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Thursday September 20, 3:52 pm
SOURCE: Pennsylvania Game Commission.
Nearly 50,700 Hunters Apply for Elk License Drawing; Elk Expo to Provide a Variety of Events for Visitors.
HARRISBURG, Pa., Sept. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- With the application period now closed, Pennsylvania Game Commission Executive Director Vern Ross today announced that hunters submitted 50,697 applications for the public drawing to award 30 licenses as part of the state's first elk hunt in seven decades.
``The next task will be to cross-reference the information supplied on the applications to ensure that no one submitted more than one application, and that all applications have been completed properly,'' Ross said. ``Those applications not completed properly and those who submitted more than one application will be ineligible for the public drawing.''
Ross noted that, based on a preliminary review of the applications received, up to 650 may be declared ineligible because of duplicate filings or incomplete forms. Once the review is completed, relevant information about all eligible applicants will be printed on three-by-five inch cards to be deposited in a single container for the public drawing on Saturday, Sept. 29, on Winslow Hill in Benezette Township, Elk County.
The drawing will be held as part of Pennsylvania's Elk Outdoor Expo, which is being coordinated by the Northwest Pennsylvania's Great Outdoors Visitors Bureau (NWPGO).
Game Commission Northcentral Region Director Barry Hambley said that, beginning at 4:30 p.m., Rawley Cogan, Game Commission elk biologist, will conduct an educational program about Pennsylvania's elk herd and the upcoming elk hunt. The drawing for the 30 licenses will begin at 5:15 p.m.
``Members of the Safari Club International's Lehigh Valley Chapter have donated to the Game Commission a container large enough to properly handle up to 100,000 applications,'' Hambley said. He noted that local residents have been selected to participate in the drawing. The first 15 applications drawn will be awarded antlered elk licenses, and the next 15 will be awarded antlerless elk licenses.
Of the 30 licenses available, up to two may be awarded to nonresidents. This number is based on the percentage of nonresident general hunting licenses sold during the previous year, which is about seven percent.
The Game Commission received 13,987 applications via the Internet, and 36,710 by regular mail. Pennsylvania residents accounted for 47,540 applications, and nonresidents for 3,157 applications.
Applications were received from all 67 Pennsylvania counties, with the top five counties being: Allegheny with 2,716; Westmoreland, 2,457; York, 2,309; Lancaster, 2,268; and Berks, 1,684.
In addition to Pennsylvania, applications were received from 47 other states and the District of Columbia, with the top five states being: New York, 793; Ohio, 598; Maryland, 315; New Jersey, 183; and West Virginia, 131. Applications were not received from North Dakota or Hawaii. There were 12 applications received from citizens of Canada.
Hambley also noted that those interested in serving as guides for hunters who receive an elk license still may apply for a permit with the Game Commission. Guides may provide assistance in locating or tracking elk, but may not harvest the elk. Guide permits are $10 for residents and $25 for nonresidents. Permits may be obtained from the Game Commission's Harrisburg headquarters. Game Commission employees will not serve as elk hunt guides.
``Elk hunting will be a unique challenge,'' Cogan said. ``By specifically allowing elk hunters to utilize guides, local residents will be able to provide valuable assistance to those not familiar with the area or the elk. Ultimately, if elk hunters are successful, the Game Commission will be successful in managing the elk herd. Local residents will be able to be an important part of that process as well.''
Based on recent trends, the elk herd conservatively is estimated to number 700. The elk population has been climbing steadily since the late 1980s, growing anywhere from 10 to 14 percent annually.
ELK EXPO FESTIVITIES TO BE HELD THROUGH ELK RANGE
During the most dramatic and spectacular time for elk watching, visitors to the communities within the 835-square-mile elk range in northcentral Pennsylvania can take part in a number of elk and wildlife-related activities and events at the first Pennsylvania Elk Outdoor Expo on Sept. 29-30.
The event is being held in conjunction with the public drawing for 30 licenses to be awarded for the first modern-day elk hunt in Pennsylvania. The drawing will take place adjacent to the official elk viewing area on Winslow Hill, Benezette Township, Elk County. The Northwest Pennsylvania's Great Outdoors Visitors Bureau (NWPGO) is the lead sponsor of the festival and several events throughout the region during Expo weekend.
