Sunday, January 8th

12 1/2couple met at the Dead End woods at 8:15am.  The pack consisted of our regular week day group  of my 2cple, Tommy's 3 1/2 cple,  Bobby's 3 1/2 cple and Curtis' 3 1/2 cple.

Hounds found  a very sly and willing pilot at 8:26.   This red ran  one large swing around the Dead End woods and then took off running down wind straightaway to the south.  He flew over Wilhelm Rd,continuing through Johnny-boys woods ,  across a power line cutover and into the Frog Hollow woods. We caught up with him as he crossed the dirt lane that runs through Frog Hollow. ( you'll see him cross the road).  He covered so much ground so quickly that , until we got our first view of him, we thought we might be running a coyote.  For then next 50 minutes, this fellow gave good chase, retracing his path from the Dead End, through Walton Williss' woods and on into Frog Hollow,  At about  9:20, Charles began to loop back and forth between Johnny Boy's and Frog Hollow. His circles got tighter inside Johnny Boys woods and he popped out  into the open at its' southern edge at around 9:40. You will see him paused in the green wheat field on the video.  After he darted back  into the woods, something changed. Charles must have decided to save his brush. Hounds somehow switched onto a different red-and this one had the mange.  We never expected what happened next:  At  just after 10am, a fox broke covert out the same corner where you saw the first fox pause in the wheat. But it was a different fox. A mangey fox. And hounds were literally nipping at his heels across the wheat.  The front hounds rolled this sickly fellow only moments later, and right in front of us. ( private Utube video, must send me your Utube user name to view).

\Hounds were gathered  quickly and taken north again to draw theWeber Woods.   This covert lays close to a highway, and it makes me nervous when we hunt it. But the highway was upwind today, and theTHREE foxes that fled its' cover all chose to run with the wind.  The pack settled on the last fox to leave, and his flight across the open is on the video.  It was only  10:15! That didnt take long!

This fox was another willing fellow who led our PMD's on a nice chase, running in the open much of the time, until we decided to break the pack at noon, while all were still on ( although getting really strung out!) During this chase several other foxes, not hunted, were viewed -  including a brace that  were running together.

Very proud of all of my bitches, particularly Sara, who hung in there for the entire second chase.She gives it her all, even with her  supposed bad heart!