Pennsylvania Game News - January 2024 - 6

" The whole point of the season is
tradition, " Warner said. " Pennsylvania,
this is where the long rifle originated. "
Indeed, state lawmakers recognized
the long rifle as the official firearm of
the state in 2014.
Then, too, there are the people involved
in blackpowder shooting.
Warner believes they're unique, even
among hunters and shooters.
" As far as shooting sports go, muzzleloading
is probably the most welcoming
shooting sport you can be involved
in, " Warner said. " You can go
to a shoot - and not bring any powder
or balls or patches or anything - and
someone is probably going to let you
borrow something or give you something
to use.
" I've been at a match where my rifle
broke and I had two or three guys basically
tripping over themselves saying,
'Hey, I've got an extra gun in the car
and you're welcome to use it.' There
aren't too many other competitive
shoots you can go to where people are
that forthcoming to help. "
It's no wonder then that muzzleloader
hunting in general - and flintlock hunting
in particular - are cherished parts of
the state's annual hunting scene.
Participation is high. The Game
Commission sold 142,687 resident
muzzleloader licenses and 7,637 nonresident
licenses in 2022. Because Junior
and Senior Combo licenses also
provide muzzleloading privileges, there
are surely more people involved than
even that.
They're getting deer, too. The estimated
2022-23 deer harvest attributable
to muzzleloaders was 1,230 bucks and
24,520 antlerless deer. That latter figure
includes antlerless deer taken in the October
season open to inlines.
6
All that - together with the presence
of so many young people at local
and national blackpowder matches - is
good to see, Ehrig said. He constantly
gets letters and requests for information
from younger people who maybe inherited
a flintlock or bought one and are
looking for information on how to shoot
it or shoot it better. That means muzzleloading
and flintlock hunting should remain
vital into the future, hopefully for
another 50 years.
He's not totally ready to pass the
torch just yet, though. He's glad for
the company, but has plans of his own
still, too. Shooting and hunting with
flintlocks remain his passion, all these
decades later.
" I've been there from the get-go
and will be until the last breath I take, "
Ehrig said.
Learn More
Pennsylvania's flintlock season has
some rules unique to itself. It's the only
season, for example, where hunters
may harvest an antlered or antlerless
deer anywhere in the state and tag it
with their unused antlered deer tag.
For a look at regulations, consult
your hunting digest or visit www.pgc.
pa.gov.
There are other helpful resources
with information on muzzleloader
shooting and flintlock hunting.
Check the websites and Facebook
pages of the National Muzzle Loading
Rifle Association (www.nmlra.org) and
Pennsylvania Federation of Black Powder
Shooters (www.pfbps.com).
The Gunmakers Fair at Kempton,
meanwhile, offers the chance to attend
muzzleloader seminars, talk with other
shooters and vendors, see living history
reenactments and more.
It's set for July 26-28 this year. Details
are at www.gunmakersfair.com.
http://www.pgc.pa.gov http://www.pgc.pa.gov http://www.nmlra.org http://www.pfbps.com http://www.gunmakersfair.com
Pennsylvania Game News - January 2024

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