``With so many events scheduled on Saturday, the NWPGO is planning a free shuttle service for visitors to the three event locations,'' said Joni Sadley, NWPGO marketing/public relations director and Elk Expo coordinator. ``Buses will provide transportation from the surrounding communities of St. Marys, DuBois and Johnsonburg/Ridgway to the major event sites, and from parking areas within Benezette Township to the Winslow Hill site.''
For a free event guide and shuttle schedule, call 800-348-9393, or visit the NWPGO's website (www.pagreatoutdoors.com). Information also is available by clicking on the ``Elk Expo'' link on the Game Commission's website (www.pgc.state.pa.us).
Opening ceremonies for the Elk Expo are set to begin shortly after 10 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 29, across from the official elk viewing area. The ceremonies will include a flag raising by Game Commission Wildlife Conservation Officers in honor of those killed in last week's tragedies, as well as those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice in defense of the United States of America. The national anthem and ``God Bless America'' also will be performed.
Game Commission employees also will conduct demonstrations of the agency's K-9 units and display equipment used for habitat improvement projects and elk traps. Other agency personnel will offer educational programs at the official elk viewing area pavilion during both days of the Expo.
In Emporium, Cameron County, the streets will be lined with excited onlookers as they wait in anticipation for the practice laps to end and the flag to signal the onset of the Invitational Enduro KART race. The invitational exhibition is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 29, and will include sleek KARTs, or road racers, reaching speeds approaching 100 miles per hour, racing downtown along Fourth Street.
``It's been 10 years since the cheer of the fans echoed in Emporium, but area residents still remember the excitement when the racers came to town, the hurried preparations, the drivers and their mechanics on the streets, the practice laps, last minutes checks before the starting flag falls,'' Sadley said.
The 50-kilometer race will use invited racers -- many of the best from the United States and Canada. There will be car inspections and practice runs prior to the event that will begin at about 3:15 p.m. on Sept. 29.
In addition, craft and food booths, an evening street dance Saturday, and other activities throughout the weekend will make Emporium a place to visit Expo weekend.
In nearby Sinnemahoning, Cameron County, the Sinnemahoning Sportsmen's Club will sponsor a silhouette elk hunt on Saturday, Sept. 29.
Club members will scatter 13 large elk silhouettes around the southern portions of Cameron and Elk counties and offer prizes to the ``hunters'' who can locate them and bring them back to the club.
The silhouettes will be on less-traveled roads in Gibson, Grove and Lumber townships, Cameron County and in Benezette Township, Elk County.
To take part in the event, potential ``hunters'' must buy a special license at the club grounds along Route 120, north of Sinnemahoning. You must be a member of the Sinnemahoning Sportsmen's Club to participate.
Cost of the hunting license is $5. Cost of a membership for those who are not already a member is $5 for social membership, $7 for an active membership and $3 for a junior membership.
Licenses for the hunt will be sold until 1 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 30. The hunt ends at 3 p.m. Sunday when cash prizes will be awarded to every ``hunter'' who finds and returns a silhouette.
Also that weekend, the club will raffle a Cameron County commemorative rifle. Tickets are $10 and are available at the club. Winning tickets will be based on the Pennsylvania Lottery's Daily Number. Tickets one number above and one number below the winning number will each receive $500.
A chicken barbeque and dance also are scheduled at the club on Saturday, Sept. 29.
In Driftwood, Cameron County, the birthplace of Tom Mix, king of the cowboys, will be celebrating with something for the whole family. Activities including entertainment; crafts; vendors; a bonfire; bake sale; clambake; chicken barbeque; games; and a sportsmen elk hunt expo with information on guides, taxidermists, packhorses and elk hunting gear and supplies will be held Saturday, Sept. 29, at the Driftwood Playground.
Saturday evening, from 6 p.m. to midnight, celebrate Expo weekend with Monte Carlo night. For more information, contact Jeff Smeal at 814-546-2447.
In Benezette Township, Elk County, the Dents Run Sportsmen Association will be hosting several events for children throughout Expo weekend.
Want to learn more about setting traps? Association members will be sponsoring demonstrations and hands-on lessons in trapping and archery. In addition, they are hosting a Poisonous Snakes of Pennsylvania Seminar, a dunk tank, sawdust dive and a chicken barbeque. Also, the club will be offering a gun raffle and selling merchandise.
For more information contact Jeff Colwell at 814-787-5055 or 814-787-4287. The club is on Route 555 in Dents Run.
