Tar Heel sportsmen will have more public properties to hunt during 2007-08, and prospects have never looked better.
The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission continues to serve sportsmen by adding new game lands to its 2-million acre total, with most of the new properties coming on line in 2007 and next year in the Central section, which is administered by supervising biologist Harlan Hall of Burlington.
“We picked up land in Warren, Halifax, Northampton and Edgecombe counties,” he said. “Most of it we got this year were IP (International Paper) lands obtained through (funding by) The Nature Conservancy.”
New Central region game lands eventually will total 70,000 acres.
A new game land opening in the west this year, Sandy Mush, in Buncombe and Madison counties, will offer hunting for small game, deer and wild turkeys.
Western region biologist Joffrey Brooks is excited because Sandy Mush GL will afford the WRC its first chance to develop some public dove fields to serve area hunters.
Overall, N.C. sportsmen should find opportunities to hunt just about every species native to the South this year at N.C.’s public hunting lands.
Here’s our annual regional review of those game lands.
EASTERN N.C.
Deer
Best game-land bets: Holly Shelter, Suggs Mill Pond, Roanoke River Wetlands and NWR, Goose Creek, Lantern Acres, Van Swamp, Chowan.
Tommy Hughes of New Bern, the WRC’s eastern region supervising biologist, said the type of deer hunting one prefers in his neck of the woods probably will dictate which public lands hunters choose.
“I’d rate the Roanoke River Wetlands and Wildlife Refuge high for deer,” he said. “But that’s permit hunting and mostly for solitary hunters or small groups. It’s popular with bow hunters. Croatan National Forest, Holly Shelter and Angola Bay also are good deer areas for big-time dog hunting. But hunters should remember the Bear Garden Tract at Holly Shelter will be permit-only hunting for deer and bear.”
“Suggs Mill Pond has deer, but it’s a different kind of permit hunting, a very thick area and no dogs allowed.”
Hughes said Lantern Acres (two sections totaling 1,825 acres in Washington and Tyrrell counties, the largest adjoining Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge and the second a few miles west off Tom Pepper Road) also has good numbers of whitetails.
The Sandbank Road section of the Chowan Swamp GL in Gates County (at the north bank of the Chowan River) also has a good whitetail population.
“We’ve also got some new sections (of game land) coming in on the upper and lower sections of the Meherrin River,” Hughes said.
At the mid coast, he rated Goose Creek (10,027 acres in Beaufort and Pamlico counties) and massive Croatan National Forest (160,724 acres in Carteret, Craven and Jones counties) as top deer spots.
“Most of Bladen Lakes State Forest is open to dog hunting,” he said, “although the deer density isn’t as high as other places. The Singletary Tract isn’t open to dog hunters.”
Lantern Acres, Van Swamp and Chowan (west of Edenton) game lands also have deer, Hughes said.
A new game land in Craven County, Dover Bay (3,100 acres), will feature six-day-per-week gun deer hunting and an Oct. 13-Jan. 1, 2008 either-sex season.
Black Bear
Best game-land bets: Chowan Swamp, Buckridge, Croatan National Forest, Dare County Bombing Range, Gull Rock (Long Shoal Tract), Holly Shelter, Bladen Lakes State Forest.
The top black bear public land in the east likely is the Chowan Swamp Game Land along the Chowan River in Gates County.
Last year hunters killed 10 black bears there, which led all eastern N.C. game lands.
“But the Buckridge in Tyrrell County might be nearly as good,” Hughes said.
Hunters last year took eight bears at Buckridge, which borders Frying Pan Lake on its north and extends east from N.C. 94 at Pocosin Lakes NWR at its west boundary to the Alligator River at its eastern side.
The Long Shoal Tract at Gull Rock also is another good bear area, Hughes said.
“The Long Shoal Tract of Gull Rock Game Land (31,057 acres) is the only portion of that game land (northeast of Engelhard) that’s not a bear sanctuary,” Hughes said.
The larger section of Gull Rock lies south of Lake Mattamuskeet and includes a portion of Swan Quarter National Wildlife Refuge.
Angola Bay (28,484 acres in Duplin and Pender counties, east of I-40 and north of Burgaw) is another decent public bear area, giving up six bruins to hunters last year.
“Of course, Holly Shelter and Croatan National Forest are the two biggest eastern game lands and both have bears,” Hughes said.
