Game lands acquisitions prove historic

Posted on: July 1, 2015 | Bob Frye | Comments

Do Pennsylvania hunters realize how lucky they are?
That’s certainly the case when it comes to having places to hunt, for free, without so much as even having to ask permission.
The Pennsylvania Game Commission added nearly 300 acres to its state game lands system at its meeting earlier this week. It bought three tracts totaling about 231 acres in Centre County and 63.5 acres in Perry County.
None were, individually, overwhelming.
Sure, they will provide better access to existing holdings, and/or eliminated a couple of private in-holdings. Those are always priorities for the agency when it comes to looking for new lands to add to the overall total.
What stands out about them is their place in history.
With the acquisitions, the game lands system now includes 1.5 million acres.
Let’s say that again: 1.5 million.
That’s a lot of land to roam in pursuit of wildlife, or just to hike or explore. Very few states, and certainly none in the East, come close to having that for its sportsmen.
The 1.5 million-acre total isn’t quite official, as the paperwork behind the deals has yet to be finalized. When it is, the commission will probably do something to mark the milestone, said spokesman Travis Lau.
But commissioner Jay Delaney of Luzerne County pointed out the significance of it this past week. He called the acceptance of the deals “historic.”
“This is a momentous occasion, to put us up to 1.5 million acres,” agreed board president Dave Putnam of Centre County.
Pennsylvania ranks, according to some statistics, in the top five nationally in the percentage of its land base in public ownership.
The Game Commission is a big part of that, being one of the largest public landholders in the state. Only the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, with about 2.6 million acres – 2.2 million in state forests, 380,000 in state parks – controls more.

Bob Frye is the everybodyadventures.com editor. Reach him at 412-838-5148 or bfrye@535mediallc.com. See other stories, blogs, videos and more at everybodyadventures.com.

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