Sunday caching in PA Game Lands

[+cerberus1]

A friend showed me yet another faceboook post that not only had the falsehood of "no ticks in Winter" (one of my Lyme Disease bouts was a Winter tick...), but that they only cache game lands on Sundays, because "hunting's not allowed on Sundays".

We've also seen quite a few events at parks that border game lands, often Sundays, caches placed around it with the same assumption.

 

I'm really surprised by the amount of folks in our area who either don't know, forget, or choose to disregard the fact that coyotes, crows, foxes, and (I believe) some areas that still have feral hogs, can all be hunted on Sunday (some year 'round) in PA.

If I see a vehicle at parking and they don't have any indications they're cachers, I enter with at least a blaze vest on, regardless of "the day".

 

Just a couple weeks ago (on a Sunday), I was walking very small game lands trails for possible cache placements, working my way back to parking.

The sound of mutiple car doors closing gave some concern, and upped my pace.

Turned out to be yet another "coyote round up", and there were around a dozen guys armed, but probably driving to others stationed on the other side.

That Sunday had more folks in the woods than most opening rifled seasons there.

We've seen even more in game lands across from a sorta-local Dam entrance, usually Sundays too.

One time (just finished a cache on the pond) I had to ask guys to call others, just to get outta parking (blocked in with so many cars).

 

Fortunately, other than deer season, many times certain game land lots are empty, and we don't see a hunter all day.

However, folks really should be aware you could year 'round, and yes even Sundays.

- So please pay attention, cache smart and stay safe.

[+Isonzo Karst]

I learned of the fact/fallacy, that "hunting's not allowed on Sundays" in PA, from a log on a cache of mine in Florida. Finder was shocked by hunters, on Sunday!!! ;-) Complex mess of hunt seasons and rules in Florida, but no restrictions on Sunday hunting.

 

In Florida, the agency that handles fishing and hunting licenses keeps stats on hunter safety. Which is quite good. When hunter fires and wounds a human being, most of time, it's themselves, and less often a member of their party; hunters shoot themselves exiting vehicles, climbing (tree stands) and tripping.

When hunter fires and kills someone, it's a member of their own party. With a few sad exceptions, but very few.

 

Based on their stats, in Florida, the only people required to wear a blaze orange vest are deer hunters and persons accompanying deer hunters. The well-know fact/fallacy* here is that you must wear an orange vest during any hunt season.

 

 

*Any person hunting deer or accompanying another person hunting deer shall wear at least 500 square inches of daylight fluorescent-orange material as an outer garment, above the waistline. These provisions are not required when hunting with a bow and arrow during archery season.

[+The Leprechauns]

Thanks for posting about the Florida experience!

 

I always wondered where our Pennsylvania deer went off to after they retired.

[+cerberus1]

I learned of the fact/fallacy, that "hunting's not allowed on Sundays" in PA, from a log on a cache of mine in Florida. Finder was shocked by hunters, on Sunday!!! ;-) Complex mess of hunt seasons and rules in Florida, but no restrictions on Sunday hunting.

 

In Florida, the agency that handles fishing and hunting licenses keeps stats on hunter safety. Which is quite good. When hunter fires and wounds a human being, most of time, it's themselves, and less often a member of their party; hunters shoot themselves exiting vehicles, climbing (tree stands) and tripping.

When hunter fires and kills someone, it's a member of their own party. With a few sad exceptions, but very few.

 

Based on their stats, in Florida, the only people required to wear a blaze orange vest are deer hunters and persons accompanying deer hunters. The well-know fact/fallacy* here is that you must wear an orange vest during any hunt season.

 

*Any person hunting deer or accompanying another person hunting deer shall wear at least 500 square inches of daylight fluorescent-orange material as an outer garment, above the waistline. These provisions are not required when hunting with a bow and arrow during archery season.

I'd hope folk's safety wouldn't be pooh-poohed away based on a state's "stats"...

For safety of non-hunters, the PA game commission has signs at parking, saying, "Hunters wear orange, so should you".

 

Sure, we also have a few seasons/game species that blaze isn't required for hunters, though they may require blaze to/from an area you're stationed.

Spring gobbler, archery/muzzleloader deer, and coyote are some.

Blaze is a requirement for all during November 15 through December 15 (the very busy deer [rifled] season mostly).

 

But I don't feel "blaze" is really an issue, at least in much of my state, but the idea that Sundays on PA game commission properties somehow "belongs" to non-hunters...

 

We have a large group of implants here, some who were tourists who finally moved in.

The states they came from, state parks, wildlife management units, and the like were paid for with their tax dollars, and that's what we hear most when game commission trail issues come up...tax dollars.

Here, all PA game commission-owned properties, salaries, etc are mostly paid for by hunting licenses, with oil/gas/timber rights, and some money by a federal excise tax from manufacturers of outdoors equipment making up the rest.

- So if anyone had a "right" to be there on Sunday (or any day), it's a hunter.