Bladen Lakes State Forest (32,363 acres in Bladen County) also has bears but only still hunting is permitted at the separate Singletary Tract. Dogs may be used at the larger section inside a rough triangle between the Ruskin and Ammon communities and Smith Mill Pond.
Dare County Bombing Range inside the Dare Game Land allows two permit-only dog hunts (Nov. 17 and Dec. 15, 2007) and two permit-only still hunts (Nov. 14, Dec. 12, 2007), and the area reportedly is loaded with bears.
“The still hunts are always Wednesdays and the dog hunts are Saturdays,” Hughes said. “It’s a very active bombing range for the Navy during the week. You might have dogs scattered at places they shouldn’t be on a Wednesday. So (military) training prevents dog bear hunts on weekdays.”
Waterfowl
Best game-land bets: Suggs Mill Pond, Goose Creek, Futch, New River, Roanoke River Wetlands and NWR, White Oak River.
“The best (eastern game land waterfowl) areas, I believe, are the permit hunts,” Hughes said.
He noted the WRC has been busy for several years, using financial help and cooperation at one area from Ducks Unlimited, to create and repair of waterfowl impoundments.
Anyone who’s recently hunted ducks in the east knows the days of finding ducks flying up and down creeks are numbered — the birds generally head for private impoundments where a meal is waiting. The WRC has tried to counter that trend by building game lands impoundments.
“J. Morgan Futch (600 acres, Tyrrell County) might be the best impoundment game land in the east,” Hughes said.
The Futch game land has 15 impoundments broken into three units.
“Besides ducks, hunters with swan permits will have a good chance to take a tundra swan,” Hughes said.
Futch GL is just west of the Alligator community on U.S. 64 East. Swans fly to it from Lake Mattamuskeet and Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge.
The Goose Creek Game Land (10,027 acres in Beaufort and Pamlico counties) also should have good waterfowl hunting at two prime impoundments, Pamlico Point and Campbell Creek. Most Goose Creek areas allow only permit hunts, except the Smith Creek and Hobucken impoundments. This game land features primarily teal, gadwall and wigeon.
“We’ve also done an awful lot of work at the Catfish Lake impoundment inside Croatan National Forest,” Hughes said, “and planted a fair amount of Japanese millet.”
Catfish Lake covers 600 acres and attracts ringneck and puddle ducks.
“The Roanoke River Wetlands also should be good with its swamps and impoundments, especially for wood ducks, ringnecks, mallards and teal,” Hughes said.
“The Gull Rock Game Land in Hyde County may not be as good as some of the others in that area, but when (the weather) is rough on the (Pamlico) Sound, birds will be there.”
Currituck Game Land has a series of former private blinds for which hunters may apply. Check the WRC’s free Special Hunt Opportunities booklet.
“We’ve got some blinds at (WRC) property and some at the (Currituck National Wildlife) Refuge,” Hughes said. “That can be some real good hunting. The refuge blinds can be pretty productive for puddle ducks, teal, gadwall, black ducks, and hunters can take snow geese occasionally.”
The nearby North River GL, offering mostly woodies and mallards, also has a permit-only impoundment.
“Suggs Mill Pond (9,588 acres, Bladen and Cumberland counties) also has several impoundments, and we’ve done a lot of work down there, too,” Hughes said. “It’s got wood ducks, some teal and mallards.
“It attracts a lot of ringnecks”
Small Game
Best game-land bets: Bladen Lakes State Forest, Lantern Acres, Cape Fear Wetlands, Caswell Farm, Holly Shelter, Croatan NF, Stones Creek, Suggs Mill Pond, Roanoke River Wetlands and NWR, Gull Rock.
Game-lands hunting for doves should be excellent in the east, with a normal fall flight of birds. That’s because of dove fields created and tended by the WRC.
Bladen Lakes State Forest, Croatan, Holly Shelter and Suggs Mill Pond each have WRC-maintained dove fields.
“Caswell Farm Game Land (276 acres, Lenoir County) also should be good, but a lot will depend on when the corn and other crops are harvested,” Hughes said. “You’ll need a special permit to the first couple days (Sept. 1 and Sept. 3).”
Corn and soybeans are planted at Caswell Farm, which is an experimental site for the N.C. Department of Agriculture.
The Roanoke River Wetlands Game Land also has some excellent dove fields, Hughes said. “It has one big field and five or six smaller ones,” Hughes said.
