Photo by Ron Sinfelt.

On the eastern side of the Commonwealth, our many state parks offer interesting opportunities for public-land hunting. In many locations, these public lands border state game lands, offering even more hunting opportunities.

Connected state parks and game lands give sportsmen excellent access to some prime hunting grounds. Here's a look at some of the best for some great hunting opportunities this fall:

WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT UNIT 5C
On the eastern side of the state, in wildlife management units that border the Delaware River, WMU 5C had the highest estimated whitetail harvest during the 2006-07 season -- including 7,700 antlered deer, which was dead on with the previous year's estimate -- and 16,100 antlerless deer, which was a drop from the previous year's total of 17,600.

Of that number, 3,940 of the antlered deer were taken by archers, who ply their trade primarily in the fall bow season. Archers took another 5,350 antlerless deer.

Unfortunately, WMU 5C may be deer-rich but it's public-land-poor. Nevertheless, isolated locations in WMU 5C provide public spots to hunt. In particular, four state parks in the region offer good fall hunting. While they do contain wooded lands, most of these spaces are not deep forests.

Two of the four, French Creek and Nockamixon, have bordering state game lands.

FRENCH CREEK STATE PARK & SGL NO. 43
French Creek State Park provides the largest amount of huntable parkland in the region, with over 6,000 acres in Berks and Chester counties. In addition, the adjacent SGL 43 has another 2,300 acres.

Parts of French Creek State Park are the most thickly forested in the region. The park has plenty of acreage that features high, steep hills and deep, slanting ravines covered with pines and hardwoods -- and is a favorite with fall archery hunters.

While major parts of French Creek State Park are off-limits to sportsmen, huntable land exists on all four sides.

A major block lies north of Hopewell Lake and Park Road. Three rural roads divide this section and provide access. From east to west, Shed Road, Route 345 and Geigertown Road offer access from either Red Corner Road or Crusher Road.

West of the power line, Shed Road provides access to some good habitat in this section of the park. The slope on one side of Shed Road rises hard to the east, while the western face slides away into a deep ravine to the west.

Parking may be found along Shed Road, but this road has significant dips and winding curves, so be careful when parking your vehicle. Designated parking may be found at the intersection of Shed Road and Route 345 near the no-hunting boundary.

Route 345 roughly parallels Shed Road from Crusher Road south. The highway route provides access to the typical north park terrain. At various spots along Route 345, there are trailheads and designated parking spots. Hunters favor the Six Penny Trail near the northern tip of the park because it parallels Penny Creek.

For hunters not interested in following trails, hike east of Route 345 back toward Shed Road. This is a good alternative, particularly in the lower section where tiny creeks and private land holdings do not intrude.

For information on the state park, call (610) 582-9680.

SGL 43 is in several parcels on the park's southern boundaries. Access is primarily along Harmonyville Road off Hopewell Road. Another way in is to take Route 100 to Route 23, travel west to Warwick and then follow Laurel Road into the game lands.

The terrain of SGL 43 is similar to the park, but with PGC food plots providing man-made enticements for whitetails.

NOCKAMIXON STATE PARK & SGL NO. 157
About 3,000 acres of Nockamixon State Park are open to hunting, and the nature of these lands makes them a favorite of fall bowhunters.

In addition, the adjacent SGL No. 157 contains another 2,010 acres of public land adjoining the park. Some of this state game lands is on Haycock Mountain, the second-highest peak in Bucks County.

The wooded lands around Lake Nockamixon are not dense. A large amount of this land was previously in homesteads or farms, so there are wide parcels of open fields containing grass and brush where deer abound.

Route 563 is the major road on the north side of the park, and hunters park all along the roadway to gain immediate access to the grounds.

An interesting area to try is west of Sawmill Road, after Route 563 passes some park property that is closed to hunting. Soon after the intersection, Route 563 continues onto the Tohickon boat access and then the Haycock boat access.

In between, huntable parcels extend down to the waterline and also go up the northern slope on the opposite side of the highway.