[+Isonzo Karst]

First, my apologies for going sidewise with your thread on the orange blaze vest - it's what comes to my mind on "what everyone knows"* about hunts.

 

I can believe that there's widespread misunderstanding about Sunday hunting in PA.

 

 

I was told "vest required" by a Florida Fish & Wildlife officer while I was hiking in a property called Green Swamp West. I hope he was new. He was lost, although he didn't know that. He chewed me out for 1) no vest, and 2) being off trail during Spring Turkey Hunt. Had it actually been Spring Turkey in Green Swamp West, he'd have been right about rec users being limited to on trail only. But it was Spring Turkey in Green Swamp EAST, and he was wrong on the vest either way. I refrained from telling him that, but I did clarify "You Are Here" .

[+Manville Possum]

Here, all PA game commission-owned properties, salaries, etc are mostly paid for by hunting licenses, with oil/gas/timber rights, and some money by a federal excise tax from manufacturers of outdoors equipment making up the rest.

- So if anyone had a "right" to be there on Sunday (or any day), it's a hunter.

 

Are geocache placements required a permit or usage fee in PA Game Lands? We can hunt private land on Sundays here in Virginia.

[+The Leprechauns]

Unlike some states, Pennsylvania's State Game Lands are very geocache-friendly. There is no permitting process or even a per-cache permission requirement. Caches are even placed directly by Pennsylvania Game Commission employees.

 

In contrast, Pennsylvania state parks require an application, then a written agreement, leading to the issuance of a permit. A permit generally costs $30 per cache and is good for three years, at which time it must be renewed or else the cache is subject to archival.

 

If you look at a cache map of Pennsylvania, it's pretty easy to spot which green areas are State Game Lands (chock full of caches) and which green areas are State Parks (very few caches with lots of open green). Here's an example near my home. The green space in the upper right corner is PA State Game Lands and PA Fish and Boat Commission; the green space at the lower left is a large, beautiful State Park.

 

[+Manville Possum]

I believe I was confused by the term Game Land and what we have in Virginia called Wildlife Management Areas and National Forest Lands.

[+cerberus1]

I believe I was confused by the term Game Land and what we have in Virginia called Wildlife Management Areas and National Forest Lands.

IIRC...

 

Here, State Game Lands are parcels of property, usually with a road as border.

The primary purpose of these lands is the management of habitat for wildlife and provide opportunities for lawful hunting and trapping.

 

Our WMUs, or Wildlife Management Units, are areas used to manage game (except elk, waterfowl, and migratory birds.

They're based on land use/habitat, human density, public/private land ownership, recognizable physical features, such as major roads and rivers, and land use practices, such as agriculture, timber and development.

 

One WMU may have a dozen State Game Lands within it.

 

We cache in State Game Lands.

Many cachers include the Game Land number on their cache page (not the wmu it's within).

[+The Leprechauns]

What's called a WMA in other states is an SGL in Pennsylvania. In some states, you can hunt Bambi, but not Tupperware. In PA, we are blessed with the ability to do both.

[+Manville Possum]

What's called a WMA in other states is an SGL in Pennsylvania. In some states, you can hunt Bambi, but not Tupperware. In PA, we are blessed with the ability to do both.

 

You know, in some places where it would be allowed to hide and forget a micro ever 528 feet, no hunting Tupperware in the woods is a good thing.

 

I know that I cached in a WMA before, seems it is a Natural Area Preserve as well. There are a few traditionals along the trail to the Earthcache and Benchmark, and not a place that I would worry about during deer or bear season.

 

There are places that I would not look for a geocache after dark, so common sense tells me stay off public hunting lands during rifle season. That is from my deer hunters point of view, a geocacher would be just nuts to go out in the woods during rifle season.

[+Harry Dolphin]

We cache in State Game Lands.

Many cachers include the Game Land number on their cache page (not the wmu it's within).

 

Yes! I finally got State Game Lands #109! No hunters.

I think it took me five or six years to section hike the AT through Pa. (Day tripping as far as the Susquehanna. Weeks backpacking beyond that.) A lot of the AT in PA runs through State Game Lands. But I hiked summer mostly, so I met few hunters. The part that had me wondering was Lehigh Gap, near Palmerton. Blue Mountain there was polluted from the old iron smelters at Palmerton (Caution. Do not drink the water here!) There were not even any trees! Yet, the hunters were carrying out a deer. I wouldn't want anything to do with a deer that lived there!

That's one of the things that I like about New Jersey: No hunting on Sunday.

[+cerberus1]

A bit OT, but MP, maybe I can explain it easier with similar pastimes.

 

As hunters, our Wildlife Management Units (WMU) pretty-much only mean something to us if we're interested in antlerless deer season permits.

The permits are limited within each WMU to manage game numbers (see my post above).

 

Our WMU is 3D, which Covers a few Counties (and a heckofalotta State Game Lands).

 

As cachers, we cache in State Game Lands.

You good?

[+Manville Possum]

As cachers, we cache in State Game Lands.

You good?

 

I cached on some TVA hunting land a few weeks ago.