A First-Hand Review of Quail Hunting at Rio Piedra Plantation
The Bird Hunting Report January 2005
A First-Hand Review of Quail Hunting at Rio Piedra Plantation
Editor's Note: We have our first report from a Premium Service Subscriber this month. You'll remember we recently told you how Rio Piedra Plantation had offered to have a Bird Hunting Report Premium Subscriber come inspect their facility for a first-hand, honest review of its quail hunting operation. Well, subscriber Sam Conner recently checked the place out and has filed the following report on what he found.
I recently hunted quail at Rio Piedra Plantation in South Georgia with my brother and a group of friends. I must admit; I went reluctantly. I expected to find a typical put-and-take operation and resolved to treat the trip as an opportunity to spend some time with my brother and friends. What a pleasant surprise! Instead, I found a bird hunt that was real quail hunting.
Just so fellow subscribers know that I know what I'm talking about, I have hunted quail under a wide variety of circumstances ranging from South Texas to private all wild bird plantations in the Deep South. I have hunted places where I have averaged five coveys per hour. I spend most of my time in western Oklahoma and Texas chasing quail. My party at Rio Piedra consisted of all experienced bird hunters, and we all agreed that the quail we encountered here flew well. In addition to the quality of birds, there were also lots of quail to be found here, and the action was constant. Two of us averaged 35 to 40 birds per half day, and we admittedly did not shoot particularly well.
Another plus is the variety and amount of terrain to hunt in and the excellent cover for the quail. We hunted four half days and never saw the same territory. Rio Piedra has many acres of hardwoods, pine savannahs, river bottoms, broom sedge meadows, rolling hills and fields of wiregrass. All were great habitats in which to find quail. The Flint River runs through the property, so there is plenty of water, and the place is simply beautiful. I enjoyed seeing new territory for each half day hunt.
Rio Piedra Plantation has a kennel of pointing dogs, but owner Bill Atchison encouraged me to bring my own. Most of the put-and-take places I have seen want hunters to use the guides' dogs instead. My main interest was working with an 11-month-old pup I am training. Rio Piedra was a great place to bring this dog. Whenever one of the other dogs went on point, the guides were conscious about waiting for the pup to back it up. The guides also held the plantation dogs back so that my pup could get experience in retrieving. Overall, I must say that the guides were good and very pleasant to hunt with. We noticed that they sized us up quickly as to our experience, shooting abilities, and safety consciousness and let us hunt. Rio Piedra also has great kennel facilities for guests' dogs.
The food and accommodations were excellent. The lodge is a modern two-story structure located near the Flint River. It is furnished in antique English décor and has a river-stone fireplace and covered deck with rocking chairs for relaxing. The rooms have their own private baths. There are also nearby cabins for small groups. A professional European chef prepares the meals, which are served with wine.
So, the bottom line is there were plenty of birds and lots of action; the quality of quail hunting exceeded my wildest expectations!
