THH, Oronoma, August 18,2023

 

It was a lovely morning for riding.  Not so good for hunting.  The temperature was pleasant.  There was a nice breeze.  Very low humidity.  There was almost no moisture to hold any scent.  We did pass through some areas where a fox could be smelled but the scent was already head high on the riders.

We did have one spot where the hounds got really active.  It was an area of thick underbrush and tall weeds.  The hounds were in there with a strong voice but nothing popped up.  The fun thing was that Wally and I were on the trail right next to this area.  You could hear the hounds, see the underbrush moving all around but couldn't see the hounds at all.  Wally watched for a little and then just went to grazing.  Shortly after that as Beth was pulling the hounds out, we had hounds on either side of us.  At one point I think one ran into us.  Wally tucked his butt under and then stomped a foot,  That was it.

Wally was very good today.  He pretty much was on a loose rein all day which is how he was at the end of the last season.  We covered about 5.2 miles with about 2000 feet of vertical change.  A good workout.

THH, Kennels, August 8,2023

 

All hunts do things differently.  In August, some hunts do what is called roading.  That is where they take the hounds out with horses but not with the intent to hunt.  It's just about exercise.  Some hunts do staff hunts where the staff only takes the hounds out and actually hunt.  At THH, the hounds go out to hunt and all hunt members can go out.  Even guests can come out as long as they pay a cap fee.  The difference is in August how much hunting we do is limited.  Today we were out just about one hour total.

It was a good hour though.  We came east from the kennels and the hounds were in a flattish area between Mason and Little Mason Mountains.  They hit and ran up and over Little Mason and then came back over and headed across the gap to Mason Mountain.  They went up the shoulder of Mason a bit before coming back down, right in front us.

They crossed over back to Little Mason and went partway back up before losing the fox.

It was a nice day that warmed quickly.  It was abut 65 when we headed out and it was about 75 when we came back in.  Total mileage was just about three miles but we did do about 1500 feet of vertical up and down.  So it was a good workout.  wally was not as up as last Sunday but still strong at the beginning.  The run took the starch out of him but then we headed in.  Wally is careful coming down hills.  As we were coming off little Mason, he fell behind and picked up a canter.  It was a pretty good down pitch with some double digits slopes.  His canter was never on the forehand at all on that.  His balance has become pretty remarkable.  I really need to trust him more and I'm sure as the season comes along that will happen.

FHC, Indian Echo, March 11,2023

 

Coming into this weekend I had to decide which day to hunt. Both days had drawbacks. Saturday was to be high winds and Sunday had the possibility of snow/Ice during the hunt and afterwards. I decided to go yesterday. I figure not much would happen because the scenting would be poor but it would still get Wally and I out.

It was junior day as well at FHC and we had an abundance of juniors spread out through all three flights. Some of the kids I've now seen multiple times over the past few years. Its great to see them enjoying coming out to hunt.

I wasn't expecting much because of the high winds and thought maybe we could get some short runs in if we got low and stayed out of the wind. For the first 90 minutes that seemed to be the case. We came out of Indian Echo and crossed the road and started heading north behind Spring Breeze and Moriah farrm. We passed beehives and eventually crossed back over Catterton rd. Wally I were last in second flight, so after everyone else had passed through the gate I jumped Wally of the barway jump that was there. We then cut through to McNeeley's and then over to Yadkin.

We worked through Yadkin and then back across Buck Mountain Ford Rd when the hounds hit. They were off and running and followed the creek south before making a u-turn and coming back up the creek. They came back to the ford and it took a bit before they latched onto the scent again. They went around the back side of Yadkin and then up Buck Mountain. They started down and went off the north side where the fox was lost in the wind.

It was a great run. As the horse travels it covered four miles in about an hour and ten minutes. I was in second flight behind the juniors and they did great whether it was running hard on the trails or negotiating some pretty deep muck.

For the day we covered 12.24 miles with a top speed of 19.6 MPH.

