New guy looking for some information

BrandyWaffle

Button Buck
Hey guys, been browsing this forum for a few hours now and decided to finally post. Yesterday I made the decision to ship out to NC at the ripe age of 20 sometime this fall(end of October-ish). Coming from my home state of Oregon it will be a big move but I am excited to get out and hunt once I get settled. Right now it looks like I am going to be out in the Durham area since it seems to have a decent amount of work in my field(Welding).

So I had a few questions for you guys,

Is most of the hunting out here done on private property? I'm a big waterfowl Hunter but I'll be archery deer hunting too.

Where in the state are there good areas for Hogs? I've always wanted to hunt them and I need an excuse to pick up an AR

Are there any non hunting things I should know about the state before making the move? Things that are pretty important(i know you guys have sales tax but what about income tax and such)

Thanks for your answers in advance! Excited to be part of your guys' community, looking forward to contributing to the photography thread once I make it out east.
 
woodmoose

woodmoose

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
Brandywaffle - when you posted "ship out" I thought you were in the navy,,,,then you said Durham and welding so either I was wrong or your getting out,,,,,,,,

for your questions - lots of people here, so keep that in mind. Public land is available, but can get crowded in places (that lots of people thing),,,,,,hunting leases for private are the norm, though some do get lucky on permission

big waterfowl - you'll be disappointed coming from Oregon,,,,,,,,but there are places -

decent enough deer hunting,,,,,,,,

hogs? they are here and there, mostly along rivers,,,,,used to be some in the Mountains, not sure of status now,,,,,,,,,

non hunting things? Did I say lots of people? Hope your chasing a girl this way,,,otherwise why the HECK are you leaving Oregon for here?
 
lasttombstone

lasttombstone

Kinder, Gentler LTS
Welcome to the forum and hope you have an easy transition to the east side.

I would say that most hunting in NC is done on private land, although there is plenty of public land available throughout the state. Most private land hunters, it seem, end up in some type of club or loose organization to facilitate leasing larger tracts of private land. Speaking mainly here about deer hunting as I have never hunted waterfowl. There seem to be some very knowledgeable people on the forum in that subsection.

There are hogs here, but not in the numbers in some other states but most are going to be on private land as well. The Wildlife commission considers the pests and does what it can to keep their numbers down on state land.

Your other questions, someone else will have to chime in. A couple of things I thought of that you may need to be aware of. If you aren't coming till October, deer season will already be in for archery. You may run into a problem with licensing, maybe. To legally purchase a resident license you must be a resident for the previous 6 months or have established a permanent residence for 60 days. And don't forget Hunters Education certification. If Oregon requires it your past license will probably suffice.
Good luck with it all.
 

Zach's Grandpa

Old Mossy Horns
Glad to have you if you are sure this is where you want to live but don't be fooled that you are coming to a cheap place to live. N C is not cheap, if you buy it, own it, eat it, live in it, drive it, or work at it then there is a tax of some type on it.
 

BrandyWaffle

Button Buck
lasttombstone said:
Welcome to the forum and hope you have an easy transition to the east side.

I would say that most hunting in NC is done on private land, although there is plenty of public land available throughout the state. Most private land hunters, it seem, end up in some type of club or loose organization to facilitate leasing larger tracts of private land. Speaking mainly here about deer hunting as I have never hunted waterfowl. There seem to be some very knowledgeable people on the forum in that subsection.

There are hogs here, but not in the numbers in some other states but most are going to be on private land as well. The Wildlife commission considers the pests and does what it can to keep their numbers down on state land.

Your other questions, someone else will have to chime in. A couple of things I thought of that you may need to be aware of. If you aren't coming till October, deer season will already be in for archery. You may run into a problem with licensing, maybe. To legally purchase a resident license you must be a resident for the previous 6 months or have established a permanent residence for 60 days. And don't forget Hunters Education certification. If Oregon requires it your past license will probably suffice.
Good luck with it all.
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Thanks! I probably won't hunt the first year with just moving there. I'll probably spend my time researching so I can hit the ground running.
 

BrandyWaffle

Button Buck
Zach's Grandpa said:
Glad to have you if you are sure this is where you want to live but don't be fooled that you are coming to a cheap place to live. N C is not cheap, if you buy it, own it, eat it, live in it, drive it, or work at it then there is a tax of some type on it.
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Good to know, coming from the Portland area which is slowly turning into the next San Francisco with how expensive it is, it will be cheaper than my current situation at least.
 
bshobbs

bshobbs

Old Mossy Horns
Its always a learning curve moving from one area to another. I have been here in NC most of my life. Except for 1 year Uncle Sugar sent me to Ft Lewis, Wa. Man it was tough. I lived on a 5,000 acre lake, had to drive over the Nisqually River, pass Puget Sound to get to work and reverse said track to go home.

Did not take me long to figure things out about fishing and duck hunting along the Pacific flyway. Go to www.ncwildlife.org and check things out. They will send you a HUNTING/Fishing regulations digest to start checking regs out or just download them to your computer and read at your leisure.

