Cherokee Run Hunting Lodge

Submitted by: Ed Brooks

Review Submitted: Nov 23, 2010

Hunt Date: Nov 8, 2010

Species Hunted: Whitetail Deer, Wild Boar

Days Hunted: 3

Hunt Type: Semi-Guided

Primary Terrain: Foothills

Method: Rifle

Price Range: 500-999

Hunter

There were three hunters in my group for the three day combo deer/wild boar hunt. I was hunting with a rifle and my two hunting partners were hunting with long bows. We hunted hard for two days with no sightings of the game that we were hunting. We had the same reults in March, 2010 while on a wild boar hunt. We were greatly disappointed after tow hunts w/Cherokee Run and decided to head for home. The property is over-hunted and there appears to be a low number of deer and boar. There were no food plots or feed in the feeders to attract the game to the hunter stand sites. The hunts are a waste of your hard earned money and time! Tom is a nice guy but he needs to be honest with the hunters, he does not have the game that he is advertising at the outdoor shows!

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note: The following reviews predate the numeric rating system and are not included in this outfitter's overall rating.

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outfitter review submitted by: Jimmy Ingram on Jun 19 2010

Species Hunted: hog

Game Quality: NONE SIGHTED

Accommodation Quality:

Camp Condition: okay

Food Quality:

Guide Experience: poor

Other Personal Experience:

Overall Impression: waste of time

Recommend: absolutely not

Reviewer Comments: Over 2000 dollars spent. 6 hunters and absolutely no wildlife seen in 3 days. The owner is very kind and courteous but that's it. None of the feeders are operational and the quality of the stands and blinds are terrible. Please don't come here and waste your money. Go to the market and buy you a hog. Yours Truly, Jimmy, Jonathan, David, Glenn, Tim, and Nikki.

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outfitter review submitted by: Chas Catania on May 22 2010

Species Hunted: Hogs

Game Quality: good

Accommodation Quality: very good

Camp Condition: good working order, expected

Food Quality: (Bring/cook your own)

Guide Experience: Excellent

Other Personal Experience: Excellent

Overall Impression: Worthwhile, enjoyable experience

Recommend: YES

Reviewer Comments: I hunted at Cherokee Run May 13 - 15, 2010. I saw pigs (4-6 of them) and heard them on 2 other occasions. I blew a bow shot or there would be pork in the freezer now. The swamps are very thick and since it was dry the pigs were in there staying cool. Even though they were very close to me a few times, you can't always see them. Please be aware that this is a Free Range hunt. These animals are neither fenced, nor trapped elsewhere and released in the hunting area. As such, you need to remember that nothing is guaranteed. I saw plenty of sign, but weather, scent and luck play a part. Not everyone saw pigs, if you need guaranteed kills or guaranteed sightings, you may want to consider one of the many preserves available. I also had a great time visiting with Tom, he's funny, knowledgeable and a great guy to talk to. Scott, the guide worked hard for us, and was terrific as well. For the cost of this hunt you get a lot. NO, you are not buying a pig, but they are out there. Hunt hard, listen to the guides and you may have an opportunity. What you do with that opportunity is up to you. Come with a few friends, bring a good attitude and enjoy the experience. The game is certainly there, pigs, deer,turkeys, raccoons, and a bobcat were spotted by my group. Feel free to email me with questions. I'll return to Cherokee Run, and probably bring my sons.