THH, Mountain View, March 7,2023

 

Wally and I were out hunting this morning with THH. When I was getting him ready, the temp was a pleasant 49, it was a little cloudy and no wind. Pretty much the same when I got to the meet. By the time we headed out, the wind was howling.

Today I knew I was going to go in early so that I could get Ann at the airport. I had a plan and stuck to it. Unfortunately from the start until I went in, nothing much happened. Then when I was walking Wally down the road I heard the hounds open up.

It seemed for while that they were running parallel to us. So we could hear pretty good. Then it seemed like they were turning toward us. Wally kept stopping and would turn to the sound and listen. Then the hounds faded in the other direction. We could still hear them and he would still stop to listen.

After a little more than a mile hike back we got to the trailers. I had gotten him untacked and a cooler on him when the hounds got really loud and didn't sound like they were too far off. He just stood there real still and listened and looked.

I think he knows why we are out there. I am also pleased that he will go by himself. I think he could staff with that attitude.

Despite not a lot of action while we were out Wally got some good check marks. There was one young lady riding near us. Her horse had been good but then kind of lost its senses. It was in that mode of bouncing around and not wanting to go forward. So we just walked along with her. wally's thought process seems to be "I don't what that horses problem is but its not mine."

Later got to a downed tree that was blocking the trail. The way around was negotiating the top brush of the tree. That elicited a lot of funky and abrupt jumps from members of the field. Wally just picked his way through and then hopped his butt a little at the end. Very quiet and calm.

We've got a couple of more hunts this season but Wall has it figured out.

THH, Mountain View, February 14,2023

 

Wally and I had a great morning out with THH. It was a beautiful day that warmed up quickly but not before the hounds were able to get on a red fox. They ran the fox for an hour or so. I'm pretty sure they ran a lot more than we did because we were well in their rear view mirror. Eventually they came back around and we got to watch them work pretty well and then run along with them. Eventually they got back around to about where they started. They were some pretty worn and tired hounds. I think by that time the temp was about 60, so the day was called.

Wally was excellent. He is very fit and ready to run down in Aiken next week. The sand footing will be different but running the mountains will certainly help his fitness overcome the sand.

For the day he covered 7.25 miles and topped out at 19.1 MPH. He is handling the speed over terrain very well. When we finally checked up on the run, we had a moving average of 6.6 MPH. That's pretty good considering most of the time we are around 4.6 or so.

FHC, Red Gate, February 9,2023

 

Today has become Munchkin's retirement day. We were out hunting with Farmington Hunt. We were on a run when he coughed a couple of times and then had bright red blood coming out of his nose and mouth. I got hi back to the trailer (thank god he is so independent) and got him over to the Blue Ridge Equine. By the time we got there the blood had slowed to a trickle. They examined him and scoped him and the vet called it Exercise Induced Cardio Pulmonary event. They didn't find the source of the bleed but it was probably way down the system. They also said he had an irregular heart beat.

So rather than taking the chance of this happening again and losing him in the middle of the hunt field, I retired him.

Munchkin is 20 years old and has been hunting almost exclusively first flight for 16 years. He is still really fast and could really jump. Just a week or so ago he did a hunt where he covered 10 miles, did 3500 feet of elevation and hit 26 MPH. So he was still in great condition and form.

Today he had two runs. The first came after we got to a funky bridge. Munchkin and another horse were across when the field decided to go around a different way. We were then tucked in behind the huntsman. The hounds hit and away we went. I had to really rate him back because I think he would have passed Mathew and just run with the hounds on his on. As far as Munch was concerned all was right in the world because he was first, in charge and on the run.

After that the hunt all got together again and it wasn't longer when the hounds hit again. We were running hard up a hill when the Munchkin and I took him in.

In a way, his retirement reminded me of Boomer's. Boomer had an arthritic knee we were treating and it was always on my mind that he could break down. So one day we had a great hunt and he had been spectacular. I was eating afterwards and someone asked about B. I just said he was retired.

So Like B, Munchkin got good runs in and retired.

