I debated leaving a bad review so that others wouldnt go to this place and I could keep it a secret…read morefor myself but I coudnt do that to Andy and his crew. I took my father and a friend to the property and rented out the lodge for 4 days. It was FANTASTIC!!!!! Andy and his guides are super friendly and they know their shit when it comes to putting you on wild game. Out of the seven hunts I went on I saw deer everyday except one. That day I saw a bunch of turkey. I sat in a stand one morning and counted at least 100 deer walk past me. It is not a high fenced property but they definitely put you in the right places to get a shot at deer and hogs. After 4 days I had killed a doe, button buck, an 8 pointer and a 10 pointer. My father killed a huge wild boar. My friend saw a bunch of deer but didnt shoot anything as his freezer was already full. I have already made plans to book the lodge and go again this November. Cant say enough about the people that work with Andy, top notch.

This is part of a region where the sea islands are not developed and there isn't really any ocean…read morebeach access. The wildlife refuge, like a lot of land in the area, used to be a plantation and was converted into small farms after the Civil War. More surprisingly, it also used to have a WWII-era airfield. This means that much of the reserve is actually paved because its the remnants of said facility. The signs of the park's pastoral era are less evident, but an isolated stone fountain hints at the mansion that once occupied the area. Now the place is consumed with Spanish Moss and various tropical plant life. There is a loop which offers some waterside access. It isn't exactly prime tourist territory, but this is a wildlife refuge and not a park, so if you go in expecting something touristy you're in the wrong place. I did not see any alligators, but coming during the winter also meant that I wasn't swarmed by bugs, which is often the case around these parts. But for the hardy adventurer, this is an intriguing site.

What a beautiful wildlife refuge! While staying in Georgia for the week, this was certainly a…read morehighlight. We were able to see quite a few alligators (some were even blocking the pathway!), and there were a lot of birds to see throughout the marsh area. The paths are well maintained and flat, so you can easily spend a few hours walking around and enjoying the scenery. Highly recommend!

Recently wrapped up a hog hunt at Oconee River Lodge, and the entire experience was outstanding…read more The hunting itself was phenomenal--plenty of action, great opportunities, and a well-managed property that truly sets the stage for a successful hunt. On top of all that, the hospitality was exceptional. From the moment we arrived to the moment we packed up, the staff made us feel welcomed and taken care of. Good people, great atmosphere, and an all-around first-class operation that we can't wait to revisit next year.

WARNING! Oconee River Lodge -False advertisement and overall disappointing experience…read more I would like to start off with the positives. Our guide was knowledgeable, kind, and tried his best to get us a deer. The food was good and the lodge was clean. The Lodge Advertised on the website as "6 bedroom 4 bathroom with individual lockers for each hunters gear. Plenty of space and some of the best bass fishing right out the door" "Our inviting 5,000 sq. ft. lodge features six comfortable bedrooms and four bathrooms, complete with a game room for relaxation. Enjoy watching your favorite sports on one of our four flat-screen TVs, or take advantage of the prime fishing opportunities in our stocked ponds." We did not stay at this advertised location. We stayed at a much smaller lodge behind the owners home (which is not advertised on the website). It was my husband and myself and two other men (4 total guests). There were 2 bedrooms packed with two sets of bunks and a loft area with two beds. There were no lockers, ponds to fish, game room available for use as advertised on the website. There was a pool table and a dart board with one broken dart. It would not have been an issue to stay at this location, but we were not told about this before hand and had expecting to be at the other location. We had purchased GA fishing licenses and gear and would not have done this if we were told we would not have access to these amenities prior to our hunt. The air conditioning in the other gentlemen's room did not work. They brought up the A/C issue to the guide the first morning at 5am. The owner did not send anyone out to address this issue and the two hunters did not have air conditioning all 3 nights. No one was sent to even look at this unit. This resulted in the two hunters having to keep their door open while napping after the morning hunt which caused my husband and myself not to be able to use the common area in fear we may disrupt their sleep. We were forced to sit in our bedroom or go stand on the front porch to have conversations (there was no outdoor seating). At the end of the 3rd evening, the two men drove the 5 hours home instead of having to endure an additional night of no air conditioning. Also, the TV did not work . There is not one picture of this lodge located on their website. Again, this location was not the issue. It was the lack of transparency and the flat out dishonesty which is frustrating. The Hunting I will start off by saying I did have the opportunity to kill a decent buck and missed due to a bow malfunction. Day one morning- We went to a location on I would guess approx 200-300 acres. My morning hunt was disrupted at 7:18am by a pack of domesticated dogs. All 4 hunters encountered the dogs throughout the hunt and the dogs ran off a small buck at a feeder at about 9am. We never returned to this location Day one evening through the end of Day 3. We spend the rest of the hunts on 86 acres in between a golf course and a neighborhood. I could see the houses from the neighborhood during my hunt. This property was no equipped for 4 hunters. This property originally had 3 ladders stands, and we were told two guides set up a ground blind in the early afternoon and threw out a bag of corn to make the 4th location so we could all hunt that evening . At this location, all 4 of us saw deer- a doe, two baby deer, a spike, and a decent eight point. After the morning of the day two hunt, my husband and the other two male hunters expressed wanting to try a different property to peruse hogs instead as we were allowed 3 hogs (1 per day). We were told by the guide , "no hogs are coming out during the day" and that was the end of that conversation. We were never offered to try an additional location which i think is odd as they advertise the deer hunts take place on 7500 acres of private managed land and the hog hunts take place on 20,000 acres of private land. We hunted on less than 500 acres and not one time was offered to try a different location. I do not blame our guide. He truly tried his best and made several phone calls to another guide seeking guidance and I believe he was just doing what he was instructed to do. On the evening on night two I missed the eight point. My husband did not see any deer after the first day evening hunt. We came into this knowing a buck was not guaranteed, but when my husband spoke to Kevin on the phone prior to booking the hunt in July , Kevin told my him we could "kill a hog everyday if you want." This was extremely misleading as he gave off the impression they were overflowing with hogs. This was not the case. My family was looking for a close to home, yearly tradition hunt and Oconee River Lodge is not it. I do not recommend! There are additional issues and concern, but these are the main ones. Just know you are NOT getting what you expected!

Victoria Bluff Heritage Preserve is a SC managed wildlife preserve (1000+ acres) just minutes from…read moreHilton Head off Hwy 278. The entrance I used is on Sawmill Creek road, with a parking area enough for 15 or so cars. The walking path, or hiking trail is a natural base and easy to walk. It's a good car width wide. Hiking is not permitted during the hunting season of Oct. to Dec. The path is supposedly 4 miles, but I did not walk the full amount. It's a good walking area through tall pines, with many saw palmettos along the way. Lots of birds moving about, I saw mostly cardinals. I enjoyed the walk during Feb with 60 degree temperature, so I imagine it gets much hotter during summer. Open dawn to dusk, it's a worthy natural area to get out and walk. I would return here to walk it again.