J. Morgan Futch allows permit-only dove hunting at its impoundments before they’re flooded for waterfowl, so hunters must use non-toxic shot.
“Gull Rock has got a fantastic stand of sunflowers this year,” Hughes said. “But we have to wait and see if the deer eat ’em up.”
The Roanoke River game lands will have good gray squirrel hunting, along with float trips at the Cape Fear Wetlands Game Land (5,281 acres, Pender County).
“Croatan National Forest and Bladen Lakes State Forest each have some fox squirrels, too,” Hughes said.
Rabbits will be found at Holly Shelter, Stones Creek and Croatan National Forest.
“Croatan has a mixture of cottontails and bluetails (swamp rabbits),” Hughes said.
The Roanoke River’s Boone Tract has rabbits, but it’s only accessible by boat.
“(The Boone Tract) is near Scotland Neck,” Hughes said. “If a man has a pack of beagles and can put his dogs in a boat and go to the Boone Tract, he can have some fun with rabbits.”
Fields at the Hydeland Section at Gull Rock GL, a section near the local high school, also have rabbits.
The best bet for quail will be at Holly Shelter, Hughes said.
“But Stones Creek in Onslow County, a fairly new game land, is probably worth taking a look at,” he said. “It’s got a lot of cutover and early successional areas.
“And you can still find some birds at Croatan National Forest near the Haywood Landing. Lantern Acres also has some quail.”
CENTRAL N.C.
Deer
Best game-land bets: Jordan Lake, Uwharrie, Caswell, Butner-Falls, Harris, Sandhills, Hyco, Mayo, Shocco Creek, Second Creek.
The best white-tailed deer game lands remain unchanged from 2007.
Jordan Lake Game Land, spreading across 40,595 acres in Chatham, Durham, Orange and Wake Counties (actually 32,868 acres because the lake of the same name at its center contains 13,900 acres) is the prime area for deer. Huntable acreage adjoins nearly every cove of the lake at both sides, except for a short section at the western side north of U.S. 64 off Big Woods Road paralleling the Haw River arm.
As usual, the counties surrounding Jordan Lake led the state last year in deer kills with 984 total big-game deer tags filled by hunters.
One reason for the area’s annually-high game-lands deer-tag reports is many hunters from the northwest and western sections of the state travel to the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area to spend the last two or three weeks of the season.
The Central section gun season always ends either Jan. 1 or 2, while shotgun/rifle hunting for whitetails ends Dec. 15 in the northwest this year and Dec. 8 in the west.
“A lot of western N.C. hunters spend the last two weeks of the year in motels around Jordan Lake,” said WRC enforcement Sgt. Tim Sasser, “sometimes including men’s church groups and their pastors.”
The only reason pressure isn’t greater at Jordan Lake the last two weeks of the year is the nearby Butner-Falls Game Land, north of Durham and spread across 41,115 acres (minus the 12,500 watery acres of the lake, also at this game land’s center).
Many Research Triangle deer hunters like Butner-Falls, as do some of the johnny-come-lately WNC deer chasers at season’s end.
Butner-Falls’ northern reaches, especially toward Granville County, are deer rich. Many of the hardwood slopes on the western edge of the game land south of I-85 are attractive spots for whitetails, and deer hunters, who sometimes travel by boat, beach their crafts on the shoreline and climb out to hunt the acorn and hickory forests.
The next-best piedmont deer game land lies 120 miles to the southwest. Massive Uwharrie National Forest in Davidson, Montgomery and Randolph counties encompasses dozens of sections spread across 50,189 public acres.
It’s scattered along the Burkhead Mountain Range, with a large section adjacent to the eastern shoreline of Badin Lake. It’s also in the Pee Dee River drainage, which means Uwharrie has steep slopes, pine thickets and hardwood ridges, perfect whitetail habitat. Many crop farms also surround the national forest.
Hall rates the Sandhills Game Land No. 4 in the piedmont, basically because of its size (61,225 acres) and because dog hunting is allowed — except at the J. Robert Gordon Field Trial Grounds in the Richmond County section.
Hunting at the Sandhills GL is different from other Central section areas because, well, it’s in the sandhills with habitat marked by rolling sandy hills dotted with longleaf pines and scrub oaks. Fields inside this GL (and some of the forests) have been control-burned to help rebuild quail and other small-game habitats.
