We also explored other dog training areas in our vicinity last season. Coosawattee WMA in Murray County, just west of Carters Lake and Ellijay, was another nearby option. The terrain here was quite a bit different, and hunting it more strenuous.

An overgrown clearcut in which clumps of trees appeared only sporadically, this area showed no sign of being actively managed for quail. We had to climb up and down hills, and sometimes keeping sight of the dog was challenging with the hilly terrain and thick briars. More than once Chris seemed to be motionless and holding a point -- and we'd then realize that she was simply tangled in the briars and was taking a moment to extricate herself.

Even the birds had trouble escaping the thick briars of Coosawattee WMA. After we'd busted a covey, Chris located a single that we'd missed. She had it pointed in a clump of briars, but my husband couldn't even get anything to fly even by kicking the thicket. We wondered if Chris really had a bird.

Then there was a commotion within the clump -- and because feathers were flying, we thought we might have an injured bird fluttering up in the briars. But the quail finally busted loose and got airborne; apparently, the stuff was so thick that the bobwhite had simply had a difficult time escaping. He was on our dinner table that evening.

Coosawattee WMA's dog-training area did provide an alternate location for quail hunting, and we had a successful day of finding and flushing our planted birds. There were even a couple of quail that Chris flushed that we weren't so sure were ours -- they'd come up too unexpectedly and flown too fast to be pen-raised!

BEFORE YOU GO
To locate licensed quail dealers in your area, consult the "Farmers and Consumers Market Bulletin" on the Georgia Department of Agriculture's Web site at www.agr.georgia.gov. Follow the links to the "Market Bulletin Ads"; then go to the category "Poultry/Fowl Requiring a Permit/ License," where you'll find a list of licensed breeders or dealers with contact information.

It'd be a good idea to call your local game management office for exact locations of the dog-training areas within the WMA you intend to visit. They aren't always clearly visible from the main entrance, and maps indicating the designated areas aren't always available at the check-in station. However, signs marking the boundaries of the area will always be present.

WHERE TO HUNT
With the addition of the two newly dog-training areas this season, Game Management Region 1 in the northwest corner of the state boasts five options for places to go with your dog and purchased birds. As mentioned earlier, Allatoona WMA in Bartow County and Paulding Forest WMA in Paulding County have joined Berry College, J.L. Lester and Coosawattee WMAs. For more information call the Region 1 office at (706) 295-6041.

Hart County WMA, in Region 2 just south of Lake Hartwell near the South Carolina border, has a dog-training area. The regional office can be contacted at (770) 535-5700.

Region 3 contains three WMAs with designated dog-training areas: Walton Public Dove Field in Walton County, and Alexander WMA and Mead Farm WMA in Burke County south of Interstate 20 near the South Carolina border. To contact the Region 3 office, call (706) 595-4222.

In the center of the state, Ocmulgee WMA's Gum Creek Tract contains the sole dog training area in Region 4. Contact the office at (478) 825-6354.

Albany Nursery WMA lies amid traditional quail plantation country in the southwest portion of the Peach State and contains the only dog-training area in Region 5. Phone the regional office at (229) 430-4254.

Region 6 in the south-central portion has Beaverdam WMA in Laurens County, Grande Bay WMA in Lowndes County, and Horse Creek WMA in Telfair County. The regional office's phone number is (229) 426-5267.