He has done everything asked of him. He hunted for 16 years. He lead the fields and he whipped in. He hunted with the biggest and fastest hunts in VA. He hunted in NC, SC and GA.

I evented him. We crossed paths with Phillip Dutton a couple of times and Dutton always commented on what a nice horse he was. He had some great compliments from other 5* level riders. We won at 3' 6" jumpers. I did a trot puissance one time and he did 4'. Our miss at 4' 3" was my fault. He did dressage and was twice called by two different trainers "the most efficient moving horse".

He's still sound and we'll see how he does at retirement. He'll still do things like trail rides and keeping Wally or KC company when they need a buddy. My guess he will still jump the fence lines when he feels like it.

THH, Thornton Hay Field, February 8,2023

 

Wally and I had a fun morning with THH. It was a joint meet with Blue Ridge today and we were running their hounds.

We started off pretty strenuously by pretty much climbing Turkey Mountain straight to the top. I really mean straight to the top. No switchbacks or gently curving trailers. Just a straight climb. We looped around through The shade and then came up the backside of Turkey.

We came off the backside of Turkey and the hounds hit. I'm pretty sure it was a coyote. It headed a little back up the mountain and then turned east. It pretty much followed the line of Rock Mills Road and then made a left up Hunters Lane. It was a pretty good run.

Meanwhile, back in the second flight we headed down a trail only to come to a solid wall f fallen trees. We looped around and met up with the rest of the hunt and then were off and running again. It took us a long run to come around and we were back the Shade. we also heard at that point that the hounds had lost on Hunters Lane.

Wally was pretty good. He had a lot of climbing (2892 feet) and covered 11.1 miles. He topped out at about 20.6 MPH. I think that is the first time he has topped 20 MPH since he did a run away with me two years ago. He has learned that he doesn't have to go full throttle which is good since he was a racehorse. He is pretty fit and I think he is going to appreciate the flat terrain of Aiken in a couple of weeks.

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9Jenn Schuessler, Kelly Tower Yoder and 7 others

THH, Kennels, February 2,2023

 

Wally and I were out with THH. It was an interesting start to the day. When i went out to the barn first thing it was snowing. Later when getting wally going it had turned to freezing rain. So I had to scrape the truck. I kept going because the forecast called for it to clear out. About three miles from home the roads went from wet to dry and stayed that way. So that was a good sign.

When I went to bridle Wally realized his bit was in wrong. It ony took me four tries to get it right. Then I noticed that I had forgotten to attach his flash after I had cleaned the bridle. So we were off to a good start. Luckily the lack of the flash did really impact us until late in the hunt when he got a little tired.

Things started out a little slow but about 50 minutes in we got a run. Not a barn burner but a steady run and at the end the hunts put the fox to ground. About a fifteen minute run. Within minutes they were on a run again. Similar to the first the hounds were working hard to keep it going but they did and again after about twenty minutes the fox was put to ground.

About five minutes later, we were running again. This was a barn burner of a run. It was about 45 minutes and the hounds were loud and on the run the whole time. They covered about 3.5 miles on the run.

At one point n the run, it seemed like the fox had gone to ground. The hounds kept swirling about in a thicket. Then all of a sudden they took off loud and fast again. I'm wondering of the hole the fox went down had a back door. Eventually they did run him to ground.

Wally had some more of those really good moments as he continues to develop as a hunt horse. When the fox had seemingly gone to ground the first time on the third run, we were checked up on the trail near by. The hounds in full voice came surging right up to us with a couple under his nose. He never moved.

Later in the run, we were cantering along when the hounds crossed over a trail in front of the field and staff. We thought it was the whole pack but it turned out to be half. Suddenly, the other half was running on either side of Wally and the horse behind us. He was great, never flinched, never put a foot wrong. Just kept doing his job.

He also did some jumping. We definitely have to work on following others over jumps. He gets a little scrambly on those. When jumping by himself, he is a very quiet. His last step is always a big power step and I expect a big jump but he never over jumps. It does sometimes end up with me a bit ahead. Our last two I really stayed back and waited and it worked out well. The last was an uphill approach to about a 2' 6" or so with a downhill landing and it was good.