The big Caswell Game Land north of Burlington and south of Yanceyville is a highly-pressured northern-piedmont hardwood-forested hilly region. Known for its large wild turkey population, Caswell has plenty of deer and hosts many hunters from Burlington, Greensboro/Winston-Salem, Durham and southern Virginia.
Although most hunters consider the Roanoke River Wetlands Game Land and Roanoke River National Wildlife Refuge Game Land (30,499 total acres) to be in the eastern portion of North Carolina, the upper section is tucked into the northeastern corner of the Central section management zone at either side of the Roanoke River in Bertie, Halifax, Martin and Northampton counties.
However, Roanoke River GL is listed in the Coastal Region of the Game Lands Map Booklet. It’s also two game lands, one managed totally by the WRC (on the Halifax, Martin county side of the river) and one (the Bertie County side) by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (although WRC enforcement officers have jurisdiction everywhere).
Even though these designations are complex, hunting rules at both game lands are simple — if you hunt, you have to have a permit, for any type of game during any season.
The habitat is mostly bottomland hardwoods, cypress and gum swamps and agricultural fields.
Most access is by boat, as the Roanoke River runs through the center of the game land, although some road accesses are available.
Hunters can view huntable sections by using the WRC’s Special Hunt Opportunities, then applying for pay permits through Wildlife Cooperator License Agents. Prices ($5 per permit) and dates of hunts are listed by “tracts” at this game land.
Archery permits are unlimited while only a limited number of gun permits are allowed.
Hall noted the WRC has added 3,756 acres in four scattered tracts to the Roanoke River GLs.
“They’ll be permit-only hunting areas, just as the rest of the game land,” he said. “One will be near where Highway 258 crosses the Roanoke River. Another will be an addition to the Boone Tract near U.S. 258 (1,347 acres), then there’s the Odom Tract (890 acres) off U.S. 258, an addition to Pollocks Ferry of 95 acres, and the Cypress Swamp/Sandy Run addition of 1,424 acres.
“The Boone, Odom and Cypress Swamp additions are in Northampton County while Pollocks Ferry is in Halifax County.”
Harris Game Land (13,227 acres in Chatham and Wake counties surrounding Shearon Harris Lake) is a decent, although smaller, Piedmont deer area. However, there’s a no-hunt safety zone around the Progress Energy nuclear plant at the lake’s northwest shoreline.
Smaller game lands — Hyco, Mayo and Shocco Creek — may not have comparable areas to hunt but are in trophy-rich sections of the state. The No. 2 non-typical state-record whitetail, that sported a 209 2/8-inch rack, was shot near Hyco Lake in Person County. Mayo Game Land, also in Person, isn’t far away, while Shocco Creek is in Franklin and Warren counties.
Waterfowl
Best game-land bets: Butner-Falls, Jordan Lake, Shocco Creek, Chatham, Lee, Alcoa, Hyco, Mayo, Sandhills, Second Creek, Caswell.
Jordan Lake and Butner-Falls continue to be the top waterfowl destinations for Central Piedmont duck hunters.
Jordan Lake has seven “green-tree” impoundments at the upper end of the lake where permits aren’t required. These impoundments are flooded once waterfowl season begins and are favorites of wood ducks.
However, at Butner-Falls, permits are required to hunt diked impoundments (Bluff, Butner Depot, Beaver Dam, Flat River). Hunt dates and the application process will be available by visiting a wildlife service agent or at the Internet at www.ncwildlife.org.
The Butner-Falls impoundments also may be hunted by dove hunters early in the season, but only steel shot can be used.
The two game lands allow alternate-day hunting, with Jordan Lake permitting hunting Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, plus holidays and opening and closing days of respective waterfowl seasons. Butner-Falls duck hunting is permitted Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, holidays and the opening and closing days of seasons.
“Harris Lake is a really good lake for ringneck ducks,” Hall said.
The Caswell Game Land impoundment, off N.C. 86, is also a popular area but receives so much pressure it’s a permit-only duck-hunting area.
“We’re hoping to add a new waterfowl impoundment at Caswell off Stephentown Road near High Rock School House, but I’m not certain if it will be open this year,” Hall said.
Chatham and Lee game lands, south of Harris and Jordan lakes, also have good waterfowl hunting. They’re on opposite shorelines of the Cape Fear River and accessible by boat at the Buckhorn WRC ramp where N.C. 42 crosses the river.
The Alcoa and Pee Dee River Game Lands on the Yadkin and Pee Dee river chains, respectively, also offer some duck hunting at posted shoreline areas.