SOURCE: Pennsylvania Game Commission
SOURCE: Pennsylvania Game Commission.
Nearly 50,700 Hunters Apply for Elk License Drawing; Elk Expo to Provide a Variety of Events for Visitors.
HARRISBURG, Pa., Sept. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- With the application period now closed, Pennsylvania Game Commission Executive Director Vern Ross today announced that hunters submitted 50,697 applications for the public drawing to award 30 licenses as part of the state's first elk hunt in seven decades.
``The next task will be to cross-reference the information supplied on the applications to ensure that no one submitted more than one application, and that all applications have been completed properly,'' Ross said. ``Those applications not completed properly and those who submitted more than one application will be ineligible for the public drawing.''
Ross noted that, based on a preliminary review of the applications received, up to 650 may be declared ineligible because of duplicate filings or incomplete forms. Once the review is completed, relevant information about all eligible applicants will be printed on three-by-five inch cards to be deposited in a single container for the public drawing on Saturday, Sept. 29, on Winslow Hill in Benezette Township, Elk County.
The drawing will be held as part of Pennsylvania's Elk Outdoor Expo, which is being coordinated by the Northwest Pennsylvania's Great Outdoors Visitors Bureau (NWPGO).
Game Commission Northcentral Region Director Barry Hambley said that, beginning at 4:30 p.m., Rawley Cogan, Game Commission elk biologist, will conduct an educational program about Pennsylvania's elk herd and the upcoming elk hunt. The drawing for the 30 licenses will begin at 5:15 p.m.
``Members of the Safari Club International's Lehigh Valley Chapter have donated to the Game Commission a container large enough to properly handle up to 100,000 applications,'' Hambley said. He noted that local residents have been selected to participate in the drawing. The first 15 applications drawn will be awarded antlered elk licenses, and the next 15 will be awarded antlerless elk licenses.
Of the 30 licenses available, up to two may be awarded to nonresidents. This number is based on the percentage of nonresident general hunting licenses sold during the previous year, which is about seven percent.
The Game Commission received 13,987 applications via the Internet, and 36,710 by regular mail. Pennsylvania residents accounted for 47,540 applications, and nonresidents for 3,157 applications.
Applications were received from all 67 Pennsylvania counties, with the top five counties being: Allegheny with 2,716; Westmoreland, 2,457; York, 2,309; Lancaster, 2,268; and Berks, 1,684.
In addition to Pennsylvania, applications were received from 47 other states and the District of Columbia, with the top five states being: New York, 793; Ohio, 598; Maryland, 315; New Jersey, 183; and West Virginia, 131. Applications were not received from North Dakota or Hawaii. There were 12 applications received from citizens of Canada.
Hambley also noted that those interested in serving as guides for hunters who receive an elk license still may apply for a permit with the Game Commission. Guides may provide assistance in locating or tracking elk, but may not harvest the elk. Guide permits are $10 for residents and $25 for nonresidents. Permits may be obtained from the Game Commission's Harrisburg headquarters. Game Commission employees will not serve as elk hunt guides.
``Elk hunting will be a unique challenge,'' Cogan said. ``By specifically allowing elk hunters to utilize guides, local residents will be able to provide valuable assistance to those not familiar with the area or the elk. Ultimately, if elk hunters are successful, the Game Commission will be successful in managing the elk herd. Local residents will be able to be an important part of that process as well.''
Based on recent trends, the elk herd conservatively is estimated to number 700. The elk population has been climbing steadily since the late 1980s, growing anywhere from 10 to 14 percent annually.
ELK EXPO FESTIVITIES TO BE HELD THROUGH ELK RANGE
During the most dramatic and spectacular time for elk watching, visitors to the communities within the 835-square-mile elk range in northcentral Pennsylvania can take part in a number of elk and wildlife-related activities and events at the first Pennsylvania Elk Outdoor Expo on Sept. 29-30.
The event is being held in conjunction with the public drawing for 30 licenses to be awarded for the first modern-day elk hunt in Pennsylvania. The drawing will take place adjacent to the official elk viewing area on Winslow Hill, Benezette Township, Elk County. The Northwest Pennsylvania's Great Outdoors Visitors Bureau (NWPGO) is the lead sponsor of the festival and several events throughout the region during Expo weekend.
