By a whopping vote of 200-3, the Pennsylvania House approved a resolution that designates December 27, 2025, as Pennsylvania Elk Hunt Day.
The measure is ceremonial, meaning it carries no legal implications. However, it recognizes the history and management of the state’s elk population as well as the hunters and other citizens who support it.
“This recognition will raise awareness about the importance of our state’s elk population to Pennsylvania culture. At the same time, it will educate the public on the storied history of how elk were brought to Pennsylvania and the measures taken by the Pennsylvania Game Commission to support the elk population,” said Rep. Jim Haddock (D-HD 118), resolution sponsor.
2025 marks 102 years since Pennsylvania’s first regulated hunt and 25 years since the reinstatement of elk hunting. The state issued 140 tags this year.
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation has a long conservation history in the Keystone State. According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC), the state’s “elk management efforts received a substantial shot in the arm in 1990 when the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation contributed $38,000 toward the purchase of State Game Lands 311, a 1,600-acre acquisition at that time, in the Winslow Hill area of Elk County (near Benezette). In 1992 and 1993, the RMEF contributed an additional $92,000 to help fund habitat enhancements and purchase and erect deterrent electric fencing on areas sustaining substantial elk crop damage.”
In 1998, PGC, RMEF and other partners collaborated to launch a three-year project to relocate elk to the Sproul State Forest.
Dating back to1991, RMEF and its partners completed 585 conservation and hunting heritage outreach projects in Pennsylvania with a combined value of more than $33.7 million. These projects conserved or enhanced 31,990 acres of habitat and opened or improved public access to 12,569 acres.
(Photo credit: Phil Burkhouse)