Elk Country Visitors Center – Benezette

Park Info:

Parking: There is lots of free parking available at near the visitors center. The directions available below will take you directly to the parking lot.

Directions on PCs: Locate the Google map below the search box on the right-hand side of this webpage. Click “Get Directions” on the map pin details.

Directions on Tablets and Mobile Phones: Locate the Google map near the bottom of this page, just below the search box. Click “Get Directions” on the map pin details.

Fall wouldn’t be complete without a trip to the Elk Country Visitors Center in Benezette. Just as the leaves begin to change color the preparations for our yearly hour-plus trip to Benezette begin. We like to select days that allow us to arrive just before dusk, when the majority of people are pre-occupied with other things, such as football, but also when the weather is warmer.

Near the visitors center there are a series of paths and lookout points where you are allowed to view the elk. These defined areas are there for your protection as there are snakes in the woods, and elk in the fields. For those that are uninitiated, Elk are large wild animals, and will respond to people as if they are a threat. They can seriously injure or kill you.

From the viewing areas you can see the elk very well, but you may have trouble taking pictures with your phone as they are pretty far away.

It won’t take long to spot professionals with their camera’s that have a lens longer then my arm. I do not have one of those, but I do have a pair of binoculars, and a neat little trick.

Place your cell phone’s camera directly in front of one of the binoculars eye ports and hope you have a steady hand. If your lucky, and you take lots of photos, you will get some reasonably good close ups. For the rest of the photos the black ring around the subject are caused by my not-so-professional camera rig.

Not too bad of shots from half-way across a large field with a cellphone!

Brief History:

In the 1600s to 1700s elk lived wild in every county in Pennsylvania. Unfortunately the last native elk was shot in 1867. From 1913-1926, The Pennsylvania Game Commission brough 177 elk from Yellowstone National park and released them into 8 counties. Currently there are roughly 1000 elk in the following 6 counties: Elk, Cameron, Clinton, Clearfield, McKean and Potter.