Pennsylvania Woodsman

If you recall a few weeks ago we had a conversation with Jacob Coons who drew a late season bull tag during the 2021-2022 PA elk hunting season.  On this week's episode, we are going into more detail about Pennsylvania Elk Hunting with Bryan Hale of Elk County Outfitters.  Bryan is the lead of this operation and has a ton of experience guiding hunters to success in the Keystone State.  Not only is he a guide, but he has also been a lucky tag holder, harvesting a cow elk during the 2015 season.

After our introduction, Bryan chats about his evolution into Pennsylvania elk.  With recent season and application changes, Bryan provides us his thoughts on how to position your application based on specific goals, such as bull versus cow hunting, zone preferences, and season expectations.  In addition to planning, Bryan also shares with us what to expect if you successfully draw a tag.  Elk County Outfitters spends a ton of time in the off season scouting and preparing for fall.  You will get a glimpse of strategy as well as entertainment by the countless success stories.  License sales for Pennsylvania begin June 13th, so get your elk applications ready!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Black bears are one of the most intriguing animals in North America due to their high level of intellect.  Across the nation the most popular way of bear hunting is by baiting or with hounds.  There are a number of states that do not allow these forms of bear hunting, resulting in the ultimate chess match between man and beast.  In Western states, however; the landscape and topography allow for spot and stalk situations as well as long range shooting.  Arguably the most difficult place in the country to harvest a black bear is Pennsylvania and the surrounding Northeastern states which do not allow baiting or hounds.

On this week's episode of the Pennsylvania Woodsman, Robby and Mitchell chat with Pennsylvania Black Bear biologist Emily Carrollo.  As Pennsylvania's bear seasons continue to modify based on data and research, Emily shares some of the data management associated with making hunting season decisions.  In addition to addressing public concern, we dive into food and cover habits typically associated in fall and how the age and sex of a bear may influence its home range.  This episode is not only informative about the species but has plenty of hunting strategy ques to pull from.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

It is quite an accomplishment for hunters in the Keystone state to harvest a bear, whitetail buck, and spring turkey in one season; otherwise known as the Triple Trophy.  For many it is something that may only happen once in their lifetime, however, there are always a few exceptions.  On this week's episode of the Pennsylvania Woodsman, we have a season breakdown with Dayton Hess, who just finished his third Triple Trophy!

Dayton is truly a diehard that utilizes every possible moment he can to gather intel for his hunting areas. You may have heard other guests on this show say they scout more than they hunt and Dayton is no exception!  With the use of cameras, glassing, and boots on the ground scouting, he consistently puts himself in bow range of his target animal.  Tune in for the strategy behind all three of these big game species as there are plenty of tips to help you this fall!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Hunting elk east of the Mississippi River is arguably one of the greatest conservation success stories in North America.  While the herds seen today in Pennsylvania are actually Rocky Mountain Elk transferred from western states, it's still a thrill to see and hear this species roam the state.  On this week's episode of the Pennsylvania Woodsman, Mitch and Robby chat with Jacob Coons about his recent elk hunting trip to the Keystone State.

Jacob is driven to the challenge of hard-earned DIY hunting for western game but is also allured by the unique hunting opportunity for elk in eastern states.  He drew a late season bull tag for the 2021-2022 season and was fortunate to connect with the trophy of a lifetime.  Jacob shares with us all of his homework to prepare for this tag and what he learned throughout the entire experience.  You will likely learn something about elk hunting PA you never knew, as Jacob's attention to detail is superb! 

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

As we reach the halfway point of spring turkey season there are generally two separate conversations that emerge.  Either the success of a textbook turkey hunt, or a tangent about turkey populations being off.  If you find yourself in the latter half, pay attention!  This week's episode of the Pennsylvania Woodsman we chat with Mike Dreibelbis about his journey into trapping nest raiders and fawn nabbers.  Mike found his passion for trapping later in his hunting career and began to hone his craft of targeting coyotes and nuisance predators.

Fur prices continue to fluctuate and the days of making money on a trap line are nearly over.  As the quality of habitat increases across the country for better deer and turkey hunting, naturally predator species will respond in a positive way.  Unless you're a diehard trapper yourself, it's possible that the increase in predators has an impact on the turkey (or deer) hunting in your neighborhood.  Mike's journey of learning to master this art is filled with a ton of knowledge that you may be able to apply in your area.  Hopefully this will fire you up to run a trapline this fall for future hunting, or consider inviting a trapper to come and help you out!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

What seems to be the norm under private land is that more acres mean better hunting.  It cannot be ignored that whitetails (and other wildlife) have a home range much larger than the size of the average Northeast parcel.  But often, landowners complain about their inability to hold wildlife on their small property for the wrong reasons - efficiency.  On this week’s episode of the Pennsylvania Woodsman, Mitch dives into the controversial topic of Agriculture, CREP, and how they often do not correspond with quality wildlife habitat.

