North Carolina

[caribou_bill]

I might be moving to North Carolina soon. Has anybody ever deer hunted there? Any info would be appreciated......

[I'm bit]

that lives and hunts in N.C pm me and I will give you his email address

[NannySlayer]

I'm originally from SC and only hunted there. Several friends would travel to NC.. Beautiful state no matter where you're at. I do know there is alot of "core" (WMA- wildlife management area..) if you're not interested in joining a hunt club. (lease) Some bow only areas as well.

[agtex42]

Where abouts will you be moving to? The hunting varies depending where you are in the state. The coastal counties get a lot of pressure from folks running dogs so its a little harder to kill mature deer. The county I hunt in had about 1200 bucks killed last year (170ish of these were buttons/nubbins) and only 1000 or so does were taken. The majority of the more quality deer I've seen harvested have come from the central and western regions.

I've been after this guy all season, still haven't seen him during daylight hours. I don't think he'll break 120, but he'd be considered a quality buck for where I'm hunting.

[caribou_bill]

I'll be in the Fayetteville area.

[bowhuntertex]

I hunted the coastal area back in the early 90's when I was stationed there. Like agtex42 said they run dogs down there and it can make it tough hunting. We always had our best luck getting deep into the woods and finding a island of land that had water all around it.

[agtex42]

I think you'll like hunting that area. The deer population is better, and there's not as much pressure on them. There's decent public land opportunities and if you want a lease you won't break the bank. Fayetteville itself is pretty country as well, not Asheville by any stretch but it beats looking at miles and miles of flat pine plantation.

[PBFrijoles]

Bill when will you be in Fayettnam? We have a lease in Lillington but I'm PCSing to Texas by the end of December. I'll put you in contact with my buddies who will keep the lease if you'd like.

[Black Ice]

Ive got a lease for you in Sanford North Carolina 202 acres its about 35 miles outside of fayetville. Not the best place to hunt but I'm a little spoiled because I hunt in south Texas on my family's ranch. Also there are no AR in Sanford and they will be needing somebody next year. One more thing it is covered up with turkeys.

[BoneDigger]

I'm a South Carolinian, and hunted there all my life, but never made it up to NC. I have done some surveying in the coastal areas and it seemed pretty similar to the Lowcountry where I grew up.

Todd

[caribou_bill]

I appreciate the info and will PM you guys soon.

[Grayson]

You'll probably be disappointed comparing it to Texas deer hunting. On a positive note, there are black bears in the Eastern part of the state that get really big eating scraps from the hog farms and you can hunt them.

[agtex42]

You'll probably be disappointed comparing it to Texas deer hunting. On a positive note, there are black bears in the Eastern part of the state that get really big eating scraps from the hog farms and you can hunt them.

I'd respectfully disagree. Yes it's different from TX (depending one where you're coming from) but I'd argue that that's not necessarily a bad thing. The bucks here are nowhere near the caliber of what you'd find in S TX but they are very smart and if you're able to kill a mature buck it is quiet the accomlishment. These deer have an abundance of natural forage and ample cover, and they rarely have to go more than a few hundred yards from their bed to get their fill every feeding period. What does this mean to you??

You have to HUNT these deer, off-season scouting, scent control, playing the wind, planning your ingress/egress routing, proper back cover for your stand placement (cause they look up every 10 steps!). It's a tough hunt, and coming from TX it took me the better part of two seasons to figure it out. First year in the woods here I saw 5 deer total, 5! I see anywhere from 2-6 each sit now, but it's been a process to say the least.

So for me the change of scenery wasn't a dissapointment in the least, rather a challenge, and I'd argue that overcoming the difficulty of the hunt has been far more rewarding than seeing 20+ deer every time I get in the woods but to each his own.

[BoneDigger]

I would agree that the caliber of deer in NC will rival anywhere in TX with the exception of South TX. There are some nice bucks up there if you find the right area.

Todd

[agtex42]

One of the better deer taken locally last year...