WINFIELD, Pa. — After bagging a buck on Sunday morning, Brittany Grubb recounts how she'd passed up the same deer last week.
"And he came right up to me, 20 yards, and I was like 'you know what, this is the buck," Grubb said. "I have to take him this time."
Widely debated Sunday hunting was allowed this weekend throughout the state.
The game commission approving three Sundays: one for whitetail deer during archery season, one for deer rifle season, and one for bear season.
Even avid hunters like Gabe Linn were initially surprised.
"It's nice to give the animals a day of essentially recovery without feeling pressure," said Gabe. "Because I'm a firm believer of animals being in the natural habitat without feeling pressure all the time."
But ultimately, Gabe, his girlfriend, and his brother Damon took to their tree stands around 6 a.m. Sunday morning
"It was really special; I'm only home here for six days. I had six days to hunt, so being able to hunt on Sunday was huge for me," said Damon.
Game wardens say they didn't offer any additional licenses or deer tags due to the extra day of hunting.
Wardens also say weekends are important for teaching youth about the sport.
"People can take their kids out with extra Sundays. The opportunities are so limited for people working Monday to Friday".
"I can see both sides like I said, and maybe a day during the week where hunting isn't allowed would make a little bit more sense and please both sides."
The extra day turned out to be a fruitful one for the group of hunters we spoke with, with two out of three taking down a trophy.
"That's what it's about for us is spending time with people we love in the outdoors," Gabe said.
For more information about Sunday hunting, click here.