Many people are in the market to buy a chunk of land to call home and have quality hunting opportunity.  Let’s make a case you are looking to purchase land in a mixed agricultural area.  Now ask yourself which of these scenarios are better: 1) purchase the largest property you can afford but be forced to rent cropland to a local farmer or government CREP program due to financial reasons, or 2) purchase a smaller property that you’re able to implement what the property needs in order to be as efficient as possible for your goals?  In most cases the latter may be a better solution for a person who wants to have a whitetail and wildlife paradise.  You’d be amazed the potential of a small property with the correct practices implemented.  There is no one size fits all policy for property improvements, but these practices may be something to consider implementing on your property.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

​During the early season, food is the name of the game.  Whether it is created by man in the form of ag fields and food plots, or in the form of natural browse, bedding to feeding patterns are your ticket to success finding a shooter buck.  On this week’s episode of the Pennsylvania Woodsman, we chat with Mark Dissinger as he shares his 2021 success story about his largest PA buck to date that was killed in early archery season.  Typically, most hunters talk about hunting close to food sources in the evening during this time of year.  However, Mark has consistently found early season success in his area during the mornings as bucks head back from ag fields and stop to munch on acorns before heading back to bed.

As we all know, one of the challenges of bow hunting in early season is facing the heat.  All bowhunters strive to prepare themselves for the moment of truth to make a quick and humane kill.  However, if you bow hunt long enough you are bound to experience the lowest of lows.  Unfortunately for Mark, the recovery of his deer did not go as smoothly as he hoped.  But Mark persevered to find his trophy for a bittersweet ending.  In addition to the early season hunting strategy, there are plenty of things to take away from this recovery story and help us learn when the unspeakable happens.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Even though snow and cold weather has set planting back in the northeast slightly, planting season is right around the corner.  On this week’s episode of the Pennsylvania Woodsman, we are discussing all things summer food plots.  First, we touch base on last minute clover establishment and maintenance before diving into the main topic of corn and soybean planting.  Like hunting, food plots are a combination of science and art.  We begin chatting about all things technical such as planting populations, weed management, soil preparation, fertility, even wide row corn with inner-seeded greens.  Even with all the correct tools and preparation, we still have to ask the question, “do you really need corn and soybeans?”  This leads us to a philosophical conversation about tuning your food plot programs to your surrounding neighborhood, property size, and local deer density.

Last, we can’t help but discuss no-till food plots.  To start, no-till food plots have many more advantages over conventional planting with tillage.  However, there is a learning curve which requires a little more planning and management to be successful.  No-till planting is not something that can be mastered overnight, but this episode can help prepare you for the long run! Every planting season is a new learning experience and an opportunity to provide better attraction for wildlife.  Plus, it is one step closer to being in the tree this fall.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We open this week’s episode of the Pennsylvania Woodsman with a quick message from Pastor Phil Thomas as we celebrate Good Friday and this Easter weekend. Afterwards, Mitch and Robby have a conversation with Matt Dale from Dale’s Outdoors. Matt has a YouTube channel dedicated solely to educating people to be better turkey hunters. Matt does not take the same approach as other hunting channels where kill content is the main priority, in fact, he does not have near the amount of hunting content as educational videos.

More often than not, educational content for hunting other big game species like whitetails and black bear revolve around finding food, sign, bedding, etc. Why is it that when spring turkey hunting comes into conversation, sign and food are often a secondary topic? Calling, decoys, and blind location strategies are usually discussed the most, and while they are important it is not the “end-all be-all.” Many spring gobbler hunters gauge the quality of the spring season by the amount of gobbling and the responsiveness to calling they encounter. According to Matt, however, more turkeys are killed by sheer patience. For more of Matt’s turkey hunting knowledge, check out Dale Outdoors on YouTube – any turkey hunter can learn something from this 300+ course level turkey hunting information!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Without a doubt one of the greatest aspects of hunting is the comradery among fellow hunters.  It’s not uncommon for friendships to immediately form after the first time you meet someone and share hunting knowledge and experience.  Those in the hunting community are almost always quick to help other hunters hone their skill.  On this week’s episode of the Pennsylvania Woodsman, we catch up with a bowhunter who has been helping thousands of fellow archers through his YouTube channel, Average Jack Archery.

Nate Sellers is a humble English teacher from Northcentral Pennsylvania with a passion for teaching – not just in the classroom but also at the archery shop.  Over the past decade, Nate has been producing videos to help a diverse crowd of archers from beginner bowhunters to advanced target shooters.  The guys discuss the evolution of Average Jack Archery and how a YouTube channel turned into a new bow shop which Nate is opening in July of 2022.  As expected, we discuss archery hunting gear including arrow set up for whitetail hunting and shooting under pressure.  Nate shares his experience this past fall of arrowing his largest whitetail to date in Indiana and we chat about how his Midwest hunting strategy relates to hunting back in Pennsylvania.  If you’ve followed Nate and Average Jack Archery to any capacity, you can bet Nate will have advice for you in this episode.

If you feel Average Jack Archery has helped you and you’re shooting over the years and would like to contribute to his shop opening July 1, 2022 in Phillipsburg, PA, visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/brick-and-mortar-shop-average-jack-archery

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.