where to start.......
First off firepower..........270 and bigger will do the trick.
Where in north - eastern PA do you live? If it's anywhere near me (white Haven) or the Poconos, go in your backyard !!!!!
A good thing to do before going out for bear is to SCOUT!!!! It's the most you can do around this state. Since baiting, using scents, and just about everything else is illegal (it's a good thing) the most you can do is scout.
Best way to find bear is look for their droppings. Also check out the bark on trees. No i'm not crazy.....Bear climb trees and also eat the bark. Not just any though. Check out pine, sasafrass and sometimes laurel.
If you know a general area where a bear is hanging out.....Don't sit in a treestand or still hunt. ONLY, do that for the first hour of the day.
After that, stalk the rest of the season. One thing is for sure, you could see one the day before hunting season and hear about that same bear being shot 30 miles down the road the very next morning.
Now here is a little something to remember about black bears.
They have terrible eyesight and their hearing isn't great, But don't plan on fooling their nose. You never will. Happy black bear hunting