Question for you PA boys over there

If a fella wanted to move over there and wanted to be in the perfect spot for bear and deer, and maybe some fishing, where would that be?

Potter county has great hunting bear deer and turkey. Also +-2 hour drive this time of year up into NY gets you some awesome salmon fishing in the river

The west central part of the state ( the Wildlife Management Unit 2D ) has good deer, bear and turkey numbers. Allegheny and Clarion Rivers have good fishing. Fair amount of public ground between State Parks, State forests, and State Gamelands.

I have a second home in the mountains of north central Pa....great bear hunting, but doesn’t have the deer numbers like WMU 2D. Fishing is mainly for trout here.

Thanks guys. I have been in contact with some over there and Lycoming County stands out some for bear. It's kinda difficult for me to find the so called perfect spot over there. Numbers for State lands and lack of support for maps and such. This will be my last move according to my health so I want to make it count. To me PA has a lot to offer this ole boy. Other than snowfall lol, it looks great!

Where’s Hamilton Ohio ? I just ordered 2 throwing Tomahawks from a guy named Beaver Bill Forging ...

You can only move here if you promise to help vote out our Governor Wolf in sheep clothing.

Lol Nessy. Hamilton is the County Cincinnati is in. It's in the far southwest of the State.

I promise!! I ain't no libtard!!

You guys do it a little different in OHIO.....

How's that Nessy? I'm trying to move to PA and start a new life in some game territory. So how do we do it different in Ohio lol????

Your saying Hamilton is a county.....not a town / city ?....We don’t send letters to a county in NH...we send them to a town or city. Like Hampton,NH . For example....which is in Rockingham County....I know I’ve had a few beers...so I will leave it at that...lol..and good luck trying to understand the Yinzers !

Lol, ok, lets talk tomorrow about the workings of Ohio. Have a good night!

Hamilton is a city in Butler County, Ohio. Cincinnati is in Hamilton County, Ohio, which is the furthest South West county in Ohio. Butler County, Ohio is just North of Hamilton County, Ohio.

Keith

Nessy,

What the Heck is a YINZER ?

w

That’s better....thanks

Lycoming county will put you within a nice driving distance of some good fishing, and right in the heart of some great hunting. It also puts you in the LLWS capitol.

Walleyed "yinzers" are generally people from the south western part of the state.... er er commonwealth ie Pittsburgh area. In Lycoming county he'll be closer to being a New Yahker than he is a yinzer. Nessy is just jealous he isn't a yinzer.

well,i'm in Potter on the NY line.come on out and look around for a few days.

You rube!......

Catch will quit whining about lack of good maps in a couple days!!!! If u move to Lycoming co.u will b able to triple trophy from the same spot!!!

Sorry to tell ya Catch but these guys are pulling your leg or have a hand in real estate. Bear, deer and turkey hunting is awful in PA. Fishing-there aren’t any. Definitely stay away from Lycoming, Union, Potter, and Bradford counties.

Anywhere in the state for deer and turkey. Northwest for fishing, north central for bear, in my opinion. I would look for an area with a lot of state land.

www.pgc.pa.gov/HuntTrap/Hunting/HarvestDataandMaps/Pages/default.aspx

i catch big walleye and musky 100 yds from my back door in one of the top ten trout streams in the country.

Pcr ,I see your Potter Co.(it is beautiful there) and raise you one Venango Co, lol
A few less bear , ( worth buying the license) but more deer and turkey , 4 WMU to choose from .Harvest map
And the fishing ? World class .

Depending upon whether you need to find work or not, Warren, Forest, and the eastern part of Venango are hard to beat. I lived in Tioga county for 5 years and the hunting and fishing is good there and in Potter county too.
PA is a beautiful state. Just drive the length of I80 and you'll see that. Most of it is great for an outdoor guy. And there are tons of acres to hunt/fish in our National forest, state forest, and state game lands. Plenty of deer bear and turkeys in most of the state.

If you want to know what a yinzer is, search "Pittsburgh Dad" the guy hits it pretty good.

Yep, ain't no deer, bear or turkey anywhere in north-central PA. Walleye or muskie either, no matter what PCR says, don't listen to him!

I should know, I've got a camp not far from PCR's place.

Seriously though, Potter County is called God's Country for good reason.

Lycoming County is the bear capital in PA. There's more bears killed there over the years than any other County. Big ones too, PA has a couple in the top ten world record books.

Very steep and hilly terrain in Lycoming.

