As a kid growing up in the western part of the state, seeing an elk was a pretty rare sighting; sure, we had a small number roaming around not far from DuBois, but I’m sure most of us never expected to see what’s now roaming northern Pennsylvania today.
Years ago, there was no such thing as hunting elk in Pennsylvania, so like many hunters, I always thought it would be great to go out west and bag a decent bull elk. Fortunately, I was able to accomplish that when some friends and I went on an elk hunt in Montana, and I bagged a 6×6 bull.
Little did I know, but years later, as Pennsylvania’s elk herd grew, we would someday have the opportunity to hunt elk here, and in 2009, I was one of the lucky ones picked for a bull tag. On the second day of my hunt, I downed an 8×8 — even bigger than my Montana elk.
When I was drawn for that bull tag, 20 tags were being offered, but as our elk herd has grown, so have the bull and cow tags being offered by the Game Commission. For 2022-23, the Game Commission offered 65 bull tags: 18 for the archery season, 30 for the general season, and 17 for the late season. 56,640 individuals applied for a Pennsylvania elk license, including at least one from every state nationwide. The number of bull tags being offered has been growing; in 2020-21, 36 were offered, and in 2021-22, 56 were available.
Our elk herd has grown over the years, and based on aerial surveys, our elk herd is now estimated to be at between 1,200 and 1,400 elk.
Not only has the elk herd grown, but so have the rack sizes; bigger racks keep coming up yearly, and Pennsylvania produces more big bulls than any other eastern state. The reason for our bigger bulls is probably due to good habitat, but our bulls live longer, thus producing larger racks; the typical bull taken in Pennsylvania is a six-year-old.
How bad do people want to hunt elk in Pennsylvania? Since 2009, each year, the state has offered a special “Governor’s Tag.” The high bidder gets to hunt in any zone in an expanded season, and last fall, the high bidder paid $327,000 for that hunt! In 2009 that tag sold for $28,000; in 2015, it sold for $52,000; $105,000 in 2018, and $275,000 in 2022. In addition to that special tag being offered, the Keystone Elk Country Alliance has done a bull elk license raffle each year since 2014. In 2014, it generated over $163,000, and last year, it brought in over $400,000. The winner is drawn each year at the Keystone Elk Country Visitor Center in Benezette.
It’s not just the hunting of elk in Pennsylvania that has grown in popularity, but the simple act of viewing elk has, too. More and more people are making the trip to the northcentral counties just to see the majestic animals.
Sure, I was fortunate to hunt elk in our state, but like many others, I enjoy seeing them as well. As a wildlife artist, elk have always been something I enjoy painting, and the painting accompanying this article entitled “Kettle Creek Crossing” was inspired by what I saw when I looked out the window of a cabin I was staying in along Kettle Creek.
Even if you don’t want to get into the challenge of trying to acquire a license to hunt, take your camera and head up into some of the best elk country in the eastern United States, especially in the fall when the big bulls have fully developed racks, and the sparring is underway.
