The Valley Creek Outdoors Blog:
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December 3, 2007
by Valley Creek Staff

We have some pictures for you.  We had some problems with the three game cams that we use, but you will see some pics from the one good camera run that we did have - from back in October as the velvet was coming off.

Next, you'll see a series of pics from bow season, when several of our hunters had good days.

Then, we have a set of photos from a few groups that we've had come through since gun season came in.

After that, a there are a few scenes from the old bridge across Valley Creek near the grist mill and from the road in front of the lodge. 

As you know from the news, we're in the middle of a terrible drought here in Alabama.  The creek is flowing, but it's not very full.  Still, the leaves were really nice this fall, and the mast crop (mostly acorns) has been outstanding.  There are still plenty of acorns on the ground - which is unusual for this time of year.

Finally, there's a single pic of...well...we don't know how to describe it.

Keep an eye here for more pictures as the season progresses.

Don't ask...


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April 25, 2007
by Bucky Henson

We hope that you all are enjoying or did enjoy your spring turkey seasons.

We've made a change in our business, and we want to explain it here.

Since we started Valley Creek Outdoors five years ago, we've had a great time and made a lot of great friends.  The lodge's business has grown, we've remained busy, and we've enjoyed a lot of success.

Also, during that time, some of our other lines of business have grown - rapidly, in some cases.  As a result, we have developed business relationships that press upon us the need to entertain and spend time with customers of those other lines of business.  Further, we've had some family members who like to spend time in the outdoors growing up quickly.

The bottom line is that Valley Creek Outdoors will be offering fewer paid hunts during the season and will be adding emphasis to our wildlife services for other private landowners. 

Actually VCO will stay busy throughout the hunting season, but we'll be hunting fewer people - probably groups of three to four at the most outside of our VCO hunts (usually eight hunters).

We'll continue to bring you pictures and other information as we have during the past several years.

We have contacted most of our customers from the last several years to let them know about the change and to offer them the opportunity to book the limited number of Valley Creek Outdoors hunts that we'll be offering.

It is our plan to expand Valley Creek Outdoors' wildlife consulting as a part of our overall forest management services over the next several years.  So, if you would like to discuss ways that VCO might help you enhance your hunting land & wildlife, please contact us.

If you have any other questions, please let us know.
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February 15, 2007
by Valley Creek Staff

We have a few more pics now available from the end of the season.  Several really nice bucks and some really great folks are shown here. 

It was a great season, and we really appreciate having had so many great folks hunt with us.

Enjoy the rest of the off-season, and keep an eye on our website.  We hope to have some interesting things to post over the next few months.

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February 5, 2007
by Valley Creek Staff

Another year has come and gone.  We had some great folks hunting with us the last few weeks of the season, and we took some nice bucks.

Here you'll see photos of a great trophy buck taken by this young hunter with a perfectly placed round.  This was the first deer taken by this young man - one that he and his family will always remember.

Next is a nice, big seven-point taken with literally 15 minutes left in the season.  This was a big-bodied buck with a big, tall rack.  'Really nice buck...

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January 17, 2007
by Mike Cutler

We've had several great groups in this month, and we have a lot of pictures for you.  So, we'll get right to it...

First is a picture of an oak seedling taken by Bobby Loughridge (of Buchanan Timber & Forestry), in December on our King Place tract.  We hope that you find this picture as cool as we do.  We call it "Oak Cross."

Next, you'll see several nice nine-points, a ten-point, and several other good bucks and does.  We also had a little of that lagniappe (seafood, fishing and other good stuff).

These following pictures are of a really nice, big nine-point taken one morning a week ago or so.  This is one of the best racks that we've taken at Valley Creek in recent years.






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December 30, 2006
by Bucky Henson

Here's that seven-point I told you about on the 27th.  This is a nice, wide rack.  This young hunter made a great shot on this buck on the afternoon of the 26th.  It was his first buck.  Great job.

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December 27, 2006
by Bucky Henson

We had another couple of nice bucks taken at Valley Creek over the last few days.  This eleven-point (a typical eight with two drop-tines - one, about nine inches in length - and a kicker) was taken by this young man yesterday afternoon.  We found blood last night and decided not to push the buck.  This morning, we found the deer after a brief search, tracking a good blood trail.  This is one of the more unusual racks that we've had taken here in recent years.  Nice, nice buck.

