on a rancid animal. You guys sure put a hurt on them with 125 deer being dropped.

HuntnCarve · December 10, 2010, 01:39:25 PM

You made the right call Dave. We'll push a better buck by you in the Winter Archery season, and probably a few more doe.
If memory serves me? The first year they had the Tyler Park hunt. It was three days. They killed about 365 deer (doe only back then). The Game Commission figured there was over 1200 deer in the park at that time. -The Friends of Animals had their biologist do a survey and deer count. He said that there was only 120 deer left? The Game Commission did their own survey, and based on it, authorized another hunt. Oh how the antis cried "there would be no deer left!" Well after the second hunt, they harvested another 325 plus does... Then the Game Commission did another aireal survey. Said there was about 400 plus deer still in the park. - More than they wanted, but they decided they had removed enough for the time being. I remember the farmers who owned the land around the park, losing massive dollars from deer damage. They were taking big financial hits, and were talking about selling their land to the developers.. The tree huggers cried that it would ruin the "aviance" of the park. The deer numbers have to be controlled there. Bottom line. Hunters are the most effective way, with controlled hunts. It's normal seeing protestors picketing the hunts. Such is life in the big city. In the meantime, they've conducted several deer hunts there in the following years. -Seems like there are alway high deer numbers. Mother Nature seems to find a way.

bambam · December 10, 2010, 05:02:35 PM

nice buck. Shame they didn't let you keep the antlers at least.

iahntr · December 10, 2010, 06:58:39 PM

Glad you pulled the trigger,
and good call.

Thanks for sharin it with us.

Dave · December 11, 2010, 06:57:28 AM

Thanks all. Not sure why you're not allowed to keep the anltlers. I know you can 'buy' a rack you pick up from a roadkill for $10 per point, and one officer mentioned that as an option but was quickly corrected by another that it isn't permissible with an inedible deer/replacement tag situation.

Barry, you're right on with the

comment on 125 hunters/3 sq mi. I pushed a few VERY thick briar thickets and could hear deer moving in front of me. I was shouting out 'Hunter in here - deer moving -hunter in here,' a "L" of a lot.

Hamer, I'm more about the freezer also. I butcher most everything I get and there is nothing like butchering a full sized buck. Everything at least doubles from jerky to the size of roasts. Only time I send one to the butcher is to get slim jims/ hot dogs and deer pork roll made.

Dave, I remember that there were at least two days (one week apart) to hunt in the early days of the Tyler hunts and the parties against the hunt claiming the deer to be nonexistant in the park. Back then it was just a huge refuge for the deer and they would pile in there during the winter months. Valley Forge is a national park and not under state jurisdiction. They have a problem there with the deer herd and hired "professional" shooters to cull the herd. They put out bait piles and shoot them at night. They just started this at Valley Forge two nights ago and took supposedly 500 deer the first night (this is what I heard from a friend who is in the loop).