Legality of hunting spots/Trespassing

[WhiteKnight]

Guys, in my neck of the woods (Wake County, NC) it is quite hard to find a decent place (or even any place) to hunt at all. I've heard friends and others reference "hunting powerlines" which I've come to believe is simply setting up a stand at a random powerline clearcut off of a major road that seems a likely spot for deer.

Also, is hunting along the interstate legal? Many people to whom I've talked simply say they pull up along the interstate and trudge off into the woods to hunker down against a stump to shoot all the deer (within limits of course) that they could imagine. Is this legal?

Could one simply set up a stand on the miles and miles of forested land alongside major highways without legal/other repercussions?

Basically, I'm strapped for a decent spot to hunt and I am wondering how difficult it actually is to find a place.

 

[Mossy Bloke]

Don't know about NC

But in GA I think you'd be in big trouble for doing that.

Powerlines are not necessarily considered public property. I have a guy in my church that owns several hundred acres that is split right down the middle by I-95. There is a set of power lines that also runs perpendicular to 95 right through his land. His cattle still graze there and he still plants crops there...all underneath those lines.

If you were to set up off the interstate along those lines he'd get you good for trespassing.

I would imagine that it's similar in NC. I certainly wouldn't just park on the side of the road and walk in. You can go into any tax office and find out who owns what land. That'd be the route I'd take if I were you.

 

[griz]

At least in Virginia it is only legal to stop on the interstate for emergencies. I talked to somebody who was ticketed after he stopped for his son's bathroom break, so it's not an idle threat.

If NC is the same as VA, parking for any reason except a broken car would be a ticket.

 

[Atticus]

Get some maps of public hunting areas from the NCDNR. Go often and early- stay late. There's a lot of big deer killed on public land around here.

http://www.wildlife.state.nc.us/fs_index_04_hunting.htm

 

[mustanger98]

In GA, armed tresspassing is a felony. Just because a deer was in a convenient place don't make it worth losing your rights over.