First off, I'm not very good at this so forgive me if it's not that interesting to read. I tried to take some photos but they didn't come out very well at all so none are being included. That said... My company just paid for several of us to spend a day at Pine Hill Plantation in Donalsonville, GA, for a quail hunt. There were ten of us in all, including my boss. It's a damn long drive down there from the ATL area. I'm glad a buddy and I decided to carpool. Here's how the trip went.
You check in around 3:00 - 4:00 PM the afternoon before you're scheduled to hunt. As soon as everyone in your party checks in, they walk you over to the five-stand area to bust some clays. I was (or still am, I guess) a total newcomer to the sport of wingshooting. You can bring your own gun if you have a 20 or 28 gauge. No 12 gauges allowed. The only shotguns I own are both 12 gauges, so I was "forced" to use one of Pine Hill's loaners - a nicely cared for Beretta Silver Pigeon in 28 ga. Really roughing it there... The owner of Pine HIll, Doug Coe, was there with one of his range masters to give tips to those of us that hadn't had the pleasure before. The little 28 ga shot like a dream, and even though you'd be hard pressed to call me a good shot, I was soon breaking more than I missed. My boss, BTW, powdered his first eight or ten in a row and racked his gun, knowing that we all needed the practice more than he did.
We shot until sundown, whereupon we carried our loaners back to the lodge and racked them in the "ATF" room. You can easily guess what the "ATF" room is for. Cigars were available, and the guns were stored in a nice rack directly between the fire[lace and a fully-stocked bar. There were four different kinds of bourbon, three Scotches, a few vodkas, gins, and rums. The lodge is fully staffed with a master chef and his helpers - a nice lady came in with a full ice bucket and said, "Have at it, fellas". We did. Dinner was served in the main dining room - fried quail was the entrée. It was delicious. Much merriment was enjoyed that night.
Breakfast was served by the same staff as the night before at 8 the following morning. After breakfast, we watched a short video about the upcoming hunt, and the safety rules that would be enforced. I was very impressed by the attitude the staff showed toward safety. We were broken up into two teams and taken out to the range. I was told that Pine Hill owns some six thousand acres, and all hunting is strictly limited to prevent over-hunting of any one area of it. The fields are well taken care of so they don't get too overgrown with crap -- they offer an ideal habitat for quail. Each team had a wagon with several sets of dogs. Each team also had two guides to make sure the hunt was both safe and productive. The guides and some of the hunting party were on horseback - the dogs and the rest of the party rode on a very comfortable wagon. The dogs would range out sniffing out the birds, and each time they came to a point, two hunters would be called out to flush the covey. Shooting was fast and exciting. Again, I missed many more than I dropped, but as Pine Hill was paying the ammo bill, I didn't mind too much. I have to confess that I had never before saw the allure of bird hunting. It always just seemed to me to be a good way to be cold, wet, and miserable. My day at Pine Hill changed that opinion completely.
We hunted until noon, had a leisurely lunch back at the lodge, and resumed hunting around two o'clock. As the day warmed up, the birds were flying incredibly fast. It seemed like you only had a split-second to pick one out of a covey, shoulder your gun, and fire. I can't over-state it - the little Berettas handled incredibly well. That said, those little 28 ga shells don't hold a whole lot of shot - you had to do your part to hit your bird. I downed several, but failed every attempt at a double that I tried. I understand that several of our group did score a double though. In the end, we were all presented with a small cooler loaded down with frozen quail to take home, as a memento of the trip. I would have rather been allowed to take home one of the shotguns, but what can you do?
All in all, it was a fantastic day spent with great friends. The Pine Hill guides were great people to spend the day with, always offering suggestions, and keeping everything safe and flowing well without being bossy. Always ready with a funny story, too. The weather was great. Watching the dogs work was like watching an incredibly intricate ballet that had not a single step choreographed.The amenities were beautiful -- especially the ATF room. I highly recommend Pine Hill as a great way to get away for the day.
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