Hunters must use shotguns or muzzleloaders and the firearm most hunters use is a 12-gauge shotgun loaded with No. 00 buckshot. There is also a self-checking bow season. Bowhunters can hunt Pungo at any time during the regular deer season when there is not a permit hunt in progress on the refuge.

It can be tough to find a tree to climb at Pungo. Many hunters sit on stools or stepladders or lean ladder stands against trees. Canoes and other small boats are seen atop many vehicles for crossing the many canals, as well as for transporting deer.

Mosquitoes are present, sometimes in nearly unbearable numbers. Pungo hunters apply insect repellent and use insect-repelling devices, wear bug suits and learn to tolerate the insects for success.

Getting away from crowds at Pungo is important for success. Hunters use carts to ferry gear well beyond the many locked gates. However, if a hunter takes a deer well beyond a gate, he can contact the staff at the refuge office, and they will open the gate and help him retrieve his kill.

One reason for fast removal of a harvested deer is the presence of a hunter-conditioned population of black bears. These bears will sometimes come to the sound of a gunshot to claim a deer kill from a hunter. They have eaten seats off bicycles and tree stands, even chewed tires and stolen hunters' deers from their pickup beds.

Some bowhunters have had their deer taken by bears and prefer to hunt other places for that reason. Pungo was once the site of severe wildfires, which led to its reputation as an easy place to kill a deer. The fires consumed cover and the deer were easier to see. But controlled burning now is done on a much smaller scale, making the hunt on par with the difficulty of other coastal managed landscape hunts.

Pungo Unit hunt applications must be mailed by mid-August. To receive an application package, contact Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge at P.O. Box 329, Columbia, N.C. 27925, call (252) 796-3004, or visit www.fws.gov/pocosinlakes. Parties of up to five hunters may apply and the hunt fee is $12.50 per person.

MATTAMUSKEET NWR
Mattamuskeet NWR is a 50,000-acre waterfowl refuge located in Hyde County. It consists mostly of Lake Mattamuskeet. However, the refuge opens approximately 9,000 acres to deer hunting during two two-day hunts held in October. The hunt area consists of all refuge lands west of N.C. Highway 94 except for the 600-acre Entrance Road, MI-4 Impoundment and Headquarters area.

The hunt area is made up of open marshes and dense coastal hardwood swamps. Mattamuskeet hunters should wear hip boots, and they can expect a high tick and mosquito count.

Deer hunters must specify in their applications first and second choice of hunt dates and preference for east or west areas within the designated hunting territory. Applications can be made individually or in parties of up to five hunters. For group applications, cards of all group members must be attached together in one envelope.