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outfitter review submitted by: Andrew on May 20 2010

Species Hunted: Boar

Game Quality: Good

Accommodation Quality: Great

Camp Condition: Great

Food Quality: Not Applicable

Guide Experience: Great

Other Personal Experience: Good

Overall Impression: Great

Recommend: Yes

Reviewer Comments: I just returned from my hunt at Cherokee Run and am glad that I did not read the previously posted reviews prior to going. I cannot speak for others, but for my friend and me it was a great experience. I’ve been hunting for 12 years and this was our first guided hunt and first experience for me outside of my home state of Michigan. I think it is unfair and ridiculous to post some of the things said about Tom. I’ll admit that we didn’t get to spend as much time with Tom, the owner, as we would have liked, but if you talked with the man you’d realize he has a family, three young kids, and is a coach and father to them. We were however able to spend a great afternoon sharing hunting stories and fishing with Tom on his pond and enjoyed his company while we could. In addition to that Scott, the guide who we spent most of the days with, was very personable, attentive, prompt, energetic and knowledgeable. He had coffee ready for us when we woke up and dropped/ picked us up at the scheduled times. We got to hunt three different stands in the two days we were there. I personally saw a lot of hog sign and heard them multiple times in the bush, they just never came out. My friend heard a lot, had two come right to the bait 25 yards away, and got a shot. I thought the stands were in great shape and good locations to maximize opportunity. While in the stands I saw turkey and even a buck within 20 yards of me, but it wasn’t the season/ game I was there to hunt. My friend and I went in with realistic expectations and did not base it on whether we went home with meat in the cooler (although we could have minus a missed shot.) My friend and I will be back. Some of the comments that were made are laughable; 1.)“He made us pay for our hunt!” – Where I come from if you buy a shirt, car, hotel room, etc. you usually pay for it first. It is a business so I don’t know why this should be a surprise. 2.)“Don’t expect the Ritz Carlton!” – Who would? First of all it’s a hunting camp and secondly there are pictures posted on the website for you to look at. 3.)“Didn’t have enough utensils.” – We were made aware, in advance, of the fact that we would be furnished with a full kitchen to cook in, nothing more. That plays into the reasonable cost of the hunt. We figured we would need to bring these items and it did not break the bank to buy paper plates (which they actually had there anyway.) 4.)“Didn’t see any animals.” – We did. But most importantly it’s fair chase! If you want to kill, go to a preserve and pay 3 times the amount. If you want to hunt then this is your place. Spoiler Alert: The animals are not chained to the trees or kept in cages/ fences. 5.)“The guide dropped us off and only gave us directions to the stand” – GOOD! Personally I liked that. The less people walking in the woods, making noise, and giving off scent the better! The trails were well marked and flagged for identification. We all know that bad news travels faster than good and I think this is a perfect example of that.

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outfitter review submitted by: Donnie Rynders on May 18 2010

Species Hunted: HOGS/DEER/TURKEY

Game Quality: GOOD

Accommodation Quality: GOOD

Camp Condition: GOOD

Food Quality: N/A

Guide Experience: EXCELLENT

Other Personal Experience: EXCELLENT

Overall Impression: VERY GOOD

Recommend: YES

Reviewer Comments: I hunted with Cherokee Run for two days looking for hogs and both days I was there I had a good opportunity to take the game I was after along with many other game species like deer and turkeys. It seems that there was an abundance of game to be seen not just on my stand but also by the other hunters in camp. There were reports of either seeing or hearing hogs from the other hunters along with numerous sightings of turkeys and quite a few deer. I would recommend the experience at Cherokee Run to others and I plan on going back yearly! This place is certainly the best "free ranging" hunting area I've been in.

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outfitter review submitted by: Mike Fee on Apr 19 2010

Species Hunted: Boar

Game Quality: None

Accommodation Quality: Godd

Camp Condition: Fair

Food Quality: N/A

Guide Experience: Good

Other Personal Experience: N/A

Overall Impression: Poor

Recommend: Not to kill pigs

Reviewer Comments: We had 11 hunters the majority were rifle hunters covering large areas mid April morning and evening for two days, on two diferent tracts of land approx. 150 mhrs on stand with no sightings Owner Tom and guide Scott were great guys, just no pigs

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outfitter review submitted by: Jeremy Dawson on Nov 30 2009

