OCTOBER 1, 2003  11:A.M  Tony arrives at my house and we head for the store we call "THE CANDY STORE". What it really is, is a hunting and fishing supply store that carries top quality hunting and fishing supplies of all kinds. Can't go into the "CANDY STORE  (Foxridge Outfitters) without buying something. I bought some new rubber boots and Tony got some low cut leather boots. Next we stop to get a bite to eat and exchange some stories and discuss the plan for the hunt to come. Got the hounds loaded along with all our gear and headed for Reggie's house. Tony brought a pair of snowshoes he wanted re-strung with nylon rope so we stopped along the way at a local snowshoe builders shop, owned and operated by Roger Lister right here in Lebanon. While here Tony ordered a new pair of custom made "shoes" of the ALASKAN design. After doing the "snowshoe" thing we picked up Reggie and his hound "PETE" and moved out.

3:00 P.M.    Now and we're sailing along on 95 headed north. After a few hours of driving we stop along the way to get some grub and pick up groceries for our three days of hunting. Arrived at our destination in Atkinson Maine around 7:30 P.M. at the home of Alice and Dewey Piche. Got the hounds on the tie outs to relieve themselves, get them feed and water and then put 'em in the kennels. Alice had some home made stuff for us to eat, as usual and some of us went back for seconds, as usual. The only bummer of the trip so far was the fact that I was coming down with a cold. Nose was running, sore throat, coughing, headache all that stuff? We threw the "bull" around the room for an hour or two then hit the sack. Set the alarm for 6 P.M. and turned in.

October 2, 2003  5:30 A.M.   We're all up and drinking coffee before the alarm went off at 6. Everything is wet outside and it's overcast and very foggy. Sure hope it doesn't rain, but showers are in the forecast. We load up with the four males BRUNO, TIMMY, PETE and SIMON and the females SOPHIE, BRUNETTE and RUBY. The plan is to run the males together first then change dogs later in the day and give the females some running. We traveled north a while then stopped along the way for some breakfast. Before long we arrive at our place to hunt and we get ourselves ready. Alot more stuff to get ready these days with all this "tech" equipment we shag around. Used to be simple, a hound, a leash, and a gun. Now we have radios, tracking gear, GPS etc. Oh ya I have a brand new MULE hunting vest. We'll see how it holds up.   Anyway we get the males collared and finally into the woods. Not a peep for fifteen minutes. Hope the bunnies are here. At this time of year the rabbits are spread out and sometimes hard to start. In a while BRUNO opens up doing a bit of cold trailing. He's a big nosed hound and a great starter. In a couple minutes he tongues a bit stronger and Simon gets in with him then the other two males. PETE is almost ten years old now and we've had some great times with him over the years. We'll see how he holds up this year with the other guys. Now they've got the hare smoking and we decide to let 'em run a half hour to stir up the mess of rabbits we hope are here. Out of hearing a couple times and back again. I let the Italian (Famiano) know that we could shoot the hare now and he takes off like a shot. Young legs and young eyes make a difference in this kind of hunting, a fact that isn't appreciated 'till you add some years to your life. Round and round they went and pretty soon a volley of five shots ring out and no hoot. That kind of shooting usually means a miss. But in a short while later a couple more shots ring out and ANTHONY bags the first hare of the season. I hear some yelling and screaming in the woods and I guess Tony was having a tug-of-war contest with Simon over the rabbit. Finally Tony wins out. Pete gets another hare going and hounds get wrapped up tight again driving this hare in a huge circle out of hearing a number of times. Reggie shot this hare and once again it didn't take long to get another hunt going. These males matched up well and ran as one once again. The hunt moved off over yonder into some real thick fir trees and we got together to listen and to just enjoy the run. the hare moved our way and we lined up on this old lane that afforded us a bit of visisbility. I stood a short ways behind Reggie and just watched. The hare was coming toward the trail we were on and the hounds were pounding hard. Reggie raised his firearm on the trail and the hare scooted across so fast he couldn't get off the shot. Out of hearing he went once again. After a fashion Tony shot this one followed by some more screaming and hollering.

