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o fuests watch a trio of quail hunters from a traditional mule-drawn wagon at Brays Island Plantation in South Carolina. Covered in luslt stands of broomstraw, Brays'quail fields are scatteredthroughout a 3,500-acrenature Dreserve.
he pinc,s srnc-'lledclelicious irr the warrn rvind that blerv softly across the field. It only took one whiff t<r convinceme that'tallstmnt,'a Sr,veclish tea brewed frorn young, green neeclles,woul<l probably ttr.stedelicious. The folks local to the South Georgia pltrntatitxr told me they coukl e,asily di{ferentiate between the rlrom:rs of the krngleal shortleaf, krblolly, spnrce, ancl slash-and I believecl thern. I can tell if striped bassor bluefish are in the ocean waters of'my New England lxlmc+. Itt sirnple. Land a fish, n-rb your hancl along its sides, ancl close vour eyes. Place your hancl bekrw your nose, and inhale deeply a {bw tirnes. You'll recognize the ilroma rvhen schools of fish run the beirches just as 1,ou kr<lrv u'hen your neighbor grills steak trnd not chicken. It's probably that wy with therfive pines, too.
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Gror,vingin lletween so{t'ul'rxxlsrve.rc,fielcls o{' wire, kve, Johnson, and srvitchgrasses. Long strands of Spanish rnossdripped fircm the lirnbs of the clpress arrcl tupelo drat rimrled dre field edges.Quail u'histles of cull and resporrseresonatedfrorn poinls neiu and far, turd a peacefirl serenity filled the air. Arornatherapy wtrs part of the reAsoll for nry r4sit, but it rvns rnore of the hncl associateclu.ith the opening of a double gun after both barrels have been fired. Mv horne setrsonsfor grouse rurd rvooclcock u'ere closed; there wele no aspen stnnds or trlder nurs for me to nrwigate, so I packecl nry bag and headed for Soutlr Georgia. Down here I would not risk pinging the barrels of my Parker againsta dense stand of u'hite birch durinc a fbllor throrrglron ir gr'ollse.I didnl rvorrv itlrout scratching the barrel brorvn or the stock as
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(,riscotrlin a ntuk'-pttshed ltrtrtt 1/liss fr,tnr?s riagon at WaU:rOak, her i;trnily'spl;tntaticul in f loricla,citca I9'1.5.Thc photograSth is ,.4n-i cDLtrlps\., {/rer-llate ittt:sof f'lorida.
c l r a i r ; t h c r e \ \ ' i I sa r ( ' s ( , n ' o i r o l ' u ' a t c r p ( ) u r e ( l { l ' o n ra s p i { o t i r i t o c l o gl r r l s ' l s . a r t c l e r t o r r g l i r l < l g l l < l x t ' st o l r o r r s c a t l o z e n p o i r i t e r s . A p a r l t l c t l b t - r r c l rs c a t l l o s i t i < l n c t lo r r t l r e r r r e z z a n i r r tl 'e v c l I slitlrered uriclel a I(X)-vc'ar-oklnrstcd a c c < l n r n r < l c l i r t cl r'rt rl r r t c r sr r n u ' i l l i r r gt o s t l i r q o l l r a l l r t , rul i r r , . c l i r n b t o t l i e S k v l l o r . i r r r d s h o t g r r r r so l ' I n s t e a c lI, h u n t e d l i l i c r rg c r r t l e r r i a r Ir . all nrakcs anrl valucs u'ere stolecl irr srrt iri a cushirlneclcaptain'.schair u'itlr v e l v e t - l i r i c c l a c ' l . sl i o r r s c t li n a c o v e r e < l a r n r r ( ' s t st h a t l e n r i l c l t ' r l n r c < l f ' t l i ek i r r d c ' < l r n p a r t n r e natr l j l c c ' r r tt o t h e l r o o d . boltc'tlto the <leckof ir specrlboat.Forrr T l i e l r i r r r t l l c r sr o r k ' < l r r t l l ' o r r t r l r r <l{'thcsc'u.crt' perf'ectll spirct'rlon tlle u'alkirrg lrorses. iin(l t\\'() llrac'es o{' t < l pc k ' c ko 1 ' t h cc u s t < l r r r i z ebci ln l b r r g g r . poiritcrs altl st'ttt-rs cut up tltt' and tlrev profT'elctl rn(' u'ith tn I'icltls. Evert' rrou' irrrrl tht'n tlrer"rl rrr.rparllIeledvicu'. r c l l " l ) i r i r ' ! . " " s r r q r r r ! . "" l l o ! . " o r ' " l l r r b b a !" A s c l i t , s< 1 1 ' u 'It-'oI r c l r c s t r a t t ' t l T l r c b u g u v u ' a sb r r i l t o n a S r r b u l l r i t r r { l ' a r r r t 'u ' i t h a C l r t ' r ' r ' l l 5 0 b l o c l < . A l l l i r r sr r r r l i r l r l t ' r rl .n r l l ' o r r r r r vr l L r r t i r g t ' s r r l i ' t rc ' i r g eo l ' s t o r r lI r i r r t ' ks l t ' t ' lc ' i r c ' l t ' r l p o i n t I u ' a t c l r t ' r lt l r e s r r i r p p r<' l o g sr u r r tlrc top {lo<lr ancl \\,as so strrlrrg it tlrc etlgt's u'itlr tlrt' all-lrrrsint-ss c o u l r l s t o p a l i o c k c v p l a v t ' r c , r ' a s l r i r r g p l t . c i s i o r r 1 1 , p i c ' i rol [ ' t l r c i r ( ] l l l l e l < l i n t o t l r e b o a r t l s .A c o o l e r l l l l e d u , i t h triirllirrcagcs. u ' t r t c r ,c ' o k c s ,t r r d j r r i c e s a t l r t ' h i r r r lr r r r ' As a sctttr rrriur,I prrlk'd filr l)r'olcssor sl)oll1|\(;
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L o r r g H a i r . O n e l o c k e t l u p a h c i r r lo 1 ' tht' irointer. a {irct I happih notctl to rrrv poirrte:llr\'opic 1l'it'nds.\\'illie. tlrt' clrivt'r. sa\\' it too. iinrl hc' r l t x v r r s h i [ i t ' tilr r t o s c c o n t l a r i c lg a v t ' t h e buggv sonl(' gits. \\'e arlivecl orr the s c c r t ei n t r r i n s t a r r ti i n c la c t t ' dI i k t , k i d s a u ' i t i t i n gt h c f i n a l l l e l l o r r s c ' h o o l ' sl a s t tlitr'. Tu'o sltootcrs traclt'rl seats filr s l i i r t g u n s i t r r r lu ' a l k c c l r r p b e h i n t l t l i e s t c i t d v d o g s . A l r i t r r d l c r r r r r l e a s l r c ral l i t ' l r l c o c k t ' r 'a n c l u ' r ' a l l p r t ' p a r c t l [ i r r ' tlrc covev rise. I u n t l t lg ( t u s ( l l o l l i s . l t l r o r r g l r t .
