After a few recent high profile meets, the Eggesford returned to form recently with a handful of die-hard followers meeting in a filthy driveway at Huxford near Kings Nympton. We arrived a little late due to some vehicle troubles in the morning. The hilly terrain and Jason’s strategy of eratically zig zagging around the countryside meant we made good use of our drone during the day.
The hunt started out north of Kings Nympton with the warm weather meaning hounds were kept to woods and valleys most of the day. They eventually marked to ground at Huxford with sabs quickly finding the mark and guarding it to prevent terrier men Seward Folland and Richard Elliot from digging the fox out and killing it. While the foxes are the main targets, all the animals forced to participate in the hunt are victims too. Elliot spent the day with four terriers crammed into a tiny, hot box on his quad and we followed a long trail of bloody hound footprints on the road for much of the afternoon.
The hunt then went north-west to the river around Bias Wood and Padley Wood, before gathering at Sampson Cross and heading north towards Meethe Wood and the valley at Caplecombe. The hunt drew the wooded area by the river, not really picking up on much before coming out at Wampford Bridge, then going north to Parsonage farm and Routley Wood. Another blank and Jason took everyone back to Meethe Wood and basically retraced the route he took out back to the meet.
When we bumped into Jason on the road he told us to ‘get your pictures now, haven’t seen you all day!’ Don’t worry Jason, we saw plenty of you. If the Eggesford hunt had any sense they’d act as if there was a sab in every covert they visit, which frankly, there usually is.
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