Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/590511
It's in the soil beneath your feet. Rich, black earth that produces nice bucks, nice bass, and really nice folks. By Larry esney AlAbAmA's Dirty little secret while desperately trying to find a way to extend my deer hunting beyond January 1. I live in South Carolina, where the season closes New Year's Day. Knowing that hunting in parts of Alabama runs to February 10, I called Pam Swanner with the Alabama Black Belt Adventures Association. With her help, I scheduled a trip for January 2014, and after the new year, headed to the western border of the state. My hunt yielded a nice buck and many fond memories. It also proved to be habit-forming. So in early February, I showed up once again on the doorstep at Water Valley. This time I was accompanied by my long-time friend Jack Stewart, a farmer from Timmonsville, South Carolina. A fter an eight-hour drive from South Carolina to the western side of Alabama, we arrived at the lodge just in time for dinner. A couple other guests, Kendall from Louisiana and Rick from Florida, sat by the huge fireplace in the dining room, along with a skittish pack of Yorkies stirring at their feet. Meanwhile, owners Jake and Pia Utsey were in the kitchen preparing spaghetti and salads while son, John Jacob, and daughter, Gaddy, set the table and poured sweet tea. (Down here, there is no other kind of tea.) Jack and I introduced ourselves and pulled a couple of rockers closer to the glowing flames. A moment later, the door opened and a linebacker-size fellow entered with an armload of split hickory for the fire. He introduced himself as Nathan, who guides and works for Water Valley during the late winter but spends most of the fall guiding for bear, elk, and caribou in Alaska. In the summer, he makes a decent income gathering deer and elk S tretching from Mississippi to Georgia, Alabama's Black Belt covers much of the southern portion of the state. So named because of its dark, rich soil, the region is ripe with possibilities for outdoorsmen. The bass fishing, for instance, is first rate year-round. And the excellent whitetail deer hunting runs from October into early February. A perfect spot for a late season deer hunt is Water Valley.The name alone suggests that visitors should plan to kick back, take a chill pill, and just go with the flow. Here you'll find comfortable lodging, great cooking, and Southern hospitality poured on thick and sweet as molasses over home-cooked biscuits. The experience is as soothing as the clear creek that trickles nearby. And if that's not enough to keep you sassy-fied, there's always the great hunting. I discovered Water Valley in 2013