DEER SEASON, 2007 - 2008 and SPRING TURKEY SEASON, 2008
Randy Albrecht, mechanic/maintenance inspector - "Great place to bring my son to hunt. We will be back for turkey season and youthhunt!"
Barry McDaniel, teacher - "Well this has been an unbelievable hunt. Just thinking about what animals you want to shoot and bam! There they are!! The personal talking, sense of belonging: y'all were just great! Keep up the stories and the personal caring. It was great hunting with the kids."
Robert Bertrand, President/CEO of Blue Marlin Services, Broussard, Louisiana - "I found The Shed website...from my first conversation I felt like I was speaking to a relative...then we arrived on Jan. 4, 2007, I quickly realized that all the guidesand (GrayMosley's) familywelcomeduslikefamily. Then when I thought I couldn't be more impressed, the hunting started, and they really kicked into high gear. I've never seen more effort put into placing everyone on stands that were placed for wind direction and so forth. This was my first trip, and more importantly, I brought my two customers...my best friend...and my nephew. They all had successfulhunts and were more than pleased with everything...I would welcome anyone to call me for a rave review. These guys have it all:accommodations, top guides, stands, and personal friendship!"
Ken Thomas, service manager - "Food was great - Best hospitality - sleeping arrangements very comfortable - guides are awesome. This place has its management under complete control - Thanks for everything - See ya' next year."
Tammy Ronsonet, housewife (and husband, Chad) - "This was my first hunting experience and I enjoyed each and everyone here at The Shed. The warm hospitality and the genuine love for hunting, people, and safety made this experience the best. I'm sure we'll have many more great memories here at The Shed..."
Alison Lane, RN - "I'm short on suggestions only because everything was very good: the people, the accommodations, the food, and the music!..."
Pete Herbert, engineer - "Outstanding facility, people, and food...will recommend to my friends and will come back next year. Thanks to all..."
Scott LaGrange - "Everything was awesome. It was truly a trip I'll never forget. Everything I can think of was just fantastic....Thanks!"
Bryan Dehon (and family) - "I really enjoy The Shed Hunting Lodge because everyone is so nice...we have fun!"
Jeff Thrasher, lumber wholesaler - "Enjoyed every minute - will be happy to recommend to anyone. I think I ate too much!!! - will be back soon. Thank you."
Jeff Jarred, offshore - "Great foods, very comfortable stands, great hospitality, guides work hard to put you in a good situation to take deer. Guides are very knowledgeable of the hunting area. I would definitely come back to The Shed Hunting Lodge to hunt in the future."
Keith Ratcliff, veterinarian - "First class all the way. Thanks for a memorable hunting experience."
Henry and Emily Cornelison, self-employed - "Excellent effort on placing us in shooting situation.The comradery with everyone was like visiting family. The food was great. Emily and Stacy were just as pleased, being non-hunters, as Brett and I were with the wholepackage!"
Rick Cicero, horticulturist - "Enjoyed this weekend very much - Guides were very helpful. Accommodations - excellent. Food - super. Will definitely re-book for next year."
Tony Cicero, landscape maintenance - "Very comfortable - saw lots of deer - great food - very helpful and friendly guides. I will re-book for next year."
Brett Fredenburg, self-employed - "Great people that make you feel at home. Really good cooking. A weekend that I will remember for the rest of my life."
Chad Champagn, "oil-field" operations manager - "Food and guides were great and had a great time. Will be back and will refer."
Tayte Ronsonet, dental assistant (with husband, Cory) - "This is the best trip ever. Everyone here is just absolutely wonderful. The music, food, and genuine love for people makes me feel like I'm at home. i look forward to next year!! Thanks for everything all of y'all have done. Y'all are very special people. Thanks."
Tes Jolly, outdoor writer/photographer - "At The Shed, I've now hunted with Alabama'sBEST. Guides are top notch, especially Mr. Roland Tyson who called in my gobbler on the first morning. Larry Norton is the best hen impersonator I've EVER heard, HANDS DOWN. Thanks for the great food, hospitality, and hunt. Looking forward to walking the ridges again."
Tony Smotherman, Knight Rifles - "Glad to hunt with some good ole country folks!...the laughs have been heavy. It is not game over yet!"
Joe Isaac, directional drilling - "Great set-up. Had a wonderful time."
Stacy and Brett Fredenburg, adjuster and repair tech (respectively) - "Awesome weekend, wonderful camp, clean, comfortable. Beautiful country. Everyone made us feel like family. And Ms. Mary - man, can she cook! The food is so good and plentiful! Thank y'all!! We'll be back!"
John Kellm, businessowner - "Had a great hunt, food was the best. We would like to come back next year - Let's stay in touch. Henri was great to hunt with; he was a great guide. Larrycalls (turkeys) great, and Ms. Mary was a great cook. Thanks."
Roy Matthews, oil-field - "Turkeysareplentiful, food was great, hospitality was awesome. Music was as good as it gets. As always, it just doesn't get better than this. Thanks again."
DEER SEASON, 2006 - 2007 and SPRING TURKEY SEASON, 2007
Jason Meonx, safety consultant - "After hunting deer at some of the country's premier hunting lodges, I have found the best one yet: where the people make the hunt an unforgettable experience that will live with me every day for the rest of my life! Can't wait to return...Thank you."
Richard Mann, scuba store owner - "very good stand organization - very good food - guides were friendly and organized."
John Hoeben, vaccine division or Merck & Co., Inc. - "Shooting houses and green fields are beautiful...people are wonderful. Henri, Louis, and Mr. Gray are down to earth, genuine people. Thanks."
