We all love to bitch and complain. It isn't often that we run into someone who rarely, if ever, speaks unkind words. But let's face it, we all have a certain amount of complaining to do and that includes second guessing. Why do we complain? Mostly because we are dissatisfied. And why are we dissatisfied? Various reasons I would assume.

Let's examine the whining, complaining, moaning, groaning and even lawsuits in Pennsylvania over whitetail deer management. Are there too many deer? Are there not enough deer? Are the deer stripping the forests of vegetation? Does the Pennsylvania Game Commission know what they're doing? Should they all be fired? Do the politicians have a clue? How much of a role, if any, should politics play in managing whitetail deer or any other wild creature for that matter?

These are many of the questions being asked and depending on who you talk to will depend on what answer you get. Normal human behavior is going to lead any of us with questions to someone we believe will most likely give us the answer we are looking for. When we do this, all too often we only hear the same reasoning that got us worked into a griping frenzy to begin with.

It is clear that some hunters in Pennsylvania are dissatisfied with how the PGC has managed the deer herd. I have no figures to be able to tell you what percentage are mad and which ones are not. There were enough so that last year the Unified Sportsmen of Pennsylvania sued the Pennsylvania Game Commission to get them to stop their systematic reduction of the deer herd. That case was ultimately tossed out of court.

Short of someone presenting good solid scientific evidence to disprove the management plans of the PGC, what you see is what you will get - fewer deer per square mile and better forest regeneration.

In an article this morning in Lancaster Online, P.J. Reilly states that last season hunting license sales dropped around 2% overall.

Pennsylvania's hunting license sales figures for 2006-07 were released Wednesday, and the numbers were down from the previous year in nearly every category.

The total number of general hunting licenses sold dropped two percent, going from 964,158 to 945,892. That figure includes declines in the number of resident adult, resident junior and resident senior licenses sold.

Of course we have no way of knowing how many of those 18,266 who didn't buy a license did so because they are dissatisfied with the PGC's handling of deer management. I think it would be safe to say that at least some of those did for that reason and this doesn't come as a big surprise.

PGC officials have stated in the past that they knew that by reducing the deer population some hunters would be upset and in the short term may opt out of buying a license. They believed that over the long term it would not have a detrimental effect and in fact may work the opposite way increasing interest in the sport.

Let's look at an interesting statistic to go along with this reduction in licenses sold. Back on March 16, the PGC released deer harvest totals for the 2006-2007 season. Lo and behold, harvest numbers increased just slightly over 1% all the while license sales dipped by 2%. That tells me that the success rate for whitetail hunters must have gone up slightly as well if all other factors remained relative. Let me explain briefly. Factors used in determining success rate can become a bit complicated. One factor that is very difficult to determine is hunter participation. We don't know if the number of deer harvested increased because hunters spent more time in the woods, or that the weather cooperated or whether there were just more deer. There is one other factor that could have contributed to this as well.

As hunters there are certain elements of what we do that we cannot control. Those would be things like weather, land access, habitat, food sources, etc. The things we can control would be the number of days we spend in the woods hunting and the tactics we use to hunt the deer. Which brings me to an interesting point in this entire discussion.

I recall going back as long as nearly 30 years ago when I heard and read all the stories about how many deer there were in Pennsylvania. I was living in Maine at that time, a state in which I grew up. I remember talking with one hunter who had been in Pennsylvania hunting and was planning to return after the Maine hunting season for deer was over. He described his experience as being something extraordinary, something he had never seen before - being able to go into the woods and see deer everywhere.

After listening at length to his description, I can honestly say that I immediately lost interest. Please don't get me wrong. I fault no Pennsylvania hunter who grew up having deer under thier feet. I grew up where deer were big and healthy but not that plentiful. Sitting in a tree stand all day long waiting for a deer would manage a good case of frostbite and sore behind. I enjoy seeing deer as much as the next guy but I concluded that I couldn't find that much enjoyment in just seeing deer everywhere and picking out the one you wanted. (perhaps a bit exaggerated and oversimplified).

Many hunters opt to hunt from tree stands for a number of reasons of which I won't get into. Getting the "right" deer to come to your stand can be tricky no matter how many deer there are around but when you reduce the number of deer in an area by 50% or more, your odds drop as well.

Hunting deer is a challenge. For most of us, that is why we do it. Things change and a good hunter has to adapt to those changes. If deer move out of an area because of lack of food or reduction of overall habitat, isn't it senseless to keep returning to the same spot? As a hunting buddy of mine always said, "I shot him right where I missed him the first time!" If the deer are gone, going back time and time again isn't going to bring them back. This is one of the reasons we bitch and complain.

Whatever the reasons the deer were forced out doesn't really matter. The fact that they did is all the reason to change your habits as a hunter. It's time to find another place to hunt.

You may also want to change how you hunt. I grew up learning to stalk or still-hunt deer. For anyone, there is a certain element of excitement when we spot a deer. Doesn't matter how big or small, whether we are hunting or driving down the road, when we see a whitetail deer, we can't help but feel excitement.

Picture yourself in a tree stand. You're in a area where you know there are deer around. You have put out scents and maybe you are practicing your calls from high up in your stand. Many times under these circumstances, several deer will come out and reveal themselves to you. Often these are does and yearling deer, maybe even a small buck or two. Even though you get somewhat excited, you're really waiting for the big guy, perhaps that trophy you've been hoping for. That would pump the adrenaline.

Unless you have hunted consistently in areas like I grew up with in Maine, I cannot explain the level of excitement a hunter gets from coming down out of a tree stand and learning to stalk or still-hunt deer. It sure is different from going out in Pennsylvania and seeing several deer in the course of a day's hunt and opting out of taking a smaller buck and spending a day in the woods in Maine and never seeing one deer. You may think that wouldn't be any fun at all. Well, it isn't fun but what keeps you going back is the ultimate level of excitement to successfully sneak up onto a deer, maybe even that trophy and have a successful harvest, there's nothing like it.

I'm no advocating to give up tree stand hunting. What I am saying is learn all the tactics necessary to hunt deer. If tree stand hunting isn't producing then perhaps it's time to try another tactic. Use them all. Learn them all. You'll become a better hunter.

I think that Pennsylvania hunters will continue to gripe and complain because the PGC has changed things. This change I believe, is for the better in the long run. I understand the complaining and the distrust. This would be an unpopular move by any fish and game department. I commend the PGC for having the guts to do what they believe is right scientifically.

Once the dust has settled and the hunters have adjusted themselves to the change, I predict that Pennsylvania will sell record numbers of hunting licenses, both resident and non-resident.

Although it may be tough to start, I recommend finding new hunting grounds if necessary and learn better tactics to fit the terrain and habitat. Learning new things can be fun and challenging. This will in turn up the level of excitement to hit the woods.

Tom Remington