The photos below are what we saw.
A large
tractor was plowing old corn stocks into the soil.
This
mare knows that some sweet feed is in her future if she comes to
the sound of the feed bucket. She is trotting at a pretty
good clip to get to the feed.
As the
horses were being prepared for the hunt, Kathleen gets a chance
to run Gail's track-steer tractor with mower deck. A
girl's work is never done.
Hunt
club members started showing up with their trailers.
The
mounts were in great shape. Club members ride English
rather than western.
I think
the horses look forward to the excitement of the hunt.
Kathleen
finished the mowing and thought the track-steer was fun.
More
well-muscled mounts.
Mark
prepares his mount.
The
group heads toward the hunting area.
"Let
loose the hounds..." Key hounds in the pack have radio
receivers and geo-locator beacons. The whip antennas are
visible.
The club
had to change their hunt strategy due to the tractor actively
plowing.
The
farm's fields sit atop an abandoned coal mine. The pipe
above was a ventilation shaft that has turned into an artesian
spring due to hydrostatic pressure.
The
hounds stay close to their master until the scent is
found. When on-scent, the hounds lead.
Mark was
both the hunt master and the host for the day. The numbers
on the dog's flanks were left over from a trials session for the
hounds some days earlier.
The
group heads through the brush to see if they can pick up a
scent. We heard coyotes the night before, but they were
nowhere to be found in the daylight.
On the
far side of the huge field we hit a rural road.
Corn is
the primary crop and it grows "as high as an elephant's eye".
The
group emerged from the brush onto the road.
Mark led
the group down an old railroad grade. The dogs have
self-separated into the fast group and the slow group.
The slow
hounds finally arrive.
We sped
in front of the group with our "mule" so we could get a shot of
them approaching. Jumps were set up along the railway
grade to give the horses practice.
| Previous Adventure | ||
| Trip Home Page |
Photos and Text Copyright Bill Caid 2017, all rights
reserved.
For your enjoyment only, not for commercial use.