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Dan Smoker has a bit of a dilemma. The Emmaus resident is part of a great program that helps feed people in need, but he needs the assistance of local landowners if he’s going to expand its impact on the region.
As one of the coordinators of the United Bowhunters of Pennsylvania’s (UBP) annual Doe Hunt in local Wildlife Management 5C, Smoker is responsible for pairing property owners who are looking to better control the deer population on their land with archers who are willing to take an antlerless deer with the sole intention of donating it to Hunters Sharing the Harvest, the statewide program that channels protein-rich, lean venison to local food banks and soup kitchens. For this year’s 10th hunt, set for Sept. 22-24, he’d like to have the support of a few additional landowners so UBP can increase its odds of success and donate even more meat to the HSH program.
Started in 2007 when a handful of bowhunters connected with a few local landowners, the 5C Doe Hunt has grown to include approximately 50 archers annually, as well as 25-plus landowners in Berks, Lehigh and Northampton counties. Each year, eight to 10 deer are harvested during the hunt, with all of the meat given to the HSH food network.
“It was originally just a couple of guys who got together and said, ‘We should go out and do this doe hunt,'” Smoker says. “They talked about what a good time they had together and each guy invited another friend to come and it wound up evolving into a big enough group that they actually decided to camp out at one guy’s house for the weekend.”
As the program grew, the United Bowhunters established a base camp at the Kutztown Campground, with people now coming from across the state to take part in the three-day event. Smoker says the landowners who generously open their properties to hunting have been crucial in making the program so successful. Some farms have been participating since the very first year, while other property owners have gotten involved after learning about UBP’s focus on helping those in need.
“The landowners are the big key, especially private landowners who don’t typically allow hunting to just anybody off the street,” Smoker says. “If they have a deer problem, that’s one of the biggest advantages of us coming in there. We’re only in there for three days, but we can come in and harvest a deer or two.
“We actually have some people who shut their property to their other hunters and they have us come in just for those three days. They don’t allow their other guys to hunt those three days because they know we are coming in there to harvest a doe (only) and the meat is going to the food banks.”
Hunters Sharing the Harvest Executive Director John Plowman says the 5C hunt has developed into a unique, finely tuned project that has several positives for both hunters and those who don’t hunt.
“The UBP hunters enjoy quality time afield, the participating landowners get direct and effective help with deer management, and with each successful doe harvest more families can benefit with food assistance,” he says.
Although only a handful of deer are harvested via the program annually, providing new opportunities for archers to take additional doe could have a huge impact on HSH’s work.
“An average-sized antlerless deer can yield enough burger to provide 200 meals,” Plowman says.
For the United Bowhunters, finding new properties to hunt is important since they are starting to face additional pressure from other archers due to a recent hunting regulations change. For many years, the first two weeks of the state’s archery season in WMU 5C were limited to the harvest of antlerless-deer only. Last year, however, the Pennsylvania Game Commission also made bucks fair game in the September portion of the archery season, resulting in more hunters heading afield during that time.
“We’re [now] trying to expand and get into some of these properties that typically don’t allow hunting,” Smoker says. “That way we won’t have that additional added pressure of guys who are in there early now trying to harvest a buck. If the properties really haven’t been hunted heavily, it’s just a better opportunity since the deer haven’t been pressured.”
For landowners who might want to consider taking part in the program, Smoker stresses all hunters are required to pass an archery shooting proficiency test, as well as sign and adhere to a strict code of conduct focused on respecting the landowners’ properties and wishes. All hunt participants are also provided with detailed maps outlining the boundaries of the property they’ll be hunting, as well as any related parking information and landowner requirements.
Then, at the end of the hunt, the hunters and property owners are invited to gather for a pig roast at the Kutztown Campground, with landowners able to attend free.
“The hunters chip in to pay for the expenses. We always enjoy having the landowners come out …” Smoker says. “Everyone is so appreciative that they get 50 thank you’s from everybody who was participating.
“Even if the guys didn’t hunt on that property, everyone thanks them for allowing us to have that opportunity. Without the landowners this program simply doesn’t happen; it isn’t successful.”
Landowners who would like to learn more about participating in the United Bowhunters’ 5C Doe Hunt can contact Dan Smoker at ubp5c@yahoo.com or 215-896-1410.
By Mark Demko
Via The Morning Call