Potter County right next to PRC2

That's true otis. I've got a buddy that moved into the Shippensburg/Chambersburg area of south-central PA about a year ago. It's nice country with Michaux and Tuscaora State forests nearby and Raystown lake not too far away. A wide open mix of farmland and forest out that way.

That's true for a lot of PA, 2.2 million acres of State Forests, another 1.5 million acres of State Game Lands and a couple million acres of privately held land open to hunting and trapping (timber companies and PGC access programs).

Leasing has put a dent in the amount of open private land in the last twenty years or so but there is still plenty out there.

Just stay away from the three corners, Philly in the southeast corner, Pittsburgh in the southwest and Erie in the northwest!

Fin,

What the Heck is a RUBE ?

w

Lake Erie, french creek, oil creek, Allegheny river, the tionesta creeks, lots of native streams and Chautauqua lake nearby. Smallmouth, walleye, musky, trout, bear, deer turkey, beaver, fisher, bobcat, coyote, ANF..... NWPA is just a passable area-best to look farther east

I didn't know that Keith, thank you. And thank you all for the replies. I've been looking today at real estate over there and there are some areas where it's reasonably priced. I may have to live in a small town but who cares if your close to good hunting, fishing and trapping.

Susquehanna County is a gem...lot of deer,turkey and plenty of trapping opportunities

You're welcome Jeff and Nessmuck. I lived in Hamilton County for most of my childhood, one street over from Butler County.

Keith

Closer the center you get, the more you'll find people who think like you do.

Hey Art, I just looked in to Venago Co and there seems to be a lot of places for sale in the Oil City area. Is that close to hunting and fishing places?

The Allegheny , Oil Creek , French Creek , multiple small lakes in a short distance ,about any species of fish available in Pa.
with good numbers and size , every trickle of a trib to Oil Creek has wild trout and a few other streams close by do too .

Oil Creek State Park
Enough open land between state lands and tracts of land open to public close by that there's room for one more .
The area around Oil City gets rural quick , Most of the cheap real estate is in town Oil City , but if you look around
there's some nice places . The job market pretty much sucks tho .

Franklin real estate is going to be coming down too , anywhere between the two is nice .
Game lands , Federal Preserve , 1 1/2 hour from Lake Erie to ANF ,
They don't let us trap otters ....yet ,but bobcat , yotes everywhere , fishers , all you would expect .

remember--Lake Erie can be evil in winter.

Just looked, wow, they get a lot of snow.

Lol , you can buy a place in Oil City for a cup of coffee and a promise to fix things .
Maybe not that bad , but .

That's right in my price range lol. However, the amount of snow there might be a deal breaker. I have looked in to SE Tennessee as well but seems like you guys got it better in PA as far as game and fishing. But the snow lol.....

Did i mention Lake Erie is evil?? on the plus side you should see the mink move in a blizzard.

if i leave Potter Co. this is where i'd head.

I wanna be where the bear, deer, turkey, and fishing is. I don't mind snow but Venago had almost twice as much as the Lycoming area. I don't wanna be in snow that's butt deep to a tall Indian.

guess i'm used to it!(I live in Venango county) I never thought it was that bad! Crawford county gets it worse than I do.

Anywhere near the center of the state puts you within about a 2 hour drive of anywhere in the state .Plus right in the heart of some pretty good hunting and fishing .As mentioned there is lots of State forest and state game lands open to hunting .The state also has some good waterfowl hunting ..

Do they even sell snowmobiles in PA ?

Yes and then trailer up to New York to ride. lol

Nice!

There are 4 places on the road I live on 4 sale now. Smallest one is 40 acres biggest one is around 90 acres, all overpriced IMO.i am between Franklin and meadville.about 7 miles out of town.real nice area with plenty of great hunting and fishing.

If u move to PA u can get a NR NY licence for $100 an jump boarder with prc2 and tag a bear, buck, and hunt small game. Good deal. $20 more for 3 tky (1fall an 2 spring gobblers). Should never have to eat processed meat again!!

That's what I'm talking about! And PA trapper, I won't be able to afford acreage, just a small place is what I'm looking for. 2 bedroom 1 bath on a lot will do nicely. Oh and a garage would be nice, I like to tinker lol.

P.A , we must be close . Snow isn't bad , used to live along the lake and got more there.
Prices around here are going up , a friend has a cabin in Utica and the camp next to him just sold
for $160 ,000 . .2 acres , right on French Creek .And it needed a roof now .

with polk center closing, land might be coming up more often.