Shocco Creek GL in Franklin and Warren counties has a 15-acre beaver pond that affords some wood duck, mallards and some Canada geese.
Sandhills GL has scattered ponds that offer wood duck hunting at times.
Small Game
Best game-land bets: Uwharrie, Butner-Falls, Jordan Lake, Caswell, Sandhills, Second Creek., Roanoke River Wetlands Game Land and Wildlife Refuge Game Land, Sandhills.
Quail numbers remains spotty at most Central section game lands, although rabbit hunting is good at many areas, including Butner-Falls, Jordan and Sandy Creek.
“There’s lots of rabbits on the (new Embro GL), if a man’s adventurous enough to want to hunt those cutovers,” Hall said.
Squirrels should be plentiful at Uwharrie, Jordan, Butner-Falls, and the Roanoke River Wetlands and Wildlife Refuge game lands, along with Caswell GL The Sandhills GL has the added attraction of fox squirrels.
Most Central region game lands have dove fields, with the most popular at Butner-Falls, particularly the Brickhouse Road fields. In all, Butner-Falls has nine dove fields covering 50 acres while Jordan Lake has six dove fields.
“The drought is one of the reasons we’re waiting to see at Butner-Falls if we’ll have a decent dove season, plus we’re waiting to see if the deer eat up all the sunflowers and if the herbicides work,” Hall said.
Uwharrie has seven dove fields, Caswell has six and the Sandhills has 10 dove fields.
Quail are most likely to be found at the Sandhills GL because of a CURE area managed specifically for small game where hunting isn’t allowed. However, other areas at the Sandhills also have seen selective timber thinning and controlled burns to create better quail habitat.
Second Creek GL in Rowan County will have permit-only small-game hunting. Applicants should obtain a free Special Hunt Opportunities booklet where they purchase hunting licenses to see hunt dates and bag limits, which are small (two quail per day).
Dove hunting will be allowed at Sandy Creek after Sept. 15 with small-game season Sept. 17-Feb. 28 but only during Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Small-game hunting won’t be permitted during the week of muzzle-loader deer season.
WESTERN N.C.
Deer
Best game-land bets: Thurmond-Chatham, Needmore, South Mountains, Green River, Sandy Mush, Buffalo Cove, Mitchell River, Cold Mountain, Pisgah, Nantahala.
White-tailed deer populations are growing at some sections of the western N.C. mountains, but at other areas they still don’t fill every niche.
It’s a strange situation because deer have overspread almost the rest of the state, and the west contains some of the most untamed areas left in North Carolina, preserved forever by federal mandate. But wild and untamed doesn’t always mean good habitat for wildlife, according to game biologists.
“At the (U.S.) Forest Service lands, (deer populations) are either steady or declining because of the lack of habitat in the national forest lands, such as Pisgah and Nantahala,” said Joffrey Brooks, a veteran biologist from Waynesville. “Deer are doing better at some areas (near national forests) that have private land managed for wildlife.”
Brooks said federal forest management policies that continue to disallow controlled burns and timber harvests don’t allow for “early successional habitat” (natural grasses, forbs, small plants and bushes) that offer browse for deer and other wild game. Old-growth forests may be nice to walk through because of the lack of understory caused by leaf canopies that shut out sun light, but any wild animal seen there will be doing the same thing — walking to go someplace else that’s more hospitable and provides food sources.
The good news is a few areas do offer traditionally good deer hunting.
Thurmond Chatham GL, in the northwest corner of Wilkes County, has the advantage of being wedged between two state parks (Doughton on the west and Stone Mountain on the east). It also has a northern boundary with the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Each of those three areas is a deer sanctuary, which means deer move freely through Thurmond Chatham.
This game land is the reason Wilkes County ranks high each year in deer harvests, although it spans only 6,276 acres.
Kip Hollifield, a wildlife biologist from Marion, rated Green River Game Land, 14,308 acres in Henderson and Polk counties, as perhaps the far west’s top public deer region.
Named for the river of the same name that flows from Lake Adger, it’s got several lush bottom-land areas that provide good plant growth for deer. Road access is fairly easy, as several public-parking areas exist off Green River Cove Road’s periphery and at Hungry Road, which snakes through the game land’s interior.
Brooks likes deer prospects at the new Sandy Mush Game Land in Buncombe and Madison counties.
“It’s 2,600 acres and mostly for deer and wild turkeys,” he said.
