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November brings seasonal reminders

Can it really be November already? It seems like only a couple of weeks ago we were gripped in that summer heat wave that gave us day after day of temperatures well above 90 degrees. But fall has been here for weeks now even though the weather has been warm and pleasant for the most part. Archery deer season is concluding its fourth week with three more to follow, and the small-game seasons are well underway too. Although I haven’t been out as much as I would have liked, the fall trout fishing has been generally good so far. Water levels tend to be mostly low and clear but not ...

Fall foliage is a sign of the season

Last week, most of the ridges here in south-central Pennsylvania really started to show the widespread flaming colors that signify autumn has arrived. It seems to me that glorious transformation is a tad later than usual this year. But one thing I’ve learned from decades of observing the annual cycles of the natural world is that nature surely operates on its own calendar, one that is often distinctly out of sync with the one we humans adhere to. But sometime during October, the green leaves of summer trees will transform into yellow, red, orange, russet or bronze and bathing ...

Area streams getting plenty of trout this fall

By John Hartsock jhartsock@altoonamirror.com The month of October in Pennsylvania traditionally brings brilliant fall foliage, brisk but pleasant seasonal temperatures, and a smorgasbord for football fans. An additional perk for outdoors lovers this month is trout fishing. Going on now and continuing through the month of December, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission is stocking 118 of the state’s lakes and streams with roughly 116,500 hatchery-raised adult, rainbow, brown and brook trout. Locally, the Greenwood Lake in northern Huntingdon County received a stocking on ...

Pa. game lands tours upcoming this month

The first state game lands in Pennsylvania were purchased back in 1920 to provide land for wildlife habitat and hunting and trapping opportunities for current and future generations. In 2015, the total acreage of our state game lands system topped 1.5 million acres and is still growing. Because none of that land was purchased with general state tax money, Pennsylvania hunter and trappers can be justifiably proud that their license dollars have largely helped pay for the land in our state game lands system, with additional funding coming from federal wildlife-restoration funds, ...

Pa. elk herd represents a conservation success

During the spring of 2023, Pennsylvania’s elk herd was estimated at 1,300 to 1,400 animals, and our elk range comprises parts of Elk, McKean, Cameron, Clinton, Potter, Clearfield and Centre counties north of Interstate 80. During the early 19th century, native elk were found throughout Pennsylvania. By the 1860s, however, just a few wild elk were left in Elk and Cameron counties, with the last native Pennsylvania elk probably killed in the late 1870s. The restoration of elk in Pennsylvania to their current status represents a great conservation success story for both hunters and ...

Dove and geese open next week

My air conditioner has been running since late morning as I sit at the keyboard to compose this week’s column. The familiar drone of that unit has been a constant background noise in my apartment for most of this persistently hot summer. Despite that situation, it still seems a bit out of place to be still dependent on the AC as I write about this week’s topic: the start of the dove and Canada geese hunting seasons. The advent of Labor Day and with it the unofficial end of most summer activities is something that comes too soon every year. And because both the dove and goose seasons ...