Species Hunted: Feral Pigs

Game Quality: None

Accommodation Quality: Stayed off sight

Camp Condition: Horrible/Dangerous stands

Food Quality: None

Guide Experience: Good

Other Personal Experience: None

Overall Impression: Great if you want to spend money to sit in a rickety stand and never see a pig

Recommend: No

Reviewer Comments: Great place to hunt fox squirrels, I only saw 3 or 4 sets of hog track, it seemed to be way over hunted for pigs and deer, there was about 10 other hunters in camp for the 2 days I was there and only 1 50lb pig and 3 deer(all doe) were seen

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outfitter review submitted by: Rocky Reid on Oct 23 2009

Species Hunted: Deer

Game Quality: Poor-No Deer Sighted

Accommodation Quality: Poor

Camp Condition: Poor

Food Quality: N/A-Self Feed

Guide Experience: Poor

Other Personal Experience: N/A

Overall Impression: Poor

Recommend: NO

Reviewer Comments: I hunted at Cherokee Run Outfitters on 10/16 and 10/17/2009 with my father. We were the only two deer hunters in camp. The remaining six hunters were hog hunters. I did not see a deer for two days. Of course, I was also placed in ladder stands over cutovers with 15-20 mph winds and the cutovers did not have any food sources. The six hog hunters, a husband and wife (wife was on her first hunt), and four young men from West Virginia, did not kill any hogs and did not see any except one time when two of them met in the woods and ran into a boar. The ladder stands are in poor condition, many are homemade. My dad hunted in a ladder stand that had a pallet as the flooring. The owner appeared for a total of 1.5 hours on 10/17/2009 and spent one hour speaking alone with the guide b/c he knew we were all unhappy. The husband and wife were so discouraged that they left early and did not even hunt on 10/17/2009 (not a great impression for a first time hunter). One guide cannot be responsible for 8 hunters and Tom is to blame for that. None of the feeders he had us hunt around had corn in them and the guide said that they had not been filled in over 3 weeks. The lodge was beyond disgusting. The room where we slept entailed walking through the bathroom to get to our room and then being stuck in the room if one of the other hunters used the bathroom before we could get out of our room. The shower and toilet were brown and yellow stained and had obviously not been cleaned in a very LONG time. The place got so dirty that I actually swept the place myself just so I would quit stepping on dirt when I got out of the shower. Trash cans were full when we got there and were not emptied until we left which meant they were overflowing by the time they were emptied. Hunters may not expect the Ritz Carlton but most at least want a clean room. All 8 hunters, including myself, stated that we would all tell others not to hunt here ever.

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outfitter review submitted by: Kenny Dight on Oct 10 2009

Species Hunted: Hog

Game Quality: None

Accommodation Quality: Fair

Camp Condition: Fair

Food Quality: Self provided

Guide Experience: Not really guided

Other Personal Experience: None

Overall Impression: Poor

Recommend: No

Reviewer Comments: We were driven to various roads and dropped off and told we would find stands. The area was heavily baited,but three days of hunting for eight people had no success. Sign was non existant. The bait remained on the ground for the entire time with no activity. No water and no game. Stands were of poor quality and way over booked for the limited area. Before listening to this fellow, You better call some who have wasted their money with him.

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outfitter review submitted by: Tom Edgell on Oct 4 2009

Species Hunted: Hogs

Game Quality: NONE

Accommodation Quality: Fair

Camp Condition: Fair

Food Quality: None

Guide Experience: Poor

Other Personal Experience: No Others

Overall Impression: POOR

Recommend: NO

Reviewer Comments: Game was non existant. Corn was spread everywhere but nothing existed to eat it. Guide used excuse that the full moon had changed feeding pattern. No game no feeding pattern. This is not a hog land. No water existed. Eight hunters in camp for three days-Zero kills. Owner showed up to collect the money and never returned..Guide did nothing but haul us to the end of a road and give directions on how far to walk until we would find a stand... Land acreage was very limited and all stands had been hunted prior to our arrival.A good story was told to get us to book, but nothing came close to expectations.

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