On an Indian summer afternoon, the mule-drawn wagon swayed in a slow lullaby here in the cradle of the South as we followed guides on horseback in pursuit of the next quail covey to hunt. Donalsonville, Georgia is home to Pine Hill Plantation where owner Doug Coe has fused the science of game birds and habitat management with vintage Southern plantation traditions for a dramatic theater of 19th century wild quail shooting. With shorthair English pointers taking the lead in the forest of long-leaf pines and wiregrass, our shotguns at the ready, we stood astounded time and again by bobwhite flushes evocative of fireworks with feathers. Quail exploded from the understory, dazzling the eyes until we could regain our composure for those two swift shots that seemed to echo through time.
During our inaugural morning hunt, we experienced 11 healthy covey flushes plus singles and doubles. The splendor of bobwhites on the wing racing in autumn sunlight that streamed through the pines almost called for a camera instead of a shotgun. Primal beauty mesmerized hunting instincts, but a heartbeat thereafter our shotguns shouldered in a measured race to intercept one particular bird among the fleeing congregation.
Robust coveys and thriving bobwhite quail habitat sustain Mr. Coe’s personal quest to uphold sacred turn-of-the-century quail hunting traditions at Pine Hill Plantation. Over the past decade, Mr. Coe has imposed his own perfectionist ideals on 6,000 acres as evident by triumphs such as the Orvis’ 2013 Wingshooting Lodge of the Year distinction and charter membership in the Beretta Trident Program — a comprehensive rating system of exceptional shooting sports venues that ensures the highest levels of quality for hunting and shooting enthusiasts. Read on…..