Deer season moves to “overtime” for North Carolina bowhunters

North Carolina’s Urban Archery program adds a postseason to deer season for bowhunters who didn’t get enough time in the woods.

For most North Carolina hunters, deer season lasts almost 4 months, from the second Saturday in September through Jan. 1. 

But archery hunters get two extensions: 

Urban Archery seasons from early January through mid-February and the Community Deer Management Assistance Program (CDMAP) set by residential areas. 

“I started hunting Urban Archery about five years ago, the same time Oak Ridge joined,” said Tory Pegg. “The town council approved (UA) because the doe population was through-the-roof crazy.”

An Oak Ridge resident who killed North Carolina’s state-record non-typical buck in 2019, Pegg planted food plots inside the town’s boundaries.

“I focused on does,” said Pegg, 26. “Today, the doe population is much more in balance. UA season offers a good chance to shoot a doe and fill a freezer.”

Many municipalities have signed up for the Urban Archery program because deer populations within their boundaries have soared. (Photo by Craig Holt)

Urban Archery’s 2021 hunt dates are Jan. 9-Feb. 14, while CDMAP bowhunting is controlled by private clients.

The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission created Urban Archery 13 years ago. Elkin in Surry County and Washington in Beaufort County were the first municipalities to join. In 2008, Washington archers took four deer, while Elkin hunters nailed 45, the single-season record. 

Sixty-four communities had joined by 2020 when UA hunters tagged 163 whitetails.

UA and CDMAP programs have major differences. Ordinary bowhunters can hunt in municipalities involved in the Urban Archery program. In the  CDMAP program, archers who receive Bowhunter Certification Referral Service training from the N.C. Bowhunters Association are chosen to hunt primarily in residential communities, often gated communities, with deer problems.

“Any Joe Bowhunter can do Urban Archery,” said Don Moore, NCBA’s BCRS chairman.

“Any bowhunter can hunt UA where it’s legal, if they have (landowner) permission,” said Bud Blaylock, the NCBA’s membership committee chairman. “But BCRS is only for NCBA members who are picked for properties that require trained archery hunters.”

Municipalities that wish to trim deer herds with Urban Archery must contact the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission by April 1. Urban Archery participants require no special hunting permits, just a state hunting license and big-game tags, but hunters participating in UA may purchase unlimited, bonus either-sex deer tags (two for $10). 

Bowhunters in North Carolina can hunt Jan. 9-Feb. 14 in 64 communities across North Carolina.

“United Archery seasons are simply an extension of the archery season for municipalities that request to be enrolled,” said Jonathan Shaw, the Commission’s supervising deer biologist. “The same licensing and big-game reporting requirements that exist during normal deer seasons apply. Any municipality can enroll, but (UAs) don’t obligate private landowners to allow hunting on their property.”

Archers who want to hunt in municipalities with an Urban Archery season receive a map of that town’s boundaries. Hunting zones may include public and private lands.

Shaw said that towns join the UA program “as a combination of hunters making requests to increase opportunity, landowners who want to address deer-damage issues, and officials recognizing deer-density issues.”

The Commission started CDMAP in 2018 for residential communities with localized deer-population problems. NCBA provides trained BCRS bowhunters to those communities.

“BCRS isn’t (a program) to get a place to hunt; it’s a service we provide to the public and private-sector that have been overpopulated by deer,” Moore said. “Clients determine hunt rules, so BCRS isn’t everyone’s cup of tea.”

The Commission offers bonus antlerless permits to communities, which in turn distribute them to participating bowhunters who have used their six annual deer tags.

Bowhunters who have used all six of their annual deer tags can purchase extra doe tags for Urban Archery at two for $10. (Photo by Craig Holt)

“Groups and individuals in the CDMAP program coordinate with the Commission to find people who would be good fits, as far as hunters, for their area,” Moore said. “BCRS is a free public service with volunteer bowhunters on a year-round basis.”

Archers who wish to become BCRS-certified must be NCBA members who take the Commission’s Hunter Safety Education course, International Bowhunter Education Course, plus other training. They also must show archery skills, using their own traditional or compound bows.

To learn more about Urban Archery, CDMAP and BCRS, visit:

  • www.ncwildlife.org/Portals/0/Hunting/Documents/Deer/Urban_Archery_2020.pdf;.
  • www.ncwildlife.org/Portals/0/Hunting/Documents/Deer/CDMAP Overview Final.pdf;
  • www.ncbowhunter.com/bcrs.html.
  • Although some archery hunters may hope to drop a buck they targeted during the regular hunting season and couldn’t tag, the major focus of Urban Archery and CDMAP hunters is to reduce doe numbers.

“I’ve taken does during UA,” Pegg said. “I did have a buck I wanted to hunt, but I didn’t see him. I got him two years later in the regular season.”

Bowhunters across North Carolina are taking advantage of Urban Archery seasons for many different reasons. (Photo by Craig Holt)

Serious bowhunters get late season

As many motivations exist for hunting whitetails with archery equipment as there are hunters.

Urban Archery municipalities dot North Carolina’s landscape, and bowhunters who take advantage of the late season may come from anywhere. Many focus on does or scouting.

Matthew Head, who hunts Urban Archery in Summerfield, said it gives him more scouting opportunities for the regular season.

“I’m more of a spectator during Urban Archery season,” said Head, a 43-year-old engineer. “This year, I have more access to more properties, because I didn’t have a lot of places to hunt. I see more deer than during the regular season, and I do more scouting with trail cameras. 

“Spending more time outdoors lets me observe more deer behavior. I can put boots on the ground for active scouting. I hope to understand how deer patterns shift as food sources change, plus, I don’t affect deer movement during prime times.”

Karen Baskin of New Bern became a N.C. Bowhunters Association member a few years ago but didn’t become active until last year. 

“I wanted to improve my archery skills and put some food in my refrigerator,” said Baskin, an industrial engineer at Cherry Point Marine Air Station.  “I wanted to improve my upper-body strength, because you can’t use rifles on the ground in neighborhoods around here. I’ve received good ideas about skills, techniques and stand placements from women hunters.

“I don’t care about horns; I’m about culling does. But if a (buck) walked in front of me, well….”

Mark Headen was a member of Elkin’s inaugural 2008 class of urban archers.

“We harvested the most deer that year (45),” said Headen, 52. 

Tucked in the Foothills of northwest North Carolina, Elkin has acres of excellent whitetail habitat inside its perimeter.

Headen emphasized hunters need to be courteous.

“Hunters need to ask permission, be discreet and not drag deer through backyards,” he said. “All a hunter has to do is contact a city or county seat and make sure it’s open, then talk to residents who are okay with it. You have to remember, you’re there to help reduce car accidents, deer eating up yards and gardens and running between houses.

“Talk to property owners. Not all will give permission, but be respectful; you’re asking to be on their property.”

 

About Craig Holt 1382 Articles
Craig Holt of Snow Camp has been an outdoor writer for almost 40 years, working for several newspapers, then serving as managing editor for North Carolina Sportsman and South Carolina Sportsman before becoming a full-time free-lancer in 2009.

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