This game land, with a portion joining the French Broad River northwest of Asheville (split by Turkey Creek) and another section south, adjoining Sandy Mush Creek (also in Buncombe), is land the state acquired from Progress Energy.
Its large fields once supported crops and dairy cattle. Surrounding hills provide plenty of mast crops for deer, wild turkeys and bears.
“It’s mostly open fields,” Brooks said. “It’s got mostly deer and quite a bit of turkeys. (The WRC) bought it just before turkey season last year (2006). There’s never been much legal hunting on it.”
South Mountains Game Land is probably the next-best public-hunting white-tail deer area in the western part of the state.
South Mountains spreads across 19,775 acres in four counties (Burke, Cleveland, McDowell and Rutherford).
This game land, south of Morganton between U.S. 64 and N.C. 226, is split into two tracts (A and B), has 10 total public parking areas and two camping areas. South Mountains GL, which falls on either side of the mountain range of the same name, is so large it boasts two CURE (Cooperative Upland habitat Restoration and Enhancement) sections where the WRC is trying to manage large landscapes to bring back small game, particularly quail.
What also makes this game land a prime deer area, like Thurmond Chatham, is it also adjoins a deer sanctuary at South Mountains State Park. Smart hunters who set up their deer stands at game trails leading toward the park during the early part of the hunting season are likely to be rewarded.
“We’ve also done some prescribed burns and timber management at Needmore and Cold Mountain game lands,” Brooks said. “That should help the deer situation some; (burns) create good understory that help not only deer but turkeys and small game.”
The Pisgah and Nantahala Game Lands, which actually are managed by the U.S. Forest Service but have hunting and fishing managed by the WRC, each spread across a little more than a half-million acres, comprising the two largest game lands in the state. However, poor habitat quality inside the game lands don’t offer much in the way of deer forage.
Black Bear, Boar
Best game-land bets: Pisgah, Nantahala, South Mountains, Green River, Needmore.
A late freeze this spring exacerbated an already-growing nuisance bear problem.
Late cold snaps killed most of the soft-mast crops, such as blackberries and other types of berries, as well as burning oak tree acorn blossoms.
As much as the N.C. apple and peach crops were burned, many mountain counties suffered the same fate for wildlife.
“We’ve got bear nuisance problems everywhere,” Brooks said. “The little ones (cubs) coming out now are in poor (physical) shape because the late winter freeze knocked out spring foods. Even some of the grasses and clovers got burned out and bears eat those things.
“The early fruit trees also got froze out.”
However, Brooks said the situation might be reversed from historical freeze problems, meaning bears might find more food at higher elevations.
“Plants that bloomed earlier at the lower elevations got destroyed, but those at the higher elevations often hadn’t bloomed, so they didn’t get burned by the freeze,” he said. “There actually might be more mast higher in the mountains this summer than at the lower elevations, which is the reverse of what usually happens.
“At lower elevations some of the oak mast was hurt real bad, while some of the oaks higher aren’t as bad because they hadn’t bloomed yet.”
Hollified said Pisgah Game Lands would offer best bear-hunting opportunities.
“It’s the best game land up here for bear,” he said. “It’s got some bear sanctuaries inside it.
“This whole end of the state certainly has got bear problems, but that also means the bear hunting never has been better. We get a lot of out-of-state hunters coming here to hunt, especially from Tennessee.”
Wild pigs, feral hogs, or boars also are creating problems in the mountains, not so much for people, but their numbers have exploded so much they’re threatening habitat, especially inside Pisgah and Nantahala national forests.
Pigs find their food by rooting up tender shoots and seeds, such as acorns, that have fallen from trees and been buried by leaves. But this rooting action also is destructive of fragile, rare plants. That’s basically what’s made feral/wild pigs pests across western N.C.
The WRC, which once classified western N.C. wild pigs/feral hogs as “wild boars” and set a two-part season for them with a two-animal annual bag limit, has dropped that regulation except for six counties — Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Jackson, Macon, Swain — that will continue to have a two-part season (Oct. 15-Nov. 17; Dec. 10-Jan. 1).
“Boar” hunting is considered part of a western N.C. tradition and remains a tourist attraction, bringing in some non-resident hunters. Russian boars were imported and released at some western private lands at the turn of the century, and that stock still is considered “boars,” although big feral pigs are almost indistinguishiable from “Russian” boars. So the six counties wanted to continue cashing in on the “Russian” boar hunting.
