Why You Should Visit Elk County in May

Elk County is aptly named. That part of the Allegheny National Forest, along with Cameron County, holds steep mountains, deep valleys, and grazing fields where nearly 1,400 wild elk herd. And if you make plans now, by the end of May, you’ll be able to see baby elk (calves!) frolicking in wildflower meadows. Visitors love to watch with binoculars and listen to their unique sounds, including bugles, barks, chirps, and moans.

Welcoming baby elk in Pennsylvania is particularly special when you consider that the herds were completely gone in 1867 after rapid settlement and hunting threatened their habitat. The Pennsylvania Game Commission began reintroducing them in 1913 with 177 Rocky Mountain elk that they transferred to northern areas of Pennsylvania.

Find viewing guides and scenic drive maps from the Pennsylvania Great Outdoors Visitors Bureau. They explain ways to preserve the animals and their spaces, like not personifying them with names, because “characterizing elk, or any wildlife, by naming them degrades their wild essence.”