I live about 15 miles south of the big lake and ya better like snow. Lots of gamelands and national forest close by and the walleye fishin in the big lake is world class, Steelhead fishing in lake tribs is also a big thing here. Winters can be long this high up( in the state) Ohio is close and so is Ny, Lots of res. and non res. hunting.Some yrs I have seen snow cover from Nov. to April, It can get to ya. Bob

Forest County, PA Real Estate & Homes for Sale.

I am checking out a lot of places over there. I can't believe how many places have an outhouse lol, you all got something against going potty in the house.

Not suppose to crap where ya eat, Catch.

Do the houses come with a Steeler jersey and a terrible towel?

You must be looking at Forest Co. with the outhouses , lol
Lots of old hunting camps , it's very rural , some places you'll be 20 miles from
an open gas station .How far into the boonies you looking to get ?

Nessy , they're hard to avoid anywhere in W. Pa. ,lol
but not mandatory .

Nah, we ain't that into games. Toilet paper kept in a coffee can is all ya need.

Don't really want the boonies anymore, but yet I don't want to drive a long ways to hunt and fish. I seen some nice little places in Venango and Lycoming Counties that were in little towns. That would be fine. It just cracked me up cause one place in Forest Co listed outhouse improvements, new roof.

Lol, we don't mind over here.

My outhouse has been converted into a tool shed for rakes and shovels ect. A couple of my neighbors converted theirs into smokehouses.
Lots of them here yet, most used for something else tho.

camp has an operational outhouse.

Was at a relatives the other day , he has a 30 acre field that they
planted with soybeans , the entire and I mean every single plant
was eaten to a nub , we've planted 3-4 lbs of green beans , same results .
There's some deer in the area .



And most of the county even has that newfangled electric ,and indoor plumbing . lol

Hooo Eeeeee, that sure would be nice. Seen a place in Polk that would fit the bill. I think it's pretty cool how a lot of you all have deer camps, not much of that in my area.

Catch22, move to Snyder County.
Am looking for a long term trapping partner since I'm getting older.
We still have outhouses and have to climb a pole to make a phone call.

Lol Hern, I would love to trap with ya, but I need indoor pluming and non climbing phone calls.

I can’t believe nobody mentioned Huntington County in the heart of central pa. There’s bear deer and turkey, plus you have Raystown Lake that’s full of big Stripers, bass, and all kinds of panfish. I hunt Huntington County a lot especially for turkeys.

I told'm the closer the center, the better grayfox, it's up to him after that. lol

It’s up to him then

That's where I'd like to be, and I might could go for a place that has a fancy outhouse. Fresh hole, new roof and a radio would be nice.

If I can be where there are a lot of deer and turkey with some good fishing I'd be ok with driving a couple counties over to get where the bear numbers are better. Plus, finding the right house, a lot of variables to consider. I sure do appreciate all the info so far. It has saved me a bunch of time.

don't be afraid to hold out for a fresh bag of lime.

There's Bear,Deer and Turkey everywhere in the state Catch. Want the truth?????? Go to the cities and that's where the most deer are. But then your....well, in the city.

We haven't had a party line for 30 years, and with cell fones, who needs a land-line?

Juniata County is the place to be, just ask Hippie.

Lots of camps around mine that have Steeler everything hanging from their porches and from flag poles......Maybe not so many after what happen Sunday night:D

Iffin' ya doesn't want no outhouse, don't look at the camp listings. There are actual house up that way too.

Catch if camp is in State Forest yr not allowed to live there. Those r on leased sites for camps only. Oh yea and Juniata county is where the toothbrush was invented, anywhere else it would have been called a teethbrush! Just sayin

Thanks Grouse. And on the toothbrush front, are you saying hippie has a real nice tooth?

There’s a lot of beautiful country in PA. I’ve traveled to quite a few different states for work or to see family and never seen as many Whitetail as we have in our state(I’ve never been to Texas but have been told lots of venison). The stronger populations are around farm land unless the Amish live nearby. State forest hunting can be challenging, decent terrain, and sometimes thick with laurel depending on area, but find the food, be it acorns, beech nuts, etc and you’ll find deer and bear. Turkey are pretty thick here, never hunted them on state land though. Most successful bear hunters are in groups driving, but ya never know. Lots of critters to trap, lots of waters to fish, Susquehanna River is one of the best fisheries goin. Center of the state is nice as stated. I live in Northeast PA, I’ll take it over all of PA, but I could live in most of the state as long as I’m in the country.

hey now, your hitting mighty close to me! i lIve OUTSIDE OF POLK! cell phone works if you go outside! no-one to order and get a pizza delivered! closest gas station is about 6-8 miles away.

