I spent most of yesterday taking part in a quail hunt at a place called Blandfield Plantation, near Tappahannock. Blandfield has long been a destination for waterfowl hunters and has just recently begun to implement an upland hunting program. By all accounts, when it gets up and running it will offer arguably the best quail hunting experience in the Mid-Atlantic. The goal at Blandfield is to compete with the best hunting preserves in Georgia—a lofty one indeed.

Here’s why they just might pull it off: At 3,500 acres, the property is big enough to offer a huge variety of habitat for dozens of coveys. And champion dog trainer Dave Pomfret and assistant upland manager Darin Strickland will work the fields with the best dogs in the country. We hunted yesterday with four dogs—two Viszlas, an English Setter and an English Pointer—all of which have won some kind of national championship. Pretty impessive stuff and a treat to watch. The above picture is of Specter, an English Setter.

Look for my column on Blandfield this Sunday.