Riding along sandy paths in a Kawasaki Mule on his 1,400-acre property in Richmond County, The Webb Farm owner Bill Webb points out remnants of buildings that once held tobacco. Indeed, the hilly terrain has changed little from the 1940s through the early 2000s when his family harvested the state’s most famous crop.
But the working farm on land owned by his family for six generations has transitioned into a boutique lodge for what adherents call “wingshooting.” The Webb Farm, which opened in 2005, now offers eight rooms and can house more than a dozen guests at a time.
“I can remember when this entire field out here was in tobacco,” says Webb. “I am amazed at how we’ve been able to transform this farm from a tobacco economy to an entertainment economy.”
Converting the land in Ellerbe into a quail hunting lodge wasn’t too far from Webb’s wheelhouse. He remembers his dad and uncle hunting quail in a 1956 Jeep, outfitted with a dog box. At age 10, he joined them as they followed the bird dogs, stopping when they pointed to where a covey of quail was settled. Those experiences developed into a lifelong hobby for Webb.
A visit in 1986 to Dixie Plantation, a former cotton farm that has become a popular quail-hunting venue in northeast Florida, inspired Webb’s thinking. Changes in the state’s tobacco program provided the signal that Webb needed. He proposed the idea of a new business to his mother, Johnnie Webb, who gave him the green light in 2003. (Mrs. Webb died in March.)
“It really whetted my appetite to take this farm, on a smaller scale, and do what they had done,” says Webb, an only child. “I proposed to my mother that we convert our hobby into a business and try to retain the beauty of open farmland. She was skeptical, but she didn’t stand in the way.”
Baccy’ to Birds
Quail season in North Carolina runs from October until mid-March because the hunting dogs need cool weather. While not as famous for quail hunting as Midwest states such as Oklahoma and Nebraska, North Carolina has 19 other private bird hunting preserves, ranging from Bolivia near the coast to Shelby in Cleveland County. Some are solely for quail hunting and don’t offer lodging, meals or guides.
Bird dogs such as Boykin Spaniels, English Setters and Labrador Retrievers are as much a part of the experience as aiming a shotgun with size eight shot at Bobwhite quail. Even in cool weather, guides swap out the dogs frequently for rest and water.
Morning and afternoon sessions each last about three hours, with 10 to 12 hunters at a time. A souped-up, all-terrain vehicle carries two guests, a guide and the dogs to one of six courses.
In one season, The Webb Farm may serve as many as 450 guests. Hunters usually come in as a group. Most hunters are men, but some couples may book a weekend together. The women may hunt or head to Pinehurst for a spa day.
About 70% hail from North Carolina, though hunters visit from as far as Lebanon and Singapore. Eighty to 90% are repeat customers, often making reservations a year in advance.
Corporate groups make up half the business, using the time to build team morale or develop client relationships. Webb likens it to spending the day on a golf course, but adding bird dogs, good food, a fire pit and beautiful scenery.
Guests can stay for the day, or one night or multiple nights. The most popular is the split day hunt: $5,600 includes guides, hunting equipment, lodging and meals for two people. Guests arrive at lunchtime to enjoy a quail dish (it tastes like Cornish hen, most say), then hunt, enjoy another chef-prepared dinner, stay over and then go hunt again in the morning. Some drive to the venue, while others arrange to meet Webb Farm staff at the Greensboro or Raleigh airports for a commute. A few land helicopters at the farm.
Sunday Success
When The Webb Farm first opened, Sunday hunting in North Carolina was prohibited. This put the business and other N.C. preserves at a disadvantage versus most other states, which didn’t have the Sunday restriction. State lawmakers changed the rule with the Outdoor Heritage Act in 2015.
“People couldn’t come here for a weekend [and hunt] and that really hurt us financially,” Webb explains. “It really didn’t go through my head that it would be such a big deal, but it was. When Sunday hunting was passed by the legislature, essentially, this operation went from running in the red to running in the black.”
The guides are independent contractors, mostly from the area. They bring their own dogs for pointing, flushing and retrieving. Three staff members are full-time, year-round employees. Six to eight other seasonal staff assist with meals, housekeeping and other duties.
Over the years, Webb has added about 200 acres and several rooms, and updated facilities. Meals are prepared onsite by local chefs and many ingredients are provided by the Berry Patch in Ellerbe and Lick Branch Farms in Rockingham.
Each September, The Webb Farm releases thousands of birds and replenishes them after each hunt. High Flight Game Birds in Spring Hope provides the quail. The birds don’t leave the farm for a simple reason: Webb spends $35,000 a year feeding them.
“One of my goals was to show people that you can do things with your land that are responsible from a conservation standpoint and are compatible with use in a rural landscape.”
Well-Orchestrated
People return because they feel welcome from the moment they step onto the lodge’s front porch. Mention The Webb Farm to someone who’s been there, and they will share a story about their time around the fire pit or at the dinner table.
Debbie Webb, Bill’s wife, worked as the head caterer at Rockingham Speedway and owned the Steeples restaurant in Hamlet when they met. Bill practices law four days a week in Rockingham as a partner in a general practice law firm. He was the Richmond County attorney from 2018-22.
The couple work well together: Bill’s focus is on the birds, land and hunting experience and Debbie sets the tone for customer service, ensuring that guests have a chance to relax.
“Debbie has a huge impact here,” says Greensboro investor F. James Becher, who has visited Webb Farm every season since 2010. “She manages everything here except for the shooting. It’s a well-orchestrated experience.”
The hunts are designed so that almost anyone can hunt and harvest quail. Although hunters are welcome to walk along the trails, the ATVs can get hunters close to where they need to shoot. Guests’ interactions with the guides and seeing how the dogs work together to find the quail in open fields are at the heart of this business.
“They’re cultivating this multi-generational base clientele,” says Clay Dunnagan, who leads a Raleigh investment firm and is a frequent Webb Farm visitor. “You learn the skills of bird hunting and there are a lot of life lessons that come out of
this experience.” ■
