HUNT
A
D AY
AT
D O R C H E S T E R
S H O O T I N G
P R E S E R V E
t he
WHEN THE PAVEMENT MEETS THE DIRT, YOU KNOW YOU’RE HEADING IN THE RIGHT
DIRECTION. TUCKED AWAY, JUST 25 MILES FROM SAVANNAH IN MIDWAY, GEORGIA, SITS A
PLACE THAT'S SURE TO SEND YOU BACK IN TIME. FROM HUMBLE BEGINNINGS TO NOW, THE
O
TRANSFORMATION IS MIXED WITH BLESSINGS, HARD WORK AND PASSION. THE CREATION
IS A SOUTHERN HUNTING PARADISE THAT MANY PROFESS IS SECOND TO NONE.
“
WRITTEN BY
Kelly Harley H
On a breezy sunny November morning, John Imhoff,
a Sea Island ophthalmologist, gears up for a hunt.
Imhoff, a team of dogs and a hunting guide load up
on a buggy designed for off-road travel. After a short
drive, they arrive at their destination, a pristine quail
habitat that combines unspoiled nature with the love
of sport. Imhoff loads his 1928 Parker, a side-by-side
20-gauge shotgun.
On the first leg of the hunt, Imhoff’s three dogs
and the experienced guide accompany him on one of
the nine quail fields Dorchester Shooting Preserve
maintains. English Setters, Will and Bill, are the point
dogs and the English Cocker Spaniel, Bentley, is the
flushing dog. What happens next is almost textbook.
Will and Bill are let loose, their noses trained to pick
up the scent of the bobwhites. When they locate a
bird, their tails point up in the air, almost statuesque.
It’s Bentley’s turn to do his job and with all his might,
he runs in and flushes the bird up in the air. Imhoff,
who’s steady in his stance, fires as the bird quickly
flies away. Then you hear, “nice shot”, and see feath-
ers, better known as Dorchester Snow, trickle down. It’s now quiet except for
the tall pines rustling in the breeze. A few moments later, Bentley dutifully
delivers the quail to Imhoff.
Imhoff affirms it’s not about how many birds he bags; rather, it’s about being
outdoors and undertaking the mental challenges that go along with quail hunt-
ing. “I enjoy watching the dogs work. When you see how smart these dogs are
and how man and dog communicate, it’s almost religious,” said Imhoff.
Walking nearly three miles on mowed paths, sometimes making their
way through rugged brush and blue sedge grass, the hunt continues. While
sometimes one or two birds fly up, there are several times that a covey
PHOTOGRAPY BY
John Fulton
ascends. The experience can be overwhelming, but in
a good way. The beauty of it all appeases every human
sense.
A SOUTHERN QUAIL
HUNTING EXPERIENCE
While Dorchester offers duck, wild boar and Con-
tinental pheasant hunting, the preserve is known for
its