However, in the other 94 counties of the state, feral hogs are not considered to be wild boars. They can be hunted anytime.
South Mountains, Needmore and Green River Game Lands also have some bear and wild pig populations.
Small Game
Best game-land bets: Pisgah, Nantahala, Sandy Mush, Needmore, South Mountains, DuPont State Forest, Green River, Shining Rock Wilderness, Thurmond Chatham, Cold Mountain.
The best small-game hunting in the western part of the state will be for squirrels.
“Small-game hunting is pretty tough in the mountains,” Hollifield said. “But you can just about take your pick at Pisgah and Nantahala (game lands) for squirrels).”
Other game lands with squirrels include South Mountains, Dupont State Forest, Green River, Shining Rock Wilderness, Thurmond Chatham and Cold Mountain.
“Rabbit hunting is very spotty, except at a few game lands,” Hollifield said.
The best game lands for rabbits will be at Sandy Mush, with its many pasturelands, and the Needmore GL.
Hollifield also said there’s some decent rabbit hunting at South Mountains Game Land.
“We been pleasantly surprised at the number of quail and grouse at Sandy Mush,” Brooks said. “We’re trying to manage it for small game; in fact, this game land offers the first opportunity we’ve had (in the mountains) to manage for small game.”
One of the prime objectives will be to create some Sandy Mush public dove fields, which are plentiful at game lands in the east and central sections of the state but rare in the west.
“We should have our first dove fields coming on line this fall at Sandy Mush,” Brooks said. “Ever since we lost Brown Mountain (GL), we’ve had complaints from sportsmen that we didn’t have any public dove fields in the west.
“We’ll have about 30 acres planted (at Sandy Mush) in wheat, milo in places and millet. We planted mostly wheat last fall.
“Of course, dove hunting success will depend on how many doves we have coming through there.”
Hollifield said Pisgah’s game lands have some decent grouse numbers, but hunters will have to seek out good habitat.
“It’s probably a good idea to call the U.S. Forest Service to see where they’ve cut (timber) the last 10 to 15 years,” he said. “(Timber) cuts produce the kinds of new growth that grouse need (for food).”
Hollifield pointed out a winter permit-only turkey hunt will be held at Thurmond Chatham GL during Jan. 2008, but restricted to 10 applicants.
Waterfowl
Best game-land bets: Needmore, Green River.
Waterfowl hunting in the west is pretty much restricted to game lands with larger streams flowing through them, such as Needmore (the Little Tennessee River in Macon and Swain counties) and Green River (the river of the same name in Henderson and Polk counties).
Brooks and Hollifield rated Needmore and Green River as the best waterfowl game lands in the west. Most western N.C. duck hunting will be float trips for wood ducks, although some mallards will be jumped.
But there are plenty of other streams passing through western game lands that may afford decent float trips. It’ll just take some work to check them.
The Middle Prong West Fork flows through the Pisgah GL section (including Lake Logan) in Haywood County while the Nolichucky River drains the center of the Pisgah section in Mitchell County.
Pisgah Game Lands sections in Burke and McDowell counties also adjoin Lake James (fed by the Catawba River).
At the Cherokee County section of Nantahala GL, the Hiwassee River (leading to Lake Hiwassee) splits that game land, while Santeetlah Lake centers a Nantahala GL portion in Graham County. The upper half of Chatuge Lake (the lower half is in Georgia) is in Clay County and fed by the Hiwassee River. Of course, the Little Tennessee River feeds massive Fontana Lake in Graham and Swain counties, then flows south to Nantahala Lake. The Pigeon River flows west of Asheville and forms Waterfall Lake in Haywood County.
Of course, the best waterfowl jump-shooting will be found at the French Broad River, a portion of which passes through a section of federal lands (Great Smoky Mountains National Park) in Madison County west of Asheville. Hunting isn’t permitted in the Great Smokies. However, areas of the French Broad outside the park are open to duck hunting. French Broad hunters in the Asheville area enjoy good float trips each year.
Next year the John’s River GL opens. It lies at either side of the John’s River in McDowell and Burke counties at the head of Lake Rhodhiss.
“We’re trying to develop (John’s River) as a waterfowl area,” Brooks said. “It already has a couple hundred acres of flooded beaver swamps that should be good for wood ducks.
“We’re clearing some areas and will hopefully have some impoundments. This’ll be unusual for a western game land.”
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