Good Luck
 
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hunter

Eight Pointer
Contributor
Welcome to the forum! I suspect that you may be able to find a welding job in a number of places throughout NC so you may want to research where you would want to live and hunt and then try to find a decent job near there! No offense to anyone on here from the Durham area but I would rate it fairly low on a place to live considering cost of living, lots of people and somewhat limited places to hunt compared to some other parts of the state.

Most waterfowl opportunities are on the coast but there are some opportunities inland. Without an in or connection with someone permit hunts offered by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission may be your best bet for waterfowl opportunities unless you want to connect with a guide.

Regards,

Hunter
 
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BrandyWaffle

Button Buck
bshobbs said:
Its always a learning curve moving from one area to another. I have been here in NC most of my life. Except for 1 year Uncle Sugar sent me to Ft Lewis, Wa. Man it was tough. I lived on a 5,000 acre lake, had to drive over the Nisqually River, pass Puget Sound to get to work and reverse said track to go home.

Did not take me long to figure things out about fishing and duck hunting along the Pacific flyway. Go to www.ncwildlife.org and check things out. They will send you a HUNTING/Fishing regulations digest to start checking regs out or just download them to your computer and read at your leisure.

Good Luck
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Thanks for the link! I'll check it out
 

Zach's Grandpa

Old Mossy Horns
If you are just wanting to move to the south then Tennessee has no state income tax and is a much less expensive state to live in tax wise. Hunting is great with more public land opportunities than N C.
 

BrandyWaffle

Button Buck
Zach's Grandpa said:
If you are just wanting to move to the south then Tennessee has no state income tax and is a much less expensive state to live in tax wise. Hunting is great with more public land opportunities than N C.
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I'll have to look at it! Just gotta convince the girlfriend away from NC if it really doesn't have any state income tax
 

willch

Twelve Pointer
Look at the ship yards around Norfolk VA, lots of opportunity for Welders (I've heard) and you could live in NE NC near the coast.
 
41magnum

41magnum

Twelve Pointer
willch said:
Look at the ship yards around Norfolk VA, lots of opportunity for Welders (I've heard) and you could live in NE NC near the coast.
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good advice, much better waterfowling there, TN is another good choice.

The dumbest thing I ever did was move back here from OR and ID, after escaping NC once. Yes, it has worked out OK, but I miss the West every day, and visiting every few yrs just don't cut it.
 

BrandyWaffle

Button Buck
41magnum said:
good advice, much better waterfowling there, TN is another good choice.

The dumbest thing I ever did was move back here from OR and ID, after escaping NC once. Yes, it has worked out OK, but I miss the West every day, and visiting every few yrs just don't cut it.
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That's funny that you feel like you escaped NC but I am trying to escape to NC, there are lots of reasons while we are leaving, mostly wanting to go see new places and being closer to my parents in florida while still being in an area that can see snow and ice(we are renting in Durham until we can buy maybe out in Boone area). But I am definitely going to look at Tennessee.
 
Moose

Moose

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
I can't think of anything redeeming about Durham. I wouldn't encourage anyone to move there. I sure wouldn't do it if I had a family
 
jug

jug

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Yeah Durham is awful. DO NOT stay in Durham. West side of Sanford, NC is an easy place to commute to the Raleigh Durham area. Cheaper to live here and ALOT less traffic. Not to mention Sanford will put you closer to some of the States largest public hunting areas. Jordan Lake, Shearon Harris lake, Chatham , and Sandhills gameland. Boone is freaking COLD and wet December thru March. Not much up there other than App State and seasonal skiing/ snowboarding when they have good years of snow fall.
Yeah Tennessee is nice but NC still provides more opportunity for those looking for employment. NC has the beaches in the Summer and the Mountains in the Fall and Winter. Golfing in the Sandhills . I cant tell you how many of my customers have moved down here from the Midwest and Northeast because of these 3 things. Sure the taxes are here but that comes with economic opportunity and quality of life.
Welders are in high demand in just about all the Big cities in NC but you can try Wilmington too.
 
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BrandyWaffle

Button Buck
jug said:
Yeah Durham is awful. DO NOT stay in Durham. West side of Sanford, NC is an easy place to commute to the Raleigh Durham area. Cheaper to live here and ALOT less traffic. Not to mention Sanford will put you closer to some of the States largest public hunting areas. Jordan Lake, Shearon Harris lake, Chatham , and Sandhills gameland. Boone is freaking COLD and wet December thru March. Not much up there other than App State and seasonal skiing/ snowboarding when they have good years of snow fall.
Yeah Tennessee is nice but NC still provides more opportunity for those looking for employment. NC has the beaches in the Summer and the Mountains in the Fall and Winter. Golfing in the Sandhills . I cant tell you how many of my customers have moved down here from the Midwest and Northeast because of these 3 things. Sure the taxes are here but that comes with economic opportunity and quality of life.
Welders are in high demand in just about all the Big cities in NC but you can try Wilmington too.
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What is wrong with Durham? I'll take a look at sanford!
 
jug

jug

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Durham has the traffic with ALOT of crime.
West side of Sanford near US1 will put you close to Cary, Apex, Raleigh and you can use the toll road bypass that can get you to the Research Triangle Park area in 35 to 40 minutes. We live in Broadway and my wife can get to the Cary Wake Med hospital faster than some of the other nurses that live in Apex or Garner because of the traffic. Using US1 to commute can save you time and money. A place to rent or buy is going to be a lot cheaper in Sanford than Durham without the side of CRIME. The only part of Durham that I would consider is North Durham but you will be in the STICKS!
 