Well, your off the hook minkless, that property is in a flood zone lol.

That's where the good ones are Catch!

I've lived in a flood zone all my life and only had to row a boat to get home once. Felt wierd hitching the boat to the railing around the front porch. It went down in a couple days and all is well.

Actually don't mind it, I looked and it hasn't flooded in years. But, the flood insurance is a 100 bucks a month, that will cut in to my Hostess ding dong and twizzler fund and I can't have that.

I never had flood insurance. Here where i'm at, you don't have to have it.

If you borrow the money, the bank might make you take a policy out, not sure.

That's the deal, the bank would make me because I would have to finance. No biggie, I'll keep looking. I contacted a realtor and am also gonna look for a small tract big enough for maybe a camper or build a shed shack on it to hunt, trap and fish out of.

That makes sense.
I'm thinking, so i'm not sure but i hear tell of flood ins. being around 400yr here.

Maybe Nittany can chime in on that, he's an ex greedy banker.

Anyone familiar with Trout Run area in Lycoming Co?

Hi, I am in the north central part of the county. Ask away. The state lands are gettingmore deer every year because there are a lot fewer hunter now. Trout fishing in Lycoming creek is amazing for the same reason. Far fewer people fish anymore, I have the creek to my self nowadays. Get trout every day out, but the big change is that we have had pretty bad floods in most drainages in the last few years. /and they have wiped out the native/hold over trout. Of the trout I got this summer most all are stocked rainbows and they said they are going to stop stocking brookies. Within two hours we are in some of the NY finger lakes, lakers and some other fjishes live and die there, but that is boat fishing. Seems to me the muskrats are coming back a bit, lots of mink and not many water trap. Lots of land trappers and beginners who want coyotes. I have fisher and bobcats in my are but only allowed one each and no otter allowed(we have MANY). E-mail me......jk

Thanks jk! I'll take you up on that and send ya a PM.

Catch, I'll be in Hamilton OH. this weekend to be with family. I reside near the Indiana/Cambria County line. The big 3 game animals here are huntable with fair amount of public land. Fishing is diverse w/ several lakes and even more streams and runs to keep a person entertained.

Thanks for the info Snapped, hope you have a nice visit with your Family.

hen and 7 little ones 35 yds from the house playin and feedin right now.

I've got a sparrow and a skinny squirrel lol.

A friend put up a game cam on the farm that sends photos to his phone ,
first night he had 60 photos , all of them raccoons . lol
another had one in one of our fields from July 4th til the first week of August ,
1300 pictures ,from what we could tell there were 5 different shooter ( 8 point +)
buck , numerous coyote , coon , turkey , a bear and a fisher ,
one morning I was picking pickles and had 2 groups of yotes yipping and carrying on
either side of me , sounded like at least a dozen of them , got a power line going through
and they travel it so they're not always here , but lately they've been hanging out here .
The French and Indian re enactment in the video is right across the creek from me .

Fished French a few dozen times. Probably chatted with you guys there before.

Are you used to everything being up-hill Catch?

Most of Ohio is flat to me, and not sure what part your from?

Had some flatlanders come hunt with us from Mich. and they were flabbergasted at what we'd climb.

May have , i'm blessed with it being in walking distance .
There's some property available just up the road from me ,
bring your checkbook , not going to be cheap .

I was wondering the same thing. Our terrain is nothing compared to some western terrain, made me appreciate how subtle our hills our, but can be fun, especially on some state land.

Thanks Art, I think that'll be out of reach for me, my wallet ain't that thick lol. And hippie, no because everything is downhill over here lol. Even when I used to hunt Holmes Co, I'm sure it ain't as steep as your area. I'll be the first to admit, I don't climb steep places good anymore.

Our hills are nothing compared to the center of the state .
If you get away from the hot spots our land prices get reasonable .

They're pushing the area for recreational use ,so near French creek is expensive .
My dad's cousin has one of the nicest lots on the creek , has had offers that would make your head spin.

That's what I'm looking for. I don't mind driving a few miles. I've seen .38 acre sites in "perfect location" for 23,000 in some spots. I don't think so lol.

I have a little chunk of paradise in Forest, but reading this I believe it's a little rugged for the ole boy.