Some hunters dream of getting a bull elk or a trophy-sized buck, but one sportsman was able to get both in less than 30 days in Pennsylvania.
Andrew Mazzarese, 35, of Hollsopple, harvested a 7x8 point bull elk on Nov. 4 in Elk County and was able to get a 12-point buck Nov. 29 several miles from his home in Somerset County.
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After three years of trying to get drawn for an elusive elk tag in the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s annual lottery drawing, he received the call this summer that he won an elk license. “I was very surprised,” he said.
The agency received 104,992 applications from hunters for this year’s allocation of 140 elk licenses.
One of his co-workers was at the Elk Expo in Benezette when the names were announced and he called Mazzarese before he received word from the Game Commission. “It was very unexpected,” he said.
Andrew Mazzarese stands with his Pennsylvania bull elk Nov. 4 in Elk County.2025 elk hunts: 7 hunters share what it's like to successfully hunt Pennsylvania's elk with rare chances
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He was able to hunt with his brother, father-in-law and guide Jeff Colwell of Hicks Run Outfitters in Benezette Township, Elk County.
On the first day of the season, he saw several different bulls, but everything was in a place where he couldn’t hunt. When he was on public land, they found two bulls, but he didn’t have a good shot opportunity or know if they were large enough.
“It was exciting, at least. It was an up and down the mountains on pretty challenging terrain to walk on,” he said.
The next morning, they were able to set up near a field. The outfitter networked with a hunter who had a cow elk tag for the same zone and he joined them on the second day.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementAs daylight broke, there was a bull and cow out in the field about 175 yards away. Both Mazzarese and the other hunter were able to shoot their elk. “We doubled up which is a kind of a unique and cool experience there,” he said.
Mazzarese was surprised at the size of his bull. “They’re way bigger and once you get up close to them in person compared to what you see in pictures. It’s kind of hard to visualize the size of them until you get up on them. So, I was pretty excited.”
After he made the shot, he texted his wife, Chelsea, and said he wanted his sons, who are 7, 5 and 3, to come and see the bull. “It worked out. My dad actually made the drive up from (Somerset County) so my kids could come see my elk. That was definitely one of the most rewarding parts of it.”
Looking back, he said, “It was awesome overall. That fact that I could do that 2 and a half hours away from home and then bringing the family up all in a couple days is pretty amazing. To try to do that out West is just not going to happen in that fashion. I feel fortunate to be picked. I never thought I would be; never in a million years, really.”
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMazzarese is having the head and antlers mounted by a taxidermist, but at that time he didn’t know he would be bringing in another animal to mount later that same month.
Andrew Mazzarese holds his 12-point Somerset County buck on Nov. 29.Pennsylvania whitetail hunt
The first day of Pennsylvania’s rifle deer season, Mazzarese’s luck continued.
At 7:10 a.m. he was able to harvest the largest buck of his life. “Another right-time-at-the-right-place experience,” he said.
He was hunting on a piece of private land he’s hunted for years. He said two or three deer were running away when another deer caught his attention. “This buck was standing there about 60 to 70 yards away. So, I shot,” he said.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe buck bounded off. “I went up to him about 45 minutes later and he was way nicer than I expected him to be. So yeah, it’s been a crazy, best year I ever had,” he said.
The buck has symmetrical length tines and an inside spread of more than 17 inches wide.
He didn’t have a clue that a buck that large was on the property. “I was hopeful that a buck would be in the area, but I had no idea he was going to be there,” Mazzarese said.
His father-in-law provided orange clothing for two of Mazzarese’s young sons to walk to the hunting stand and they tracked the deer together. “It didn’t go very far, but I wanted to just get them to be a part of that, so they felt like they found my deer for me,” he explained.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementHe’s having a shoulder mount made with the buck. With having a buck and a large elk being mounted, he said, “I have space for the deer, but the bull is going to be tight. We’ll see how it looks and then go from there,” he said with a laugh.
“I feel very fortunate to have luck on my side. I feel blessed to do it and share the experiences with my family,” he said.
With having a bull and a buck, he’s now considering a black bear hunt during the extended season and a spring gobbler to qualify for the state’s rare quadruple trophy honors. “The bear is going to be the hard one,” he said. “I’ve been lucky this year, but I don’t know if I’ll be that lucky.”
Brian Whipkey is the outdoors columnist for USA TODAY Network sites in Pennsylvania. Contact him at [email protected] and sign up for our weekly Go Outdoors PA newsletter email on this website's homepage under your login name. Follow him on Facebook @whipkeyoutdoors.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Pennsylvania hunter gets rare bull elk, 12-point buck in same month
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