Bowhunting season begins Saturday for all of Allegheny County, small slices of western Westmoreland, opens Oct. 5 statewide

Justin Relihan has been bowhunting since he was 16 years old.

The Butler resident began hunting at age 12 with a rifle, but quickly found he had more of a passion for using a compound bow.

“I like the quietness of bowhunting,” said Relihan, 48. “There’s a lot less people. That’s changed a bit over the years. But with rifle season, you’re competing with a lot of other people. And rather than doing their own natural thing, deer are kind of constantly being spooked and moving around a lot. I just liked bowhunting better.”

Archery season is set to begin Saturday in Pennsylvania Game Commission Wildlife Management Unit 2B, which includes all of Allegheny County and small slices of western Westmoreland and northeastern Washington counties. It runs through Nov. 29.

Relihan has to wait just a little longer, when the statewide archery season opens Oct. 5. But he doesn’t mind.

“I like the challenge of it, especially using a compound bow,” he said. “When I was younger, the only people allowed to use crossbows were people with disabilities, but I think there’s more of a challenge with a compound or re-curved bow. You have to be able to pull the bow back and hold it until you choose your shot.”

And while archery season isn’t as popular as rifle hunting, Relihan will hardly be alone.

“No other state has as many bowhunters as Pennsylvania,” said Game Commission Executive Director Steve Smith. “And it’s not hard to see why so many love the season. It’s a special time, with the chance to hunt in mild weather against a backdrop of amazing fall color early on and the promise of the whitetail rut later.

“Hunters appreciate what’s available and take advantage of it,” he said.

Last year, archers harvested nearly 155,000 deer, according to the game commission. That accounts for about 36% of all deer taken by hunters in the state, and it lines up with the national average of 34%.

The early season includes two Sundays — Nov. 17 and 24 — and the statewide season will also include Nov. 17, before ending on Nov. 22. The season reopens from Dec. 26 to Jan. 20.

After 32 years of bowhunting, Relihan said one of the biggest challenges can sometimes be finding a good hunting spot.

“I’m kind of blessed because our neighbors own 100 acres, and they’ve allowed my family to kind of have exclusive rights on their property, at least during archery season,” he said. “But it’s an issue. More and more people are posting their property, or don’t want to deal with the liability, or they’ve recognized the value of their land and they’re leasing it out for hunting.”

For more on archery season, see PGC.pa.gov.