The Ol’
By
Robert Fulton
Gentlemen
and sportladies, there
is a difference between first class and everything else.
If you’ve never shot birds in a hunting preserve situation,
you owe it to yourself to go to River Bend first.
Why? Because
you’ll be in an excellent position to compare a classic,
ongoing-for-twenty years shooting organization with all the rest.
In less than a
six-hour drive from downtown
The lodge at
River Bend tells your hunting party all they need to know about the
quality of their stay.
Owner Ralph Brendle greets you in front of the rustic building that
looks like it came from the
After working up an appetite on the range, we went to the lodge for
supper. The cafeteria-style
eating situation has two qualities I enjoy: informality and good
food. Our group ate a
hearty supper, drank good wine with other hunters, and swapped
nothing-but-truthful
hunting and fishing tales.
Then off to our “cabin” to prepare for tomorrow’s hunt. The
modern and comfortable rooms are a short walk from the main lodge
and like everything else, here, planned and efficient.
The next morning we gathered at the lodge for a hearty breakfast and
met our guide Roddy McFalls and his pointer and setter.
Now, I like dogs…trained
dogs, and from the ones I’ve raised and used over the years, I can
appreciate bird dogs that do their job.
These two were something to watch.
Nothing like almost daily experience during the season to
fine hone the pointing instinct.
Pheasants and chukars started the hunt.
No reflection on Sir Standish’s teaching skills—considering
who he was working with—yesterday afternoon, but there’s a happy
pheasant roaming free in the hill country of
The next pheasant wasn’t as lucky as the first.
Mr. Bobwhite is always a great ego deflator for most of us. The quail did their job, my hunt
ing partners did theirs, and the dogs
found the two birds brought down from the covey rise.
The Geezer’s contribution to the scene was two well-placed
holes in the air. I did
do better, as usual, with the singles and one pair of doubles (After
which I smugly stared back at both dogs!).
It’s a pleasure to shoot in a natural field area, surrounded by
pines, and completely apart from other hunting parties.
And this is another reason to bring someone who is learning
to shoot to River Bend: the safety factor is stressed and followed.
There is no worry of having to duck some nearby parties’
birdshot, which I have experienced at lesser facilities.
Location information:
River Bend Sportsman's Resort, an upscale sporting resort for the
whole family in Fingerville, SC, features quail, pheasant and chukar
field hunts; skeet and sporting clays courses; tower shoots; deer
and turkey hunts; rifle and pistol target range; fly fishing; golf;
paintball; and one of the most highly acclaimed summer youth
sporting camps in the Southeast.
"We obtained permission and the appropriate licensing from the South
Carolina Wildlife Commission last year to begin duck hunting of
flighted mallards when the season opens this October," explained
Brendle. "The unique part of these duck hunts is that our
season runs October 1 to April 1.
The only required license is a resident state small game
license or a non-resident shooting preserve license.
We can accommodate a minimum of 4 hunters to a maximum of 16
hunters."
River
The resort has a 6,000-square-foot log lodge that includes public
and private dinning rooms, pro shop, men's and ladies locker rooms,
sauna, recreation room, spacious great room, and bar. The
resort, which is popular for corporate meetings, retreats and
customer entertainment, also has 14 modern sleeping rooms for
overnight accommodations and serves three home-cooked meals daily.
For more information, visit
www.rvrbend.com or phone 1-800-516 9606