Pennsylvania
Elk Outfitters

Hunting elk in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania elk are draw-only, and the draw is the whole story. One application per license year at $11.97 lets you pick up to five combinations of season, sex, and hunt zone, and a point-only option builds a bonus point in years you don't want to hunt. Nonresidents need the $101.97 general hunting license in hand just to apply, and as of January 1, 2026 no more than 10% of licenses can go to nonresidents. The 2026 seasons run archery September 12-27, regular October 3-11 and October 31 to November 8, and a January 9-17 hunt in 2027. The herd sits in the north-central counties around Benezette, where the Game Commission runs its Winslow Hill check station.

The draw is not the only elk hunt sold here. Some Pennsylvania operations guide elk on private ranch ground and book year-round alongside buffalo, red stag, and exotics, which needs no drawing at all. That is a legitimate hunt and a completely different one from chasing the wild herd, so ask any outfitter plainly which you are buying: whether the hunt depends on you drawing a public license, and what happens to your deposit in the years you don't.