TT ' r I | | 1 , 1 , u ' lrrl r t n t e t 'tsr i r r e l i r r t, lgr r r r r r , i l r o r r t l . J r l r r l r itl o t t l t t ' r c r r c o r r r r t ci rrt l r t ' r r r t ' l r t t l r . a l i u t i o no l ' l r i r r l b r r g g i r . so l r l i u i d r i t ' u ' .I t ' s ( ' o l l l n i ( ) lt o I ' i r r t T l erasrlrrail rigs crrstorrrizctl fl'orrr Jeep or t ' r t c r r c l c rtl ' a l r 1 . l i c ' k r rcpl r i t s s i s..\ t t h r lrt'lrt o[' t'r'en' r't'lriclc arr' ('n()llgll
dog boxes to account for a day's hunt in big country. The boxes occupy an easy-to-access space above the frame, and inline watering systems hold enough water to withstand the heat. Seating for hunters and guides is the next part of the build-out. Some rigs huu" combinations of b e n c h e s a n d s e a t si n t h e s t e r n a b o v e the dog boxes, while other chairs are placed in the bow, just ahead of the grill. Some gun scabbards rnight be securelytacked to the side of tlie front quarter-panel, while free-standing racks are positioned rnidship in others. Most of the vehicles are painted, but I saw one brggy with paneling so exquisite it would rnake a 1951 Ford Country Squire woodie blush. In other areas of quail country, a modified ATV gets the nod. Fourwheel drive Kawasaki Mules or the like feature bench seats and roll bars. Padded gun racks hang inbetween the front and rear seats, and custom dog boxesare mounted in the bed. Sometimesthe pointing dogs run while the b"ggy arnbles down the dirt roads; other times the vehicle is parked and the hunters stretch tGir lees and walk. The easy entrance/exii is perfect for those of us with beat-up backs and knees sustained frorn a life well lived. My favorite is the oddity known as the mule-push wagon, whicli I've seen only in old photos. Once favored by the plantation set, these reversestyled shooting brakes look like a normal sulky cart witl'r built-up sides and a chair. Tlie only difference is that a rnule pushes the cart rather than pulling it. Over-sized wheels provided a relatively smooth ride and a height that offered a stellar view of the dogs. But here's the kicker: The push wagon could be rolled right up to the pointed covey. Shooters took cracks at rising birds witliout even stepping do-n frorn the brake. hnagine that. Ah. rnules. Well. if the Rose Bowl 'em is the granddaddy of all for college football, then the procession of a traditional quail wagon drawn by tr SPORTIN(;
rnatched pair of mules is the pinnacle of quail buggies. The leisurely procession down a winding dirt road is accompanied by creaks of worn bridle leather, squeaks from bouncing leaf springs, and the clip-clop of hooves. Smells of grain for the mules' midday lunch break escort modern-day quail hunters back in tirne. Whether you sit on the padded bench seats or ride along on a gated horse, the experience is from a page written during the Golden Era of quail hunting. For those riding a walking horse, no posting is necessary. These wagons have a unique engine, for the female horse/jack donkey cross can haul all day long and in any kind of wetrther. No draft horse compaTes. But to raise the stakes, and based on the fact that an ordinary pair of pack/pull mules are as utilitarian as a hammer, a matched pair is different. Handlers search high and low to find hybrids of similar size, conforrnation, and color, and since the pair typically is unrelated, it's no srnall task. There is a rnethod to follow, and big jacks bred to Belgian draft rrares produce blond mules, while t h e s a m e 'j t r c k s b r e d t o P e r c h e r o n mares beget grays. The mule's stoic temperarnent is ideal for the and circumstance of a pollp traditional quail hunt; they are calm, smart, and durable, qualities that are perfect around running dogs, barking shotguns, and flushing quail. The srnell of the nines and the vehicle of c'hoice i; tenrporarily forgotten when a hat raised by a handler signals a covey has been found. I see it now, but this time the pointer got the finC and the setter got the back. I won't admit that, though. Instead, I'll say something like "Another point I suspect the setter got it again." We'll kick that can down the road for hours, but for now the pageantry is over and it's game time. Whichever your bird b"ggy of choice, it's tirne to step down and get your gun. Everything is iust fine. r (.1,\SSI(-S
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