Alyssa Debnar of Blairsville laid the crosshairs behind the shoulder, controlled her breath and squeezed the trigger. A lifelong hunter from a family of hunters, she had downed many white-tailed deer and was experienced in scouting for sign, camouflaging her scent and appearance and firing from an elevated position.
But this hunt was different.
Debnar had won one of 187 elk hunting licenses available only through an annual lottery held by the Pennsylvania Game Commission. Hunting and dropping a 500-pound animal, she said, were the biggest thrills of her life.
