Purposed Chang to Opening Day of PA Firearm Season

[RogerPa]

Has anyone else been following the purposed/possible change to the PA firearms Opening Day schedule? One of the ideas is to move the opener to the Saturday “before” Thanksgiving. (They are looking for input via the Game Commission’s website.). I’m sure there are pro and cons no matter what your personal position is, but as both a New York State hunter, and a Pennsylvania hunter, I for one would hate to see both openers fall on the same date. (That would be the case in the NY State Southern Zone, in 2026 at least, should that become the policy.) I hope I don’t have to make the choice as to which way I’m heading on opening day! Others have any thoughts?

 

[Alan]

I’ve been following it too. Moving the opener could help some but overlapping NY and PA dates would be rough for hunters who do both.

 

[RogerPa]

I’ve been following it too. Moving the opener could help some but overlapping NY and PA dates would be rough for hunters who do both.

While the dates wouldn’t alway overlap, (NY Southern Zone always opens on the 3rd Saturday in November) I suspect it could be a deal breaker for some non-residents. By my count there are 19 counties (combined NY & PA) that share state boundary lines. No doubt these areas alone represent hundreds of hunters who take advantage of their proximity to the adjoining state’s wildlife & hunting opportunities. There are obviously many other issues to be considered. I trust the administrators will take all these things into account in helping them make their decisions.