Category: Horse Play

Well, today started out slow, until right after Arthur and I pulled out of the driveway on our way to hunt. I was running a little late, but I could probably make up for that on the road. One time-saving advantage was that I wouldn’t have to stop halfway to pick up my brother and… Continue reading Life in the fast lane

As expected, today’s hunt was cancelled because of the predicted winter slop. It actually turned out to be a very light snowfall overnight, turning to rain this morning which left us with more mud than snow. As it turns out, I wouldn’t have been able to go anyway. When I fed this morning, I noticed… Continue reading Unlucky Horseshoe

Yesterday’s forecast predicted a high temperature in the low 60s(F) today, around 20 degrees above normal and close to the record of 66. Fortunately, it didn’t get quite that warm. The mercury stopped somewhere in the 50s, still well above normal. That was a little warm for hunting, but not uncomfortable. There was still a… Continue reading Weird Weather

Today was dreary, cloudy, and damp, ideal hunting weather. Unfortunately, with recent “wintry mix” followed by rain, and freezing/thawing cycles, riding conditions were far from ideal. It’s hard to find footing much more treacherous than a thin layer of greasy mud over frozen ground. But, with more slop predicted for the weekend, today looked like… Continue reading A Sporting Afternoon

With the thermometer hovering just below freezing, and 10 mph wind, today was on the borderline of what I consider decent hunting weather. But my brother pointed out that today would be better than tomorrow, with its forecast of slightly lower temperatures and snow. It was hard to argue with that logic, and he’s bigger… Continue reading Tally Freezing Ho!

As I get older and crankier, the timespan each year when I’m happy gets shorter. Now it’s down to about September and April. With a local forecast predicting low temperature in the low twenties Wednesday night, and a high in the 30s on Thanksgiving, I had just about convinced myself that getting up at 6… Continue reading Weather sucks

This afternoon was another splendid opportunity to forget everything that’s wrong with the world. There’s a saying among foxhunters that some folks ride to hunt, and others hunt to ride. I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m one of the hunt to ride gang, even if that draws scorn from serious hunters. And today was… Continue reading Horsing Around

Today was just what I needed. Sleep a little later, and then start all the hunt prep work: hitching up trailer, cleaning horse, filling flask, etc. My attitude has gotten so sour I almost didn’t remember why I go to all this trouble. After getting mounted, it didn’t take long for me to remember. A… Continue reading Back in the Saddle Again!

First Saturday in November, St. Hubert’s Day, opening of the formal hunting season with the traditional Blessing of the Hounds. The weather is perfect, a crisp sunny fall day with temperatures in the 40’s. And I’m missing it, for the first time in I can’t remember how many years, because Arthur’s booboo from an encounter… Continue reading Stuck at home on a beautiful blessing day

As I pulled out of the driveway to go to work this morning, I noticed my three horses in a section of pasture where they didn’t belong. (I split up the pasture into smaller sections with electric polywire for rotation). There wasn’t really a problem with that, except if they weren’t smart enough to go… Continue reading It’s Monday morning, do you know where your horses are?