We’ve had a busy weekend (more on that soon) including visiting the North Cotswold Hunt in Cutsdean on Saturday for a day out in the freezing wind and rain, hunt riders holloa’ing a fox and huntsman bringing hounds to the line, and checking setts in Worcestershire.

We had a shout out from locals this morning who had seen the Ledbury meeting in Pauntley and so we headed over, catching them at a cluster of coverts near Poolhill – hounds had been speaking and, as sab approached, Tom Stokes (terrierman) was off his quad and in the woods on an active badger sett.

Huntsman Mark (wearing black again – Ledbury Hunt staff change from red to be less identifiable) took hounds away and took a long route round a field and back into the woods and two foot sabs were a good tag-team from then on, one keeping an eye on the hunt while the other sab moved into a good position.

Poolhill – drew blank (didn’t find a scent)

Orchards by Paunt house – blank

The Gorse by Ryton Coppice – blank

A large spring by The Gorse – blank (that’s a surprise)

Chin’s asparagus fields – blank

Redhill Wood – blank

Gorse between Redhill and Cobhill – blank

Cobhill Rough – blank

It’s interesting because when the hunt do pick up on a fox, they will say that ‘trails have been laid everywhere’ and yet they must have forgotten to tell the trail-layer that they were planning to hunt today…

The hunt then packed up, very sensibly, before it got dark.

Several setts checked throughout the day, important not only to ensure foxes can go to ground if chased, but also as this area is within the West Gloucestershire badger cull zone which is currently ongoing and caging can continue until November 30th (shooting free-running badgers until the end of January).