Just as there are several requirements for membership in the Limestone Creek Fox Hunt Club of Cazenovia, there are as many rewards: one would be that you would (or at least should) always know where the hounds and the rest of the horses are! A mere spectator, standing shivering in the wind on the edge of Skyline Drive, is at a loss, staring first at the woods and then at a cornfield hoping for some sign of movement and, eyes watering, finally turning off the camera and climbing back into the car just as another watcher shouts, "There they are!"
Today's hunt - at least the most exciting part of it, according to the equestrians - took place at some distance from any roadway and occurred when the hounds caught sight of a gray fox and the fox caught sight of the hounds. "What a merry chase THAT was!" a gentleman wearing an elegant "pink" said, later.
The Hounds - about twenty of them - are larger than some Beagles I've known and are far more quiet, barking only when they spy the fox.
(Click to enlarge photographs.)
There were about two-dozen equestrians in today's Hunt, For many, it seemed to be a family outing, and several of the riders were surprisingly young.
Several times, I spoke to the riders, telling them what fun it is to watch them and, every time, they would say, "This is such beautiful country, we love to come here to hunt!"
(Please note that no fox, hound, horse, rider or photographer was wounded during today's outing!)
