A place to focus on strategy or game
Historic Upper Brandon has a new life as a conference center and hunting preserve

by Lee Graves
for Virginia Business Options
December 2006

The road to Upper Brandon Plantation narrows steadily as it cuts a winding path through Prince George County. Houses yield more and more space to the forests and fields, as if the cares of the world were falling by the wayside.

Eventually, Willow Run Road is little more than a country lane, ending at a T amid acres of soybeans and corn. Above the intersection, ospreys nest in a utility pole abandoned for their use. To the right, the pavement points toward another plantation, Lower Brandon, a part of the original 1616 Brandon estate that was split from Upper Brandon in 1807. To the left, white gates open onto a bumpy boulevard lined with cypress trees. Every fourth or fifth one bears a sign declaring "Licensed Hunting Preserve."

The road stretches past a skeet range, overlooking more fields and the stately Upper Brandon manor, built in 1821-25. The journey ends at a pair of lodges with postcard views of the James River, where gulls, osprey, vultures and, in the distance, a bald eagle reel above the water.

Here, there are few distractions. "There is nothing around Upper Brandon. When you go to Upper Brandon, you're going to Upper Brandon," says J. Michael Jarvis, one of eight partners in the group that owns the plantation.

Therein lies the essence of the modern estate. Once the property of Capt. John Martin, one of Jamestown's founders, and the home of William Byrd Harrison, a noted 19th century agriculturalist, Upper Brandon Sporting Lodge and Conference Center is carving out a niche as a remote retreat for low-key business conferences and high-end hunting.

The bulk of the 2,300 acres is devoted to farming. The expanse of land provides a buffer from the workaday world, allowing businessmen to focus on strategic planning and broad-brush objectives.

One day earlier this year, two dozen Southern States Cooperative employees gathered in the conference center to discuss maps projected on a screen. If they had desired, they could have ended their session with a different kind of power pointing - shotguns.

"That's one of the things they'll do - after a meeting, come out here and shoot five-stand [a shooting sport with five stations] or skeet. It helps them take out their frustrations," says Mike Spear, the plantation's general manager.

On the same day, hundreds of young mallards swam in two ponds in remote parts of the property. They are part of a program to enrich an area already bountiful in game and lush in habitat.

For waterfowl lovers such as Bill Bolin, who grew up hunting in Alabama, the setting is ideal. He remembers when he was asked to be a guide at Upper Brandon about nine years ago. "For me, it was like dying and going to heaven," says the Chesterfield County resident. "My dog picked up 120 birds last year. Where else can you do that in Virginia?"

This hunting haven grew from the vision of executives at paper manufacturer James River Corp., which purchased the property in 1985. (James River was eventually acquired by Georgia-Pacific Corp.) The manor had been uninhabited for two decades, and corporate officials launched extensive renovations.

They also established ponds and a refuge, annually filling areas with standing crops to attract thousands of migratory geese and ducks along the Atlantic flyway. Their work complemented the natural magnet of Kennon Marsh, a 700-acre lowland that juts out into an elbow of the James.

Over the years, nonprofit groups used the grounds for conferences and get-togethers. Business associates fond of hunting also flocked to the private preserve. Bolin recalls guiding one outing with the chief executive officers of PepsiCo and Marriott.

Upper Brandon's current owners - eight businessmen and avid hunters who hang their hats in Charlottesville, Richmond and Tidewater -have continued upgrading the habitat since purchasing the land in 1998. Three years ago, they launched a mallard release hunting program, where young mallards are brought in, raised and released. Now Upper Brandon is the only preserve in the state with a commercial permit for release hunting.

Jarvis says the sporting and business uses are intertwined. "We seldom sell hunts that are not part of a conference," he says.

Waterfowl hunts cost $8,000 for a party of eight. That includes lodging for a night, dinner, breakfast, a guided hunt in the morning and lunch.

During waterfowl season, three hunts are held a week. The parties of eight are divided into groups of two or three each. Many of the blinds are scattered around Kennon Marsh. Others look onto the various ponds on the estate, such as the Mansion Pond, Line Pond, Horseshoe Pond, Fish Pond and Robertson's Bean Field Pond. "This is a prime pintail pond," Bolin says of Hawk Pond during a tour. "It's shallow, and for some reason the pintail [ducks] seem to love it. I've seen this thing have 2,000 to 3,000 pintail."

Before guests even step into their camouflage, however, the lodges whet their appetites for hunting. In the sumptuously rugged North Lodge, the theme is unmistakable. Dozens of mounted Canada geese and ducks - mallards, canvasback, teal, gadwall, and merganser - are bathed in light streaming through tiers of windows that frame the James beyond.

In the dining room, where the menu might include stuffed quail, filet mignon or salmon in parchment, a print of a capercaillie - a Scottish grouse - hangs on one wall. Hand-carved decoys line shelves in the library. Upstairs are nine bedrooms. "Each room is named after a duck, goose or swan," Spear says.

The West Lodge, which houses the conference center, has nine bedrooms as well. Here massive exposed beams dominate a game room with pool and pingpong tables, dart board and board games. In an adjoining area, a stuffed swan and gobbler stand amid the furniture.

On a typical hunt day, lodgers get up around 5 a.m. and tank up on coffee, eggs, biscuits, bacon and other fare before heading out to a blind. The guides - Bolin is one of three - make sure everyone has the proper licenses and stamps. They review rules of the hunt, including safety pointers. "Safety is foremost," Bolin says. "We want everybody to have a great time, and we want them to be safe."

The plentiful game ensures good hunting. At $1,000 a head, it's not good business for someone to go empty-handed. "When you say upscale, it's a little predictable, too," Jarvis says.

Shooting wraps up around 9:30 a.m., in time for clients or partners to get cleaned up for lunch and the rest of their day.

Jarvis, a Richmond resident who deals in real estate and is president of Charter Leasing Corp., came to hunting later in life than most. "I personally hadn't been hunting until I was 45 years old," he says. "My son seemed to be interested in hunting, and I wanted to do something to spend time with him. I've become a hunting enthusiast now."

Spear, on the other hand, started hunting as a teenager on Maryland's Eastern Shore. Before coming to Upper Brandon in July, he operated a business in Dorchester County, Md., raising waterfowl for release programs.

That gives him unique qualifications for overseeing the plantation's effort. Although release hunting is flourishing in Maryland, North Carolina and other states, Virginia game officials in August put a moratorium on issuing new licenses for mallard release areas. Interest is increasing in the state, and officials want to fine-tune conditions and regulations before allowing expansion.

Upper Brandon managers are working with those officials and a Maryland consultant to shape the plantation's program. "We're setting up Upper Brandon as the model for anyone in the state of Virginia to follow," says consultant Ladd Johnson.

Release hunting of upland birds - such as pheasant, quail and partridges - has been around for years, and it is popular at Upper Brandon as well. The purchase of about 600 acres near the estate will add to that facet and ease hunting pressure on the plantation, Jarvis says. "We're really trying to enhance the hunting at Upper Brandon, but we don't want to do it at the expense of the other things we have."