Bobwhite Quail Hunting
Morning and afternoon quail hunts are of approximately three-hour duration. Our experienced and attentive guides and dog handlers know every corner and covey of Shadow Oak and will do everything to put you into an abundance of birds providing great upland shooting. Safety is always first at Shadow Oak assuring all our guests can focus on the hunt and have an enjoyable time. We limit the number of shooters on the ground to two for each time dogs point and birds are flushed. Shooters take turns giving equal opportunities to all shooters. Parties of four hunters per jeep are ideal. Best of all, at Shadow Oak we invite you to shoot your limit with no overkill fees to take your mind off the fun!
From our specially equipped hunting rig, you can watch as our masterful bird dogs skillfully use their scenting ability to hunt the covers and hone in on birds, then slam on point! You feel your adrenalin as your guide helps position you for the best shot. A cocker spaniel rushes by you and suddenly— and it always provides a new thrill — the whir of rocketing wings out ahead. Deliberately, you select your target while swinging your gun. Does the cocker make a retrieve? What boasts and lies will be told by the fire at the close of the day? Quail hunting in the Southern tradition! That’s what it’s all about at Shadow Oak Plantation.
Exceptional bird dogs and great bird work make a Bobwhite quail hunt. Shadow Oak Plantation owner Butch Houston knows a thing or two about that subject. For over 40 years Butch, himself an avid gunner, has bred bird dogs and campaigned pointers and English setters on the major field trial circuits with top professional handlers.
The most famous of his winning dogs is English Setter Champion Shadow Oak Bo. Bo’s prestigious wins include the 2011 Continental Open All-Age Championship held on the famous Dixie Plantation in Greenville, Florida and the 2013 and 2014 National Bird Dog Championship, one of the oldest field trials in the country, first run in 1896 and held each year in early February on the Ames Plantation in Grand Junction, Tennessee.
Many Bo sons and daughters are on our string of hunting dogs showing off their great champion sire’s ability to find and point quail. You’ll also hunt over our well-trained Pointers and German Shorthaired Pointers. Birds are flushed primarily by our English Cocker Spaniels and your shot birds are retrieved by our Labrador Retrievers and Cockers. A Southern favorite, nothing is more fun than watching the speed and enthusiasm of a working Cocker Spaniel!
Each spring after quail hunting season, our plantation pine forests undergo the traditional quail habitat management tool of prescribed burning. Feed strips of sorghum, millet and milo are planted in early July and come September blocks are mowed to get ready for the coming quail season.