``With so many events scheduled on Saturday, the NWPGO is planning a free shuttle service for visitors to the three event locations,'' said Joni Sadley, NWPGO marketing/public relations director and Elk Expo coordinator. ``Buses will provide transportation from the surrounding communities of St. Marys, DuBois and Johnsonburg/Ridgway to the major event sites, and from parking areas within Benezette Township to the Winslow Hill site.''
For a free event guide and shuttle schedule, call 800-348-9393, or visit the NWPGO's website (www.pagreatoutdoors.com). Information also is available by clicking on the ``Elk Expo'' link on the Game Commission's website (www.pgc.state.pa.us).
Opening ceremonies for the Elk Expo are set to begin shortly after 10 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 29, across from the official elk viewing area. The ceremonies will include a flag raising by Game Commission Wildlife Conservation Officers in honor of those killed in last week's tragedies, as well as those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice in defense of the United States of America. The national anthem and ``God Bless America'' also will be performed.
Game Commission employees also will conduct demonstrations of the agency's K-9 units and display equipment used for habitat improvement projects and elk traps. Other agency personnel will offer educational programs at the official elk viewing area pavilion during both days of the Expo.
In Emporium, Cameron County, the streets will be lined with excited onlookers as they wait in anticipation for the practice laps to end and the flag to signal the onset of the Invitational Enduro KART race. The invitational exhibition is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 29, and will include sleek KARTs, or road racers, reaching speeds approaching 100 miles per hour, racing downtown along Fourth Street.
``It's been 10 years since the cheer of the fans echoed in Emporium, but area residents still remember the excitement when the racers came to town, the hurried preparations, the drivers and their mechanics on the streets, the practice laps, last minutes checks before the starting flag falls,'' Sadley said.
The 50-kilometer race will use invited racers -- many of the best from the United States and Canada. There will be car inspections and practice runs prior to the event that will begin at about 3:15 p.m. on Sept. 29.
In addition, craft and food booths, an evening street dance Saturday, and other activities throughout the weekend will make Emporium a place to visit Expo weekend.
In nearby Sinnemahoning, Cameron County, the Sinnemahoning Sportsmen's Club will sponsor a silhouette elk hunt on Saturday, Sept. 29.
Club members will scatter 13 large elk silhouettes around the southern portions of Cameron and Elk counties and offer prizes to the ``hunters'' who can locate them and bring them back to the club.
The silhouettes will be on less-traveled roads in Gibson, Grove and Lumber townships, Cameron County and in Benezette Township, Elk County.
To take part in the event, potential ``hunters'' must buy a special license at the club grounds along Route 120, north of Sinnemahoning. You must be a member of the Sinnemahoning Sportsmen's Club to participate.
Cost of the hunting license is $5. Cost of a membership for those who are not already a member is $5 for social membership, $7 for an active membership and $3 for a junior membership.
Licenses for the hunt will be sold until 1 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 30. The hunt ends at 3 p.m. Sunday when cash prizes will be awarded to every ``hunter'' who finds and returns a silhouette.
Also that weekend, the club will raffle a Cameron County commemorative rifle. Tickets are $10 and are available at the club. Winning tickets will be based on the Pennsylvania Lottery's Daily Number. Tickets one number above and one number below the winning number will each receive $500.
A chicken barbeque and dance also are scheduled at the club on Saturday, Sept. 29.
In Driftwood, Cameron County, the birthplace of Tom Mix, king of the cowboys, will be celebrating with something for the whole family. Activities including entertainment; crafts; vendors; a bonfire; bake sale; clambake; chicken barbeque; games; and a sportsmen elk hunt expo with information on guides, taxidermists, packhorses and elk hunting gear and supplies will be held Saturday, Sept. 29, at the Driftwood Playground.
Saturday evening, from 6 p.m. to midnight, celebrate Expo weekend with Monte Carlo night. For more information, contact Jeff Smeal at 814-546-2447.
In Benezette Township, Elk County, the Dents Run Sportsmen Association will be hosting several events for children throughout Expo weekend.
Want to learn more about setting traps? Association members will be sponsoring demonstrations and hands-on lessons in trapping and archery. In addition, they are hosting a Poisonous Snakes of Pennsylvania Seminar, a dunk tank, sawdust dive and a chicken barbeque. Also, the club will be offering a gun raffle and selling merchandise.
For more information contact Jeff Colwell at 814-787-5055 or 814-787-4287. The club is on Route 555 in Dents Run.
SOURCE: Pennsylvania Game Commission
