About seven years ago, Brantley Gilbert took his dedication to supporting our veterans and our wounded service members to a new level when he built a sprawling hunting camp that is completely handicap accessible, so that he could invite veterans and wounded warriors to come experience a deer hunt in a sanctuary built just for them.
While Brantley’s commitment to our past and present military men and women remains stronger than ever, he recently revealed that he may have to sell the deer camp. “It breaks my heart,” says Brantley. “But what I’ve run into is that when I built the place and started building the place, I was single. Life was just a lot different and we, for six years, going on seven, built that place from the ground up. Didn’t cut any corners. We did everything right cause we built it never to sell it.”
What Brantley hates more than the thought of selling the camp is the thought of such a magnificent place just sitting there and not getting used or enjoyed by anybody. “I’ve just got to the point now, where it’s this gigantic, just beautiful perfect place. It’s built for a purpose. Everything about it [is] handicap accessible and caters to disabled kids or vets and I just don’t get to spend enough time there. Not enough people get to see it. It’s too pretty a place just to sit there, so I’ve been considering lettin’ it go.”
Brantley wants to make clear that even if he does sell the land and the camp, he will find other places to continue his annual veteran hunts, perhaps on that land with the new owners, or somewhere else, but those aren’t going away.
Brantley is incredibly torn about letting the land go because he says, “I’m so proud of that place. Literally, I wouldn’t do anything different. It is a sanctuary. When you pull in the gate there everything bad stays outside, and we’re had some wonderful, wonderful memories there. But it’s just far enough away from home to be difficult to visit and spend time. So while it is a beautiful place, you know, there’s a part of me that kind of hopes nobody buys it, cause,” he jokes, “I’ve been stuck up under worse. But it’s, it’s just too pretty a place. I wish we got to spend more time there.”
Besides getting married and having two kids since he built the hunting sanctuary, Brantley has been staying busy with his music and touring. His latest single, “Fire’t Up,” is also the name of his latest tour, which will run through early May, before he starts hitting the fair and festival circuit.
Brantley Gilbert – deer hunting camp 1:12
“It breaks my heart, but what I’ve run into is that when I built the place and started building the place, I was single. Life was just a lot different and we, for six years, going on seven, built that place from the ground up. Didn’t cut any corners. We did everything right cause we built it never to sell it. But I’ve just got to the point now, where it’s this gigantic, just beautiful perfect place. It’s built for a purpose. Everything about it’s handicap accessible and caters to disabled kids or vets and I just don’t get to spend enough time there. Not enough people get to see it. It’s too pretty a place just to sit there, so I’ve been considering lettin’ it go. But regardless, I’ll still do vet hunts every year, whether it be there or somewhere, we’ll still do that. And I’m so proud of that place. Literally, I wouldn’t do anything different. It is a sanctuary. When you pull in the gate there everything bad stays outside, and we’re had some wonderful, wonderful memories there. But it’s just far enough away from home to be difficult to visit and spend time. So while it is a beautiful place you know there’s a part of me that kind of hopes nobody buys it, cause I’ve been stuck up under worse (laugh). But it’s, it’s just too pretty a place. I wish we got to spend more time there.”