Hunting, Clay Shooting, and more at Primland Luxury Resort
This post is sponsored by Primland. All opinions expressed in this post (and on SMT) are always based on my honest and personal experiences. You can read more about my disclosure policies here.
I came across Primland last year when the husband and I were looking for a “local” weekend getaway. Unfortunately, the dates we were looking at didn’t have any availability. So when an opportunity came up to go this year I was so excited! I guess you can say it was meant to be.
Primland is a luxury resort in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. It’s about a five hour drive from DC and there are so many different routes you can take from DC/Maryland/Northern Virginia especially if you’re looking to stop along the way to check out some different scenery or historical sights.
What initially sparked our interest in Primland was not only the views but the types of activities they offered. Depending on the time of year, they have everything from hunting, watersports, sport shooting, hiking, ATV’ing, fly fishing, and horseback riding just to name a few. That’s on top of their 18-hole “Audubon-certified” golf course and their spa.
We arrived at the North Gate and were greeted for an initial check-in before we continued onto the property. From there we continued our journey through their meandering roads and through the beautiful scenery. Primland sits on over 12,000 acres of land with breathtaking views of the Blue Ridge Mountains. It was about a 20 minute drive from the North Gate to get to The Lodge. The Lodge is where their main rooms, suites, dining, guest services, fitness center, and spa are located. We stayed in The Lodge but they also have several cottages and mountain homes that are scattered throughout the property as well. And by the way, their Tree House cabins are unreal. The Mountain room at The Lodge was spacious and had all the amenities and extras you’d expect. I loved the dining nook with the window overlooking the property.
Check out my highlight of my weekend at Primland on YouTube
Pheasant Hunting
Let me just preface and let ya’ll know that before this weekend, I had never hunted before. I was definitely nervous because I really wasn’t sure what to expect and let’s be honest, I wasn’t sure how I would feel about killing an animal. But I’m always open to new experiences. After all, you never know what you like, or don’t like for that matter, unless you’re willing to try something new. And as they say, growth never comes from staying in your comfort zone. So when it was time for pheasant hunting I headed down to the activities center where I watched a safety briefing and got my hunting license. I met my guide, Sammy and we headed off to a designated area on and around the Primland property.
I was given a Beretta Silver Pigeon 12-gauge shotgun and a super sweet bright orange vest ;) which easily fit on over my puffer vest. Sammy gave me a quick review of how the shotgun worked and we were off. He let his hunting dogs out and we started making our way through our first area. As we were walking and digging through the brush the dogs would spot a pheasant and then within seconds the bird was in the air. Now it was up to me to get my sights on target and shoot the bird. I missed my first shot but once I figured out the pheasant hunt “process”, I was good to go. My guide, Sammy, was awesome. He was patient with my hundreds of questions regarding hunting and also very encouraging.
We went to two other hunting areas to continue on the adventure and each time Sammy would bring out two new dogs he had with him. It was so neat to see them work and the how proud they were when they were rewarded with being able to bring back a pheasant.
I came to learn that late September isn’t necessarily the best time to hunt pheasant because it was still a tad warm which makes it harder for the dogs to fine tune the scent and some of the pheasants are still kind of small. October would have been a better time to go for pheasant hunting but that didn’t stop me. By the end of the four hour hunt I landed 7 birds. Not too shabby if you ask me! I didn’t realize until the end that they clean and process the pheasant for you as well. They also packaged the meat in ice and a cooler so it would stay frozen for the drive home. I love that they did that because I wasn’t really sure what would happen and I surely didn’t want to be hunting and it just be for “fun.” After all, those birds did sacrifice their life and now I’m thankful for the opportunity to feed myself through this experience. It definitely gave me a new appreciation for ease of food access we have versus those that have to hunt to put food on the table.
Personally, the hunting experience at Primland was awesome and I think a great way to be introduced to hunting. They also have other hunts you can participate in through the cooler months such as deer and turkey. While I don’t think I’m ready to go sit in a blind for hours, I will easily be more game (#punintended) to go pheasant hunting again.
