State Game Lands 253: hunting, parking and access
State Game Lands 253 is 661 acres owned by the Pennsylvania Game Commission in Venango County, inside WMU 2F. PGC's maps show 3 parking areas and 8 gates.
Data updated October 2026. Boundary, parking, roads and gates: PGC's game lands maps. Seasons: PGC 2026-27 Seasons and Bag Limits.
State game landsState parkSGL 253PGC parkingWMU lineHighway
| Size | 661 acres, measured from PGC's boundary |
|---|---|
| Counties | Venango |
| WMU | WMU 2F |
| PGC region | Northwest Region (office in Franklin) |
| Parking areas | 3 (3 gravel) |
| Game land roads closed to public vehicles | 6.2 miles |
| Gates | 8 |
| Nearest towns | Rouseville (2 mi), Hasson Heights (3 mi) and Oil City (5 mi) |
Where do you park on SGL 253?
PGC maps 3 parking areas on State Game Lands 253, listed north to south. Surfaces: 3 gravel.
| Lot | Latitude, longitude | Surface | Size (square feet) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 41.48896, -79.63300 | gravel | 4,800 |
| 2 | 41.48814, -79.62042 | gravel | 3,500 |
| 3 | 41.47683, -79.62122 | gravel | 3,500 |
Source: PGC State Game Lands parking areas. Sizes and surfaces are PGC's own records; a lot may be plowed or not in winter.
Which roads on SGL 253 are open to vehicles?
PGC's road layer shows no seasonally opened road on SGL 253.
PGC also maps 6.2 miles of game land road on SGL 253 that is closed to public vehicles. PGC's road layer counts 1.4 miles of road open to public traffic through or along the game lands. PGC records 8 gates here.
Sources: PGC State Game Lands roads; PGC State Game Lands gates. Road miles measured by FilledTag from PGC's lines.
Which WMU is SGL 253 in, and what is taken there?
SGL 253 lies wholly in WMU 2F. Seasons, antlerless licenses and harvest are kept by WMU, not by game lands; these are the figures for each whole WMU:
| WMU | Game lands acres in it | Antlered deer | Antlerless deer | Bears |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WMU 2F | 661 | 10,785 (2025-26) | 15,651 (2025-26) | 213 (2024) |
In WMU 2F, 2026-27 archery deer runs October 3 to November 20, and December 26 to January 24, 2027 and the regular firearms season November 28 to December 13.
Harvest: PGC Annual Deer Population Report, April 2026; PGC's 2024 bear harvest release. Seasons: PGC 2026-27 Seasons and Bag Limits.
How do you get to SGL 253?
Highways within five miles: US 62, PA 227, PA 8 and PA 157. Nearest towns: Rouseville (2 miles), Hasson Heights (3 miles), Oil City (5 miles) and Woodland Heights (6 miles).
PGC's land records for SGL 253: PGC real estate, SGL 253.
PGC's rules for every State Game Lands tract, from tree stands to fluorescent orange for non-hunters, are on the Pennsylvania hunting page.
Questions hunters ask
Where can you park on State Game Lands 253?
PGC maps 3 parking areas on SGL 253: 3 gravel. The largest PGC lists is about 4,800 square feet, at 41.4890, -79.6330. Every lot's coordinates are in the table on this page.
What WMU is State Game Lands 253 in?
All of SGL 253 is in WMU 2F. PGC estimates 10,785 antlered and 15,651 antlerless deer were taken in the whole WMU in 2025-26.
Can you drive on the roads in SGL 253?
PGC's road layer shows no road on SGL 253 that it opens to vehicles by season. It shows 6.2 miles of game land road closed to public vehicles. 1.4 miles of road through the game lands is open to traffic.
Can you camp on State Game Lands 253?
No. PGC does not allow camping on any State Game Lands, SGL 253 included. The nearest town is Rouseville, 2 miles away, by the Census map of places.
Get a Pennsylvania hunt plan when they open
Hunt plans for Pennsylvania are coming. Join the list and you'll hear first. The first 50 hunters in each new state get their plan free.
Until then, the free FilledTag app for iPhone has a map that works in every state, Pennsylvania included.
Where these facts come from
- Boundary and acres: PGC State Game Lands boundaries. Parking: PGC State Game Lands parking areas. Roads: PGC State Game Lands roads. Gates: PGC State Game Lands gates.
- WMU harvest: PGC Annual Deer Population Report, April 2026; PGC's 2024 bear harvest release. Seasons: PGC 2026-27 Seasons and Bag Limits.
- Public land around the game lands: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US 4.1). Highways and towns: U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 primary and secondary roads; U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer, places.
FilledTag is not part of the Pennsylvania Game Commission.