The Marriott Ranch, purchased in 1951 by J. Willard Marriott Sr., is 4,200 acres of hardwood forests, open fields, wetlands and thickets, located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Hume, Va. The ranch reminded Mr. Marriott of his boyhood days in Utah. Today, many parts of the ranch remain pristine and untouched. Wildlife is plentiful with large numbers of whitetail deer, black bears, bobcats, red foxes and bald eagles found on the property.
In 2002, the Marriot Ranch started offering fair chase, free range deer hunting packages, where only eight hunters at a time have access to hunt the property. Sixty designated tree stands and blinds are strategically located throughout the ranch near food plots and trails. In addition to deer, hunters are able to take other game that’s in season, including turkeys, black bears, coyotes and bobcats.
The Marriott Ranch was recently authorized as a shooting preserve by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. In 2009, the ranch started offering a bird hunting package of released quail, and I was able to participate on their second hunt.
Before the hunt started, lunch was prepared by a Marriott chef in the picturesque James Marshall Manor House, built in 1814. After lunch we drove to the field and met the hunt master, John Kline, and his assistants. Kline has been involved with bird dogs for more than 45 years. In 1980, John and his wife established a training kennel and private shooting preserve. John’s dogs won the National Brittany Championship in 2000 and 2004.
The field we hunted had all natural cover. Fifty quail were release shortly before we arrived. After a short briefing, the hunt began. The bird dogs were soon on point and we flushed our first covey of quail. The afternoon hunt lasted more than two hours and we saw a lot of action.
The dogs worked well and were indispensable. Without the dogs, the quail would have been very difficult to locate and flush, as the birds take to the natural cover and are nearly impossible to see. Two sets of two dogs were used during our hunt so that they would not become fatigued. We swept a large open field surrounded by hardwoods, with the first set of dogs taking a number of quail. When we reached the end of the field, two new dogs were brought in and we turned around and walked back through the field along the wood line. After two hours of hunting we had shot and recovered 55 percent of the birds. Some of the birds that we flushed were able to escape unharmed.
I have hunted quail on a farm in nearby Lacey Springs, Va., back in the late 1970s and 1980s, but never with a dog. We would walk the fence rows and grassy fields to flush the birds. I felt the quail we hunted on the Marriott Ranch were a little harder to flush but were just as gamey when they took to the air.
It was a very enjoyable hunt and all of the hunters, myself included, had a lot of fun. Kline, his assistants, and the Marriott Ranch staff were very friendly and hospitable. Releasing 50 birds ensured that we got plenty of shooting.
The Marriott Ranch quail hunting package requires a two-night stay. Similar to their deer hunting package, hunters stay in the Baroness Cottage, an early 1800s log cabin renovated during World War II. This well-appointed cabin has a large kitchen, comfortable living room with a fireplace and 37-inch flat screen television with satellite hook-up, three bedrooms, and two full-size baths. Just like staying at any Marriott Hotel, the rooms are cleaned daily and the cottage has very comfortable accommodations.
Six meals are provided over the course of the two days. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are prepared by a Marriott Chef. Before dinner, cocktails with hot hors d’oeuvres are served followed by the main course entrees and desert. An open bar and cigars are provided until 9 p.m. Part of the ambience the ranch provides is the camaraderie you enjoy with your friends and fellow hunters in the evenings after the hunt in this very comfortable setting.
For information on the Marriott Ranch Upland Game Bird package, call their toll free number at 877-324-7344. For additional information on the Marriott Ranch hunts and other outdoor activities and special events that take place there, such as horseback trail rides, youth outings, weddings and corporate picnics, visit www.marriottranch.com.
