Keeping Up With the Carolinas
OK, so I was gonna try to make a post every day this week, but I’m running dry. I’ve actually got to work for my money this week, and along with keeping up with a couple of other discussions, I’m just short of new stuff. So, I’ll borrow from someone else… actually, two “someone elses”. But it’s relevant, trust me.
First of all, my little brother called yesterday to update me on the seasons and such for NC. Looks like bow season opens on 9/11 this year, and I’m really hoping to get out there and stick another whitetail. I’m sure he’ll soon be sending me game cam pictures of some monster buck to entice me across the continent… not that it usually takes that much.
In addition to the hunting season, a few other changes are on tap for NC hunters this year. The most exciting (to me) is that they’ll start allowing bowhunters to hunt on Sundays, as long as we’re hunting private property. That means that when I travel all the way back for a weekend hunt, I can actually hunt the weekend, and not just a few hours on Saturday.
Another big one is the authorization of the use of crossbows during archery season. This is a big deal to a lot of folks, but not so much to me. As far as I’m concerned, besides the fact that you can keep it at full draw, a crossbow doesn’t really offer any advantages over a compound bow. The point is that additional methods had to be incorporated to increase the deer harvest, and letting people shoot crossbows may encourage a few more folks to get out there and kill deer.
You can check out more about the new regs over at my friend Dan’s Moose Droppings blog, or go straight to the source at the NC Wildlife Resources Commission.
I know my brother has been on me to join him down in SC for some early season hunting. I can’t swing it again this year, but I sure would like to get down there. Not only does he have access to some great private land, my friend Jeff has been after me to come down and join them at the Cypress Creek hunting club. In addition to the allure of velvet bucks, they’ve still got a ton of great hog hunting going on down there too.
Check out this video from one of their blinds. It’s really cool to see the behavior of this boar, and how skittish he is the whole time he’s in the open. There’s a lot to be learned by watching critters like this.
Man, I can not wait until bow season. For some reason, the anticipation is killing me, even though it’s a few months away. And seeing trailcam shots like that one, doesn’t help:)
That hog is so skiddish. And hunting the lowcountry would be awesome.
July 16th, 2010 at 6:18 am
Very happy we FINALLY get to hunt on Sundays, even if its just with a bow. After getting word about the new law passing, I approached the landowner that allows me to hunt in Duplin and Pender Counties about how he felt about ME hunting on Sunday. Got the ok, but I get the feeling that not all hunters who have permission to hunt private land will be as lucky. There was a bit of opposition to these changes from some ‘blue law’ advocates…though most came from the NCBA opposition to using cross bows.
July 16th, 2010 at 6:23 am
Everybody’s expecting to have a fun hunting on Sunday, I have been waiting for this for so long now.
July 19th, 2010 at 1:16 am
Cool, my kid would surely love that! Hunting on Sunday… been waiting for this, as I only had a few time on Saturdays. Definitely a good news for me and my kid.
Thanks for sharing.
July 23rd, 2010 at 6:39 am
Hope you have a great trip and that Sunday extra hunting time pays off. If you can’t get a buck down there stop by Ohio where the big bucks roam.
http://www.bestdeerhuntohio.com
August 20th, 2010 at 11:57 am