So a great day of hunting and more progress by Wally. We covered 9 miles, 2655 of vertical and he topped out at about 16.5 MPH.

FHC, Schelford, January 28,2023

 

It was a beautiful day.  The temperatures were perfect and only the slightest of breezes.  There was good moisture in the ground and the footing was pretty good.  There was a big crowd out today with definitely north of 40 people and maybe close to 50.  Ken Chapman was out car following and it was great to see him (even if he didn't bring his liquor box).

We headed by initially working around Schelford Farm and the crossed the river.  Eventually we ended up by Carter's place.  The hounds started speaking just off of Thompson Farm Road but then went silent.  When the crossed the road and got back into the woods between Carter's place and Mint Meadows they really opened up.

They followed the line and headed down towards the river.  It sounded like they were running the river below Carter's.  They looped around and then started to head toward Free Union Rd.  Mathew then started calling them in before they crossed the road.  It seemed like it might be the end of the run when all of a sudden we could hear Deb calling loudly from just from the other side of the farm road.  The hounds were still working the line and Mathew called them to follow to get to Deb's location.  The pack got onto the line and it got hot until the fox definitely crossed Free Union Road into territory we couldn't hunt.

From there Mathew hunted in.  We had one short 300 yard run when we were close to being back in.  The hounds marked the ground and we headed in.

For the day we covered 7.5 MPH.

THH, Thornton Hay Field, January 24, 2023

 

Munchkin and I Had an absolutely great day out with THH.

We started out coming up the western end of Turkey Mountain (low Turkey). We had gone to the top to the old orchard and then were coming back down when the hounds hit. They ran straight back up and got over the mountain and back down into eastern end of Sperryville. Somehow Beth was able to bushwack fast enough to stay close and they ran a fox to ground near the Copper Fox Distillery.

She brought the hounds back up and we proceed to the top of low turkey when the hounds hit again. They ran to the east and we were on a hot run. We were on the backside of Turkey when the coyote kind of settled, if you could call it that, a figure eight pattern that he ran multiple times. The hounds stayed with him the whole. They had run the coyote for about an hour and 45 minutes when we broke off and headed in. The hounds jsut would not give up.

The terrain was pretty demanding today. Even so, Munchkin hit 26.1 MPH on an 8 % grade. We also were doing 10-12 MPH coming down some double digit grades. It was a lot of hills . We covered almost 3500 feet of vertical today. You can see the attached elevation profile.

THH, Thornton Hay Field, January 20, 2023

 Wally and I were out with THH this morning. It was bright, sunny and temperatures in the 40's. The problem was the wind was absolutely howling. The only way something was going to happen was if the hounds stumbled upon a fox in some place the wind couldn't reach. But that didn't happen.

My plan today was to come in early since my back went out a week ago and was injected on Tuesday. It was feeling pretty good but better to be safe than sorry. So when Beth and the hounds took a turn towards the mountain, I decided it was time to go in.

I picked up Wally at a trot and he moved off. He went right past the third flight and kept trucking down the farm road. We eventually got to the main road and walked in from there. He just quietly walked along by himself. So that was great. He keeps showing that he is very independent from the rest of the hunt field.

As we were coming in, there as a loud gunshot from close by. Wally stopped and looked toward the shot. I figured that was a great reaction as he was by himself and in high winds. No spook, just a look and he walked on.

Just before we got to the trailers we could hear Beth's horn as she was gathering hounds. Wally kept cocking his head to listen. We were back at the trailer when we could hear the horn really clear. He was funny, he turned and got really tall and was looking for the hounds. He has really learned to pay attention to the hounds and what they are doing, and that the horn is the signal.

We covered 7.4 miles. We had a brief canter where wally put in a real metronome canter at 16.4 MPH. It was quite the nice canter as it was the same on the flat or going up the hill or down.

So not any hunting action but he got show more development a sa hunt horse.

