The Pennsylvania Game Commission is considering moving the Deer Opener back to before Thanksgiving.
Here’s the press release. I expect there will be a furor over this almost as big as when they moved the Deer Opener to Saturday from Monday. The believe was that this was such an ingrained part of the culture that it could not be altered. Families had spent generations having wives and kids out to camp the weekend before season.
BOARD OF GAME COMMISSIONERS TO CONSIDER 2026-27 HUNTING SEASONS AND MORE AT JANUARY MEETING
January 15, 2026
HARRISBURG, PA — The Pennsylvania Board of Game Commissioners will hold its first meeting of the new year on Friday, Jan. 23, and Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. Among other agenda items, the Board will consider preliminary hunting seasons and bag limits for the 2026-27 license year.
The meeting will include two proposals for the Board to consider regarding the start of the firearms deer season. The first proposal would open the firearms season on the Saturday before Thanksgiving. The second proposal would maintain the current season structure, with the season opening on the Saturday following Thanksgiving.
Regarding the proposal to open the firearms season before Thanksgiving, Pennsylvania Game Commission Executive Director Steve Smith said, “This change would give hunters an earlier start and provide more opportunities for families, young hunters, and those who travel longer distances to enjoy opening weekend without competing with the Thanksgiving holiday. Opening the season earlier could improve access for hunters and continues the Board’s focus on structuring seasons in ways that maximize participation.”
To accommodate a potential earlier start date, the first proposal would move the firearms bear season one week earlier and shorten the early bear muzzleloader, archery, and special firearms season to a single weekend.
Executive Director Smith discussed the potential change this week on an episode of the agency’s podcast, Call of the Outdoors.
The Board also will consider allowing Sunday hunting during the 2027 spring gobbler season. To offset the potential for increased harvest associated with Sunday hunting, the proposal recommends limiting the spring gobbler bag limit to one bird, eliminating the option to purchase a second spring turkey tag for the 2027 season.
The two-day public meeting begins Friday, Jan. 23, at 1 p.m., and will include staff presentations on a range of wildlife management topics, including elk and turkey management, as well as other key agency initiatives. No public comment will be accepted on Friday.
The meeting resumes Saturday, Jan. 24, at 8:30 a.m. Public comment, limited to five minutes per speaker, will be accepted on a first-to-register, first-to-speak basis. Registration begins at 7:45 a.m. in the headquarters lobby. PowerPoint presentations will not be permitted during public comment.
Following public comment, the Board will proceed with its regular agenda and new business. The full agenda is available on the Game Commission’s website under “About Us” and “Public Meetings.”
In addition to preliminary seasons and bag limits, the Board will consider items related to Pennsylvania’s elk application process, Chronic Wasting Disease response, the Certified Hunter Program, approved trapping methods, fluorescent orange on game lands for non-hunters during the fall hunting seasons, changes to the regulations authorizing baiting in the Special Regulation Areas, and other wildlife management issues.
The Board is set to adopt final seasons and bag limits for the 2026-27 license year at its next meeting, on Saturday, April 11, 2026.
The meeting will be held at the Pennsylvania Game Commission headquarters, 2001 Elmerton Ave., Harrisburg, just off the Progress Avenue exit 69 of Interstate 81. Those unable to attend may watch the meeting live on the Game Commission’s YouTube channel.
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