Mitchell Baughman, self-employed - " Thoroughly enjoyed the trip! Best and friendliest people we've ever hunted with! We will be back!"
Jerry Eberts, contracting/construction - "Excellent fields/blinds, overall hunting management. Friendly guides and staff. Felt at home - good food..."
Win Hoeben, retired - "Great place. Very accommodating people and friendly...Good food. Henri is a very good guide."
David Byler, body-shop owner - "Great food, cool lodging. Henri is a great guide."
Eyan Eberts, delivery - "Blind quality was very good. Service was outstanding. Guides were fun and helpful throughout the whole trip. All in all was a very fun hunt - would love to come back next year!"
Eric Eberts, delivery driver - "Good guides, clean place, clean blinds, good eating, exceeded my expectations."
Ray Flores, President OQSG - "Exceeded expectations across the board: facilities (sleeping), shoot houses were great, food and hospitality EXCEPTIONAL, guide service and support was First Class. Thanks for the opportunity to hunt here! Above all...the MUSIC! I will return."
One of the highlights of last spring’s turkey season was meeting and hunting with world champion turkey caller, Larry Norton, on a spring turkey hunt at The Shed near Butler, Alabama. Hunting com-panions included media notables, Brenda Potter-field, David Rainer, Bryce Towsley, and Tony Smotherman. Michele Baritmus and Branch Meanley repre-sented the hunt sponsor, Pradco, who
Tes Randall (freelance writer/photographer) with her tom taken on her hunt at The Shed Hunting Lodge on the cover of the Alabama Department of Conversation and Natural Resources guide
A few soft yelps and clucks were rewarded with an enthusiastic gobble. The bird went quiet on the next calls. The fiber optic beads were lined up, green-red-green. Less than a minute passed when the strutter hustled down the opposite slope. The bird crossed the road (without checking for traffic), and a few seconds later was hit by a load of #6’s. Lucky for us the beautiful 2 year old gave us a classic and unforgettable hunt.
provided gear from Carry-Lite, Knight and Hale, Summit, Green Mountain Rifle Barrel and Knight Rifles shotguns.
On arrival day, guide and property manager, Henri Billiot, demon-strated his Cajun cul-inary skills. Hunt strategizing took place outdoors over Billiot’s spicy crawfish feast heaped high on a wood table. Novices received instruction on the fine art of tail-pinching mud-bugs as the mound of expertly steamed craw-fish, “finger food” ac-companiments of corn, potatoes, mushrooms, and bowls of tasty gumbo quickly disap-peared.
Larry briefed our group on how the turkeys were gathering in breeding flocks. Hunt-ing this period of the spring season is the most challenging. Hens are the enemy and could ruin even the best laid plans. We were confident the odds for success in-creased by hunting with expert hen im-personators and woods-men like Larry and his guides, though we all prayed for a little luck from the turkey gods.
There is usually a lucky hunter in every camp. And this time it was yours truly. I was lucky to have guide, Roland Tyson, escort me through the piney wood hills and hardwood hollers from which he’s viewed a lifetime of sunrises and sunsets. Our first trip to the turkey woods was spent walk-ing roads, prospecting for a lonely gobbler. Roland is not only a fine turkey caller, he's an expert woodsman from years of working in the timber industry and hunting. We passed the last hours before fly-up set up off a road edge near a roost area
hoping to intercept a gobbler on his way to bed. No luck…but dust bowls, droppings, and tracks gave us an indication of a flock using the area. There would be hens to deal with.
Next morning we walked in silence to a listening spot. In the night a heavy, dripping, gray fog had settled, floating low and slow among the pines and deadening the usual morning sounds. A distant dull gobble seemed to lack en-thusiasm in the murk. Several minutes passed as Roland’s calls urged the tom to answer. Nothing. Reversing our track Roland explained we should try to find a more vocal bird.
Owling and yelping in two more areas were met with frustrating silence. Roland wasn't worried, though. Back in the truck, we headed for the area we had hunted the previous afternoon. The plan was to walk and call and hopefully strike a bird. I excused myself for a quick nature break. In the tow minutes I was gone, a gobbler sounded off - not onece, but five times! Roland was already geared up upon my return. The bird sounded off again. We exchanged knowing smiles and hustled off toward the gobbles.
The next gobbles indicated our bird had staked a claim to a pine covered ridge-top sev-eral hundred yards away. We cut through the pines and dropped down to a red dirt road and stopped to listen. As if on cue, the king of the hill gobbled across the road barely 200 yards away. We ducked in response, and Roland quickly chose our set ups in young pines 75 yards back from the road.
The remainder of the hunt the turkeys played tough, typical of the henned up phase of spring breeding sea-son. I had the pleasure of roaming the turkey woods with Larry in search of a “volunteer”. Most setups, I had to watch him calling to be convinced what I was hearing was not a live hen! Most evenings, on the camp porch, Larry generously shared his calling secrets and techniques to an eager audience.
During orientation-before the hunt - Larry and the guides had referred to the steep hunting area as “moun-tains”... Seemed like a bit of an exaggeration at the time. However, a couple of days into the hunt (and to the amusement of The Shed’s crew), we were all using “mountains” to describe the terrain when recapping hunts that required lung-busting moves to close the distance on stubborn gobblers. The turkeys won most of the wars, though at hunt’s end, everyone had worked turkeys, and several had close encounters. The tur-keys earned our respect, as did Larry Norton and his capable staff who ensured everyone’s hunt was a memorable one. We left with new friend-ships, hunting tales, calling tips, and a desire to return to The Shed for a rematch with the kings of the Choctaw county “mountains”.
