At the PA Outdoor Writers Association spring conference back in May, I entered a raffle and won an Elk Viewing Trip to Benezette, PA. That trip took place September 7-9 and it was a wonderful experience. Perhaps the best $10 raffle ticket I ever bought.
Let me back up a bit and say that I was excited about the trip, but not as much as I should've been. Over the years, I've viewed elk on hundreds of occasions in my travels to and from my camp in Potter County. Once I was in the "thick of it," though, I must admit I loved every bit of it.
The sound of an elk's bugle is sweet music. We watched a herd of cow elk cross the road, and not long after, a big bull followed. Whether you're watching whitetails or elk, it seems big bucks or bulls always have that knack for a dramatic entry, and this elk was no different. It's like they're stepping onto a stage and they know it, and everyone and everything around them knows it, too. The hair on the back of my neck stood up as I watched and photographed this bull herding his cows and bugling in the early morning light.
Fellow outdoor writer Charlie Burchfield of Gateway Outdoors Multimedia was a gracious host and chauffeur. Many thanks to him for setting up this trip and making it happen. Charlie is simply a wealth of knowledge when it comes to PA's elk herd and the ins and outs of its management.
We met with staff at the Keystone Elk Country Alliance (KECA) on Tuesday morning and toured various food plots planted on the premises. Their educational center and outreach programs are truly amazing. Hundreds of thousands of people visit the Benezette area every year to view elk, and many of them are not hunters. KECA does a great job of seizing the opportunity to inform and educate these nonhunters of the value and importance of hunting and land management.
Although temperatures hit 90 degrees F, we still saw a number of elk that morning. Later in the afternoon, when it cooled off a bit, Rawley Cogan, CEO of KECA, guided us on a horseback trip through the mountains where we saw more giant bull elk up close and personal. We also saw three really nice whitetail bucks, which was a pleasant surprise. Rawley got us back at dark, just in time to hear several bulls sounding off in the thick pines around camp.
Wednesday morning, Charlie and I met with Jason Wagner and Jeremy Banfield of the PA Game Commission and toured more gamelands to see the quality habitat work going on there. I was seriously impressed by the energy and enthusiasm of these guys for their work. They're doing a great job and their efforts often go unnoticed or unappreciated by the general public.
The whole trip was a learning experience for me. I came away from it with a greater appreciation for elk as a resource and their impact on that area of the state. I got so many great article ideas from those two days. Since getting home on Wednesday, I've been jotting down notes for articles. As those stories get published, I'll be sure to post them here on Bandit Outdoors.
I'd like to extend a special thanks to Charlie Burchfield at Gateway Outdoors Multimedia, Rawley Cogan and all the wonderful staff at KECA, Jason Wagner and Jeremy Banfield of the PA Game Commission, and of course the PA Outdoor Writers Association for the wonderful opportunity to get behind the scenes of Pennsylvania's elk management program.
