Dog Hunting at Briar Creek Sportsman's Club

January 13, 2018 
Augusta, Georgia 

I had the pleasure of dog hunting at the Briar Creek Sportsman's Club this weekend. This was the final deer drive of the season which is a special event for the club. The hunt starts before dawn when the club cooks a breakfast for the members and the member's families. Yes, it's a family affair at Briar Creek and everyone is invited. I was invited by the club's president so I could vet the club for membership in the upcoming 2018-2019 season. 

The Chief Huntmaster designed the hunt and the standers loaded the trucks as the sun started peaking over the planted timber. The club hunts 15,000 acres of land that is owned by a timber company. The first hunt of the morning started while I was watching clear cut timber and listening to the beagles howl several hundred yards away. This morning was cold, really cold. The temperature wasn't too cold at 32 degree but the wind was blowing at a constant 13 mph which brought the wind chill down into the low 20s. I sat all morning listening to the dogs run deer and crack of buckshot in the distance. I was anxious squeeze the trigger on my new Benelli Nova but the deer had other plans. Our group killed 2 deer that morning and the other groups dropped 3-4 more. The nicest deer was a mature 6 point (it would have been an 8 point but it didn't have any brow tines) that weighed 127 pounds. 

We quickly moved onto the second hunt after the dogs were collected. We had standers lined up on a power line while the dogs pushed deer through the neighboring pines. As a group, we killed another 2-3 deer. Then it was time for lunch. We all met back at the camp and shared lunch as a group. I could tell everyone was eager for the afternoon hunt. 

The last hunt of the day was the big finale. We had standers along the perimeter and in the center of a several hundred acre area when they started driving 19 packs of beagles. The dogs worked for hours and I heard several shots. The nicest deer was shot that afternoon, a mature 8 point. He even had a buckshot pellet lodged in the base of his antler which was very interesting to see. I had a great time, even though I didn't see any deer on the dog drives, and I'm planning on coming back next year for next season!

Whitetails of South Mississippi

January 4-6, 2018 
Arcole, Mississippi

Arcole Hunting Club

This hunt had been in the making for over a year. I've hunted with a good friend of mine, David, for a few years now and it's become annual event that I look forward to each year. The hunt started with my long drive from Atlanta, Georgia to Natchez, Mississippi where I was meeting David and an old coworker, Mark. I got the the camp late that afternoon as the temperature was falling and we could tell that the hunting weather was going to be cold. We got settled in our bunks, met the other members that were hunting that week and went to bed, thinking about the big bucks that we could see in the morning. I brought my GoPro and video equipment with me so I could get some goof footage even if I didn't kill a big buck. Over the years, I've enjoyed videoing my hunts just as much as I've enjoyed taking a big deer. I hope you enjoy the video!

The first hunt was brutally cold so we decided to hunt box blinds. Little did I know that this would be the most exciting hunt of the week. I saw a small buck trail and hot doe and chase other deer on the food plot all morning. Unfortunately, the bigger bucks gave no mind. That afternoon, I sat on a food plot located in some hardwoods and watched a few different deer eat acorns for hours. The deer activity slowed during the later part of the week due to the full moon which encouraged night-time activity. We decided that we would plan next year's hunt around the moon cycle and try to hunt near the new moon. 

The rest of the hunt involved watching small deer in the food plots and young bucks working scrape lines through the hardwoods. The three guys in our group, including myself, didn't get a shot opportunity on a mature buck but it didn't stop us from heaving a great time. We hunted with 30+ members and guests throughout the week. We ate great food and built friendships around the campfire. Ms. Mary, the club cook, came in the last few days of the hunt to prepare a meal for everyone. You can bet that we'll all be back next year looking for a big buck!