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BrandyWaffle

Button Buck
jug said:
Durham has the traffic with ALOT of crime.
West side of Sanford near US1 will put you close to Cary, Apex, Raleigh and you can use the toll road bypass that can get you to the Research Triangle Park area in 35 to 40 minutes. We live in Broadway and my wife can get to the Cary Wake Med hospital faster than some of the other nurses that live in Apex or Garner because of the traffic. Using US1 to commute can save you time and money. A place to rent or buy is going to be a lot cheaper in Sanford than Durham without the side of CRIME. The only part of Durham that I would consider is North Durham but you will be in the STICKS!
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Any places besides sanford near Raleigh that are good? Sanford only had one place that fit out "requirements" for renting. I was looking at chapel hill
 

brownisdown

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
Pittsboro or Moncure area is between sanford and raleigh sort of and not far from Chapel Hill. It's growing fast so it's not the small country town it once was but may be an option. Asheboro area is also nice and not a bad commute to the triad area of Greensboro and High Point

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk
 

BrandyWaffle

Button Buck
brownisdown said:
Pittsboro or Moncure area is between sanford and raleigh sort of and not far from Chapel Hill. It's growing fast so it's not the small country town it once was but may be an option. Asheboro area is also nice and not a bad commute to the triad area of Greensboro and High Point

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk
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I'll look at it! Thank you
 
ScottyB

ScottyB

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
You definitely do not want Durham.... mini Chicago...... you dont want Chapel Hill.....they all want to take your guns away. Pittsboro is getting as bad as Chapel Hill
 
dc bigdaddy

dc bigdaddy

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
if you are a welder, you should be able to find work anywhere. If you are just trying to get out of OR, listen to the boys that have already spoken.
 
sky hawk

sky hawk

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Do you not have any ties to NC or Durham? If you're just choosing that as an ideal place to live, run, don't walk. Durham would rank in my top 3 worst places to live in NC.

If you've got a job where you can go anywhere, like welding, there are much better options. I've always said if I was born in the mountains, the coast, or Montana, I'd never leave.
 
shadycove

shadycove

Twelve Pointer
If you want work, look at the Tennessee tri-cities of Kingsport, Johnson City and Bristol. Both open shop and union jobsites.
Further, you would be near some really good mountain hunting in 5 states and in less than 3 hours you can add a couple more states.
If Durham county is a must do, north side will be the only one that is even livable due to all the crime south,east and west.
Welcome to the forum.
 
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Buxndiverdux

Buxndiverdux

Old Mossy Horns
BrandyWaffle said:
What is wrong with Durham? I'll take a look at sanford!
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The Durham City Council has steadily ridden a once proud city into the dirt. No matter your policy, when you spend more than you take in, and then assess the businesses and property owners continually, they leave or go bankrupt. Durham is a disaster. Almost like a mini Detroit in some ways.
 
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apexhunter

Ten Pointer
Not bashing but I would reiterate staying away from Durham at any cost for the reasons already stated. The southern/western Wake county around the Apex area and going south towards Lee or Moore counties is a good choice with fairly easy access to anything in the Triangle area. Having worked out of and lived in Apex for the past 24 years I am partial to the community but if I were to move locally it would be south/west. Jobs like yours are fairly abundant around these parts with an ongoing boom in commercial construction and other industries liking for skilled tradespeople. We are 2-1/2 to 3 hours from the coast (depending upon which area) for hunting, fishing and recreation; there are plenty of local lakes for the same and we are 4 hours from the mountains for winter sports.
 

waymoe1

Ten Pointer
LOL Dang boys yall have almost talked me out of wanting to live in NC and iv lived here all my life, and family been here since 1700. Our state sure has changed from its quite southern charm to relocated Yankees and housing developments. Durham and Fayetteville have shootings and are on the news every night. Everyone in Chapel Hill is from somewhere else and they think your a dumb hick if you don't like what they do. Wish we could off load some trash for sure. Down east would be my pick for place to live. Lots of hunting and fishing and small towns still out there, but finding work is just tougher. good luck
 
Greg

Greg

Old Mossy Horns
If you like entrenched liberals and high taxes, then Durham and Orange and Mecklenburg Counties are good choices.

Otherwise, there are plenty of other places in NC to live.
 
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