Pennsylvania Game News - July 2019 - 8

percent of bull hunters, opt to hire an elk
guide. Those planning to go with a guide
are wise to sign up early, Banfield said.
"Guides can take on only so many
clients, and depending on your hunt zone,
they can book up quickly," he explained.
Elk hunters who forego a guide really
need to develop a game plan that includes
hunting on both public and private lands.
Using a guide has proved an advantage.
In 2018, 32 percent of unguided hunters didn't take an elk. That compares with
20 percent of guided hunters who didn't
take an elk. But the bottom line remains
there are no guarantees in Pennsylvania
elk hunting.
For hunters not adept at scouting,
unfamiliar with elk or unwilling to drive to
the elk range to scout, the best play, given
the rarity of securing an elk license, might
be to pony up and get a guide. No, it isn't
cheap. But what you get for your investment surely pays off if you take an elk.
The new archery and January antlerless
elk seasons both are unproven opportunities. They both occur at times when elk
largely have been unhunted, and surely
offer unique, almost-unparalleled elk
hunting. But getting an elk within bow
range, or finding a flat-top deep behind the
gates on an after-Christmas hunt has the
potential to be challenging. Make sure you
recognize what you're up-against before
you enter these drawings.
Private property acres vary from EHZ
to EHZ. In some areas, Banfield said,
acquiring access to private property is
pretty easy, while in others it can be
challenging. Guides also often have
exclusive access to some private

8

properties. EHZ 4 has historically been
difficult for elk hunters to gain access to
private property, Banfield said. However,
almost 2,000 acres of private property
this summer will be enrolled into a
conservation easement, administered
by the Department of Conservation and
Natural Resources, which will open the
land to public hunting.
"This is a huge win for EHZ 4 elk
hunters," Banfield noted.
State Game Lands 14, 34, 90, 100 and
331 all are good areas to hunt, because
they often are overlooked, Banfield
explained.
"No one seems to realize there are elk
there," he noted.
There are only four state forests - Elk,
Moshannon, Sproul and Susquehannock
- within the occupied elk management
area, Banfield said.
"The Sproul and Susquehannock
have sub-populations that are warier and
less visible than the elk on the Elk and
Moshannon state forests," he added.

RESEARCH
Improving habitat and creating more
of it are the best management strategies to accommodate Pennsylvania elk.
Through a forage-preference study, the
Game Commission hopes to get a better
handle on what elk prefer. The project
offers 10 to 12 different forage species
planted near one another in a cafeteria-like
arrangement.
Some of the species used in the fieldwork include: orchard grass, red clover,
New England aster, switchgrass and little
bluestem.
Pennsylvania Game News - July 2019

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