Check back later today or tomorrow for pictures of a nice seven-point taken here yesterday by a young hunter - his first buck.

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December 19, 2006
by Mike Cutler

We have taken a pause for Christmas and New Year's Eve.  We'll have a group coming in the afternoon of New Year's Day, and we'll get going again.  In the meantime, we'll be working to add stands, fertilize the fields, and other various things that need doing.  We'll also be hunting and enjoying the land with family and friends.

Merry Christmas to all, and may the Lord bless your time with your family and friends.

A little Christmas cheer for you...

Look at this proud hunter with his 160-class, 225 pound, 12-point bruiser.  This young man showed great poise and patience, letting two nice eight-points enter the green field one afternoon and waiting to see what else might come out.  He was rewarded with an opportunity at a trophy of a lifetime.

This buck was taken on a brand-new green field that we constructed for this season.  Thanks to this young hunter for giving us all a thrill.

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December 10, 2006
by Bucky Henson

Our latest groups of guests came in with a cold front.  They saw a lot of deer during their stays, and they took several nice bucks and does.

A lot of these men had hunted with us before in good weather and bad.  It was good to see them get some really good, cold weather for hunting.  They took home plenty of meat and several rack bucks for the wall at home.

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December 4, 2006
by Mike Cutler

We've had several great groups in since the last update.  We saw some old friends and made some new ones. 

A great group from LA (lower Alabama) came back to hunt with us.  They saw a lot of deer and even filmed a few nice bucks.  They took several nice does.

We also had some new folks in.  This group brought in two nice nine-points and several does.

The weather turned cold here today, so keep an eye on the website.

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November 20, 2006
by Mike Cutler

Our season has started out well.  We had several great groups of bow hunters in the first part of this month.  Several nice does were taken. 

On a bright note, several really nice bucks were observed by our bow hunters.  A few were within bow range, and shots were taken.  On a dimmer note, none of those shots worked out the way we wanted them to.  But, the misses were clean, and those big boys are still out here.

Between bow hunts, some of our guests were treated to some fine fishing in a few of our ponds.  Bass, bream, crappie, and even a foul-hooked carp were brought in.  The weather was great for fishing, and still pretty good for hunting.

One of our great friends from North Alabama was named Grand Champion of the barbeque competition at Jack Daniels in Lynchburg, Tennessee this year.  He brought his cooker down with him, and treated us all to some killer ribs & chicken.

You know that term, "lagniappe" from Southern Louisiana & Mississippi?  It means, in rough terms, “an extra or unexpected gift or benefit.”  A chef in New Orleans will often send something to your table that you didn't ask for or expect. 

Well, Grand Champion barbeque, crappie fishing, and the occasional dove & skeet shoot are part of the lagniappe you'll often find at Valley Creek.  We can't promise what might or might not happen, but we're always trying hard to make your stay a great one.

Here are some pics from bow season and the opening weekend of gun season, which began Saturday, the 18th.

Several bucks, several does, several fish, and lots of fun...

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September 5, 2006
by Bucky Henson

Here are some pics from a couple of our game cams followed by various scenes around the Valley Creek land.  The bucks are still in velvet. 

I jumped this bachelor group in my pickup near one of our ponds last week.  We were pleased to get them here on camera.

Here's a shot of the sunrise at Valley Creek's "King Place" on Saturday, September 2, 2006...

We've done a lot of roadwork this year making sure you have as comfortable a trip to and from your stand as possible...

Here are a few pics taken from the banks of the Alabama River this summer...

This is one of our inland ponds (really, it's a closed slough).  The drought this year really has the water levels low.

The following shots are of some of the pine forests that we (Buchanan Forest Management) grow here at Valley Creek...

This shot was not taken at Valley Creek.  I just thought it was a pretty sunset.  The trees silhouetted against the sky are on a tract of land also managed by Buchanan Forest Management in Lowndes County, Alabama...

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Valley Creek Outdoors
1064 Valley Creek Church Road
P. O. Box 990
Selma, Alabama  36702-0990
Phone:  334-872-0491
Fax:  334-875-9436
Email:  info@valleycreekoutdoors.com