FHC, Locust Grove, January 12,2023

 

When I was leaving for the hunt today I was thinking we had good conditions for a hunt.  We had gotten some rain in the area over the last few days and it was a cloudy, foggy morning.  The temperatures were in the high 30's when we started out.  Much better than the hot weather of a week ago.

We started by looping around the fields by the meet.  A little speaking but nothing developed.  We ultimately crossed the South Rivanna and headed up the hill along Buck Mountain Creek.  The hounds hit and got us on a short run for about twelve minutes.  They seemed to follow the creek and the fox was lost in the sharp v the creek makes.

From there we kept following the creek north before turning back south.  We had just come into the field where a lot of new trees had been planted when the hounds hit.  They headed to and crossed the creek getting onto the west bank.  They then proceeded to follow the river west.  Meanwhile both the first and second flight were walking there way up the river.  Surprisingly no one ended up in the river despite several of the horses splashing about and some with previous experience of putting riders in the river (Moe/Lou).

As the fields got feet dry, the hounds continued up river after the coyote.  At some point the coyote turned and came back around.  It circled the fields at Hob Knob in the woods continuing its run up and over the ridge trail.  It eventually came back around and ran through Hob Knob where it was viewed by first and third flights.  It was big black coyote.

The coyote continued through the woods and ended up along the previous run Buck Mountain Creek and started following that down to the Rivanna.  The coyote was then lost by the river.  All told it was about an hour and twenty minute.

The day was called, hounds gathered and we headed back in.  For the day, second flight covered about 8.6 miles.  The surprising thing we also did about 2800 feet of vertical up and down.  There are lots of trails in that area that are up or down.  So there should be some tired horses tonight.

THH, Mountain View, January 10,2023

 

Munchkin and I were out with THH this morning. With the warm weather we've had lately Munchkin has had some slow hunts. I think he has been really itching to run. This morning he got to run.

The first hour was a bit slow as the starting temperature was about 28. About twenty minutes in the hounds started working a line but it was sporadic and never really got going.

Then it warmed up and the hunt really heated up. We were a little over an hour in when the hounds hit and they took off fast. It was a fast run start to finish. We were flying even to the point of cantering downhill which cooked some peoples brakes. So the run ended up with the first flight leader and me running right behind the huntsman. It was like a private hunt. It was about a 30 minute run and we covered three miles. at the end the hounds had run the fox to ground.

The hounds were gathered and shortly after we were back on a fox again. The hounds took off down by the road and ran up Rosser mountain. It was a good 20 minute run but not the barn burner the first run was.

It was a great day! Munchkin and I covered 9.9 miles while Beth said the hounds covered 17. Somewhere on that big run Munchkin topped out at 21.5 MPH.

Per Beth Opitz, MFH and huntsman:

What a wonderful day of hunting yesterday from Mountain View. Thank you to Eldon Farms and Nancy Dillon. Yesterday was probably my favorite hunt of the season. A slow start, hounds exhibited their tenacity to slowly trail an old line of “Mr. Charles”.  After diligent work they finally hit the line hot, we had a wonderful gallop, all the while listening to the loud music of this keen pack. After about 30 minutes, our very sneaky pilot foiled the hounds when he ran in a big herd of cows, the line was not recovered. We continued hunting around the base of Rosser Mountain, hounds hit again. Scenting was getting worse, but the hounds worked and worked the line until they went to ground for a 20 minute run. Hounds put in 17 miles for the day, while we on horseback put in 11 miles. A fun day.

 

FHC, McNeeley's Shed, January 5,2022

 

Munchkin and I were out with FHC at McNeeley's Shed.  Unfortunately while it was a beautiful day, it was not a beautiful day for hunting.  The starting temperature was 47 degrees and quickly rose into the mid-sixties.  The plus side of our unusually warm temperatures is that the footing is improving quickly. Today while there was some boggy footing in some low grassy areas, it was actually pretty decent overall.

