Big game hunting: Are there hunters in your park?

It might be only three Sundays a year, but a new state law will kick in Nov. 15 allowing for the first big game Sunday for deer archery.

Archery season for big game already is in progress in some parts of the state, among them Allegheny County and parts of Westmoreland County, but it’s not yet allowed on Sundays.

The other Sundays open for hunting are Nov. 22 for bear hunting and Nov. 29 for deer hunting during regular firearms season. Large game hunting, including bear and deer, will continue until January, according to the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

Given that hunting occurs in some parks and forests and not others, it can be confusing for residents who are spending time outdoors and not hunting.

“There is a common misconception that state parkland is ‘off-limits’ to hunters. Nothing could be more inaccurate,” said Terry Brady, press secretary for the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

“Not only do most of our 121 state parks permit hunting, we encourage it — often to help control habitat-damaging species like the Canada goose and white-tailed deer,” he said.

State parks encompass almost 300,000 acres, with about 85% percent of that land open to hunters pursuing everything from mallards to black bears, Brady said.

PGC and park managers suggest checking first with a park to see if and where hunting is allowed.

Anyone walking in state gamelands during hunting season, even if not hunting, has to wear at least one piece of fluorescent-colored clothing.

“Just be cautious. It is hunting season, and you could encounter a hunter anywhere,” said Douglas Bergman, a PGC game warden who covers part of Allegheny County.

“Hunters frequent every place there’s woods, because our deer population is so great,” he said.

• Hays Woods, Pittsburgh’s largest wooded area at about 900 acres, is open to archery only, which was determined by Pittsburgh Urban Redevelopment Authority, Bergman said.

• Allegheny County parks do not permit hunting, said Kevin Evanto, Allegheny County parks spokesman.

• Westmoreland County parks are a mixed bag, with hunting permitted in some areas of all 10 county parks, said director Brandon Simpson.

“We post hunting and non-hunting areas,” he said. The county’s website offers maps outlining where hunting occurs for each park.

“All hunters are expected to observe ‘Safety Zone’ and all other Pa. Game Commission regulations,” Brady said. Hunters are expected to always be mindful of the safety of other, non-hunting park visitors, he added.

• More than 2.2 million acres of state forests are open to hunting. To facilitate them, the state each year opens roughly 500 square miles of state forest that normally are closed to motor vehicles, Brady said.