Clay Shooting & ATV’ing
In the afternoon we geared up to spend the remainder of the day clay shooting and ATV’ing. Again, we headed down to the activities center to meet up with Sammy, our guide, who got us ready for the adventure. The ATV ride was such a fun way to really see how massive the property is and take in some of the beautiful views. Sammy led the way in his ATV and we followed in our own. I couldn’t even tell you how to get back to where we started because we literally were all over the 12,000 acres. We drove through creeks, up smaller mountains, and through terrain. If you decided to ATV just be sure you dress appropriately as you’ll definitely get dusty from all the dirt being kicked up and you might get wet but it’s all part of the fun.
We took our ATV’s with us to another area of the resort that had designated clay shooting stations. And I’m not talking about just walking up to a stall and shooting. These were well thought out courses that were spread apart. You really have the opportunity to test your skills for shooting clays from so many directions from up high simulating a bird to low to the ground like a rabbit and everything in-between. This was also my first time shooting clay and, again our guide, Sammy was patient and provided great guidance on how and where to aim. What I loved about this is that I got to shoot from several of the 14 stations and each time it was different; so you aren’t just standing in one spot for hours shooting at the same same clay targets. The direction, speed, and size was different at each station; which also allowed for some friendly competition between the husband and I.
The Observatory
One of the more unique experiences that we both really enjoyed was the observatory. We can get a lot of light population from living in the city so we rarely have the opportunity to see such a clear sky. The sky out there at night on it’s own is massive and the stars are so clear but then add in the ability to see the sky in an observatory takes things to another level. It was so clear I was able to see Saturn, Jupiter, and the Sagittarius constellation. Through the telescope I could see the rings around Saturn. That was such a surreal thing to see. They also have an insane camera attached to one of the telescopes so we could see galaxies that were over 6000 light years away. It’s so crazy to see and get a glimpse beyond our solar system. This is a “can’t miss” and is great for a couple or with the whole family. Just keep in mind, if you’re going in the cooler months, bring an extra layer because it gets cold up there once they open the roof.
The Food
Primland has two restaurants in the Lodge, elements which is more upscale and 19th Pub that is more relaxed and also serves the outdoor fire pit. We ate breakfast and dinner at elements and enjoyed drinks by the fire pit for happy hour.
Let me start with breakfast. I don’t normally have much to say about oatmeal but their oatmeal was ah-mazing; I found out they make it with apple cider instead of the standard water or milk and let me tell you it’s a game changer! Also, the buttermilk pancakes were quite tasty and you definitely left feeling full. The dining experience at elements was top notch and it was the perfect way to end the weekend. The menu featured a lot of locally sourced ingredients and plenty of options to come back again. Oh, and save room for dessert as you won’t be disappointed especially if you’re a chocolate lover.
They do offer in-room dining, which is very popular, as well as other restaurants around the property but with our schedule we were only able to check out what was available in the Lodge. One of my favorite things was to sit out by the fire pit and enjoy a drink. The cocktail list had a lot of great options and they didn’t disappoint. With it being the end of the September it got cooler as the sun started going down so having the fire made it extra cozy.
Overall, Primland was great and I would go back in the heartbeat. I went towards the end of September and the weather was beautiful. The temps had dropped down to about 65 degrees during the day and it was beautiful and sunny. With Primland being set in the Blue Ridge Mountains I’m sure going in October when the Fall leaves start to turn makes the property even more beautiful.
What I love about Primland is that the experiences and activities allow you to try something that you might not otherwise do. While hunting was something I was always open to, it seemed so daunting but after this, I can see myself actually going on pheasant hunts. And I found a new hobby with clay shooting. I really loved that activity and will definitely be looking into clay shooting ranges closer to home. While I was out and about on the property nothing ever felt crowded. While I saw other guests also doing activities, everything is so spread out and organized so well that you really feel like you have the place to yourself.
One of the things I want to check out on our next trip is their spa and their local property hikes. Something you should note when it comes to the activities is that most originate from the activities center which is about 25 minutes from the Lodge. So you’ll need to give yourself time to get there and back. I had a car I rented but Primland will drive you down to the activities center as well.
One last thing to note, given the current situation with COVID, we didn’t have any concerns or issues in regards to the safety of our health. They were operating at about 75% capacity and everything was being sanitized, cleaned, and the tables were socially distanced. They were not offering daily house keeping services on the rooms but it was available on request.