We started the day coming south from McNeely's Shed.  We came up around the muck pile and worked along the backside of Wildaire Farm (although it might be called something different now).  We kept heading south toward Jubilee Equestrian.  It was all being pretty quiet.

From there we worked our way back and over to Buck Mountain Creek.  The hounds were working the creek back and forth.  It seemed like we might catch hold of something as the hounds intermittently as the hounds worked the along the creek but nothing developed.

We hunted in from there but it remained a quiet day.  For the day, we covered 5.65 miles.

THH, Kennels, January 3,2023

 

Wally and I had a great morning at THH today. Thankfully we started earlier than usual because it was a warm day that heated up quickly. But it didn't heat up as fast the hounds did.

The meet was at the THH kennels. When we meet there we are all at the kennels. Wally has never hunted from the Kennels at either THH or FHC. So it was a new experience for him. He's good when they unload from a trailer but when 36 hounds came screaming out of the kennels that got his heart going a bit. BUt he was pretty good.

Beth took the hounds out the west gate of the pasture next to the kennels and the hounds erupted and took off like rockets. So add to the excitement of the kennels was the fact that we were on the run immediately.

The hounds quickly headed to and crossed the road to Eldon farm. We had to book it around to catch up. Wally was excellent. We hit an open field were the field picked up a hand gallop. He settled in behind two other horses and just rated himself. We crossed the road and headed up a hill. Unknowingly we were following first flight and not second, so Wally really stepped it. He hit about 18.8 MPH going up the hill.

Either the fox went to ground or the hounds lost the scent at the top of the hill. They were gathered and we head back from whence we came. We got over to Fletcher's Mill and headed down the road.

We were about a mile down when the hounds hit again. We turned a quick circle in the wood and were back on the road having down a 180. The hounds cut through High Thicket and heady for Turkey Mountain. They got a little ways up the mountain then started back around. The first and second flight were parked at the bottom and a big, and I mean big, red fox almost ran smack into us. He made a turn and cut behind us headed down the roads to the woods we just exited.

So back into the woods in the reverse direction and we ran the fox back towards the Thornton River.

The hounds were gathered and we were headed back in due the heat. We were not far from the trailers when the hounds all erupted in unison and headed straight up Mason Mountain. We followed a trail up and had the hounds cut right in front of us. They continued over the mountain and then headed east. We rode the ridge trail and the hounds cut across the trail a bit in front of us. That's when we could see it was not one fox but two they were running. And the hounds were close and it looked like they might account for a fox or two.

The hounds kept on the run, or maybe a new run, and reversed course and headed east back through Preacher's and eventually crossed Rudasil MIll road. They were called back and the day was ended.

For the day Wally and I covered 11.3 miles. Beth said the hounds did over 20. Wally and I had a top speed of 18.8 MPH and we did over 3000 feet of climbing. He has certainly developed his mountain climbing legs and stamina. He was great again. His balance has really improved and he is not falling onto the forehand anymore, even on trots down steeper slopes. The best part is having to manage him less and less. That allows me to pay more attention to what is happening with the hounds.

From Beth Opitz, MFH and huntsman

We had a very good day yesterday for Bennett’s Birthday Hunt. Within 200 yards of leaving the kennels hounds hit HOT. Hounds flew to 522, whipper-in Elida viewed our red pilot crossing 522. Mounted whipper-ins Erwin, Bennett and Elida and car whippers-in “expertly” helped hounds cross the road, keeping them safe. The cars and truck on the road were all very polite.  Our pilot was not very sporting and went to ground. We then brought hounds back across 522 to head towards High thicket. Our 2^nd pilot, a red beauty gave hounds a good 40 minutes of nice running around High Thicket, Wileys Woods, and Turkey Mountain until scent fizzled. We gathered hounds, crossed the Thornton river to head home to kennels --- on the way hounds hit our resident Mason Mountain red beauty. Another 40 minutes of hounds on a fast LOUD run, until Mr Charles gave the hounds the slip. Hounds were satisfied putting in 20 miles for the day. A very fun day. Happy Birthday Bennett