It seems that the young hound SIMON likes to run a hare right up Tony's leg and grab ahold of it. Whatever it takes to get that rabbit I guess is in that hounds mind. As viewed in the picture, Tony is fighting for his rabbit as determined as the "Italian Stallion" might fight for his woman! After quite a tussle Tony prevailed but Simon got a chance to leave some dog tracks right up the front side of Tony. The hunt continued and another hare was taken. We had great running and these males ran real well and every hare started was shot. We caught them and headed back to the trucks. Dewey doesn't get into the woods 'cause of his health and missed the chance to hear them go as his hearing equipment was left at home. After a drink and a few cookies we got the females out and hit the bush with them. Sophie got a start where we had run the males and we got a driving affair going with them quickly. Tony shot this one and we worked the hounds some more. Couldn't get another start here so we decided to work them across the road from the truck. RUBY hit one and we got a rip snorter of a run underway. This hare ran scared and way out in front of the hounds. But he couldn't get away. They ran this hare for nearly two hours before it started to rain. All our rain gear was in the truck and we were getting soaked. Tony got on the radio and thought we should quit. I told him we'd have to shoot this hare first as the bitches were doing so good we couldn't leave this hunt without the proper conclusion. No sooner said than done, "KAFLOW" Reggie's thunder stick went off and finished the run. It was pouring hard out and we got the hounds and our butts out of there fast. The air was pretty cool and the rain was down right cold. We trucked it out of there and headed for home. Got to Deweys to find that Alice had the kitchen wood stove going and some goodies for us to eat. We had already taken care of the hounds and were sitting around the fire chatting when Dewey excuses himself to go to the "john". After he "done his duty" he comes out and heads straight for the cubboard and promtly lit a candle that was in a large glass container and delivers it back to the "john" from whence he came from minutes before. I guess the theory is that the emissions from the candle will off set the emissions given off by DEWEY's bowel movement? None of us bought into that theory for one minute?? We had a real good hunt and not a bad start to the season with plenty of shooting and seven dead hare after seven great runs. All hare accounted for. The hunt got cut short due to the rain but tomorrow we'll get it on once again.

October 3, 2003   5A.M.  Day 2 of this trip begins with crystal clear skies at 30 degrees. The "troops" roll out of the sac slowly. We gather around the kitchen table and strategize our plans. In short order we're on the road heading east. Got an hour and a half drive to go and hit a little restaurant along the way for breakfast. We'll hunt the bitches first as they were picked up early yesterday due to our quitting early because of the rain. Dewey will run his little male "Nicky" along with SOPHIE, RUBY and BRUNETTE. RUBY a field champion herself is sired by F.C. John's Buck VII out of F.C. Cuomo's Miss May and Brunette is a full sister to BRUNO who's pedidree can be seen in the stud ad of this web site. Sophie is shown in the section "OUR HOUNDS".  Finally we get to our destination and get ourselves and the hounds ready. Today we're trying unknown areas in order to find new places to hunt. Did some scouting last year and this place looked promising. We cast the hounds and in a couple minutes we had a run going. All the hounds harked in and this hunt was underway. Before long we found ourselves in some of the thickest tough hunting cover you could imagine. After some forty five minutes or so we decided to move in toward the hounds and pick up. As we traversed this morass we were pleasantly surprised to find better visibility and decided to let 'em run. It seems that when we cast the dogs we inadverdantly let 'em go in a jungle that was only a couple hundred yards wide. The hounds were still driving this first hare well and we moved in for the kill. Tony got a look at the hare and blasted the bunny on a dead run. Sophie got the next start and this would be the run of the day. Out of hearing for a long time and only our tracking devices could pinpoint their location. The wind had picked up a bit but the day was still pretty awesome. In a few minutes we heard the baying of a big dog and Dewey called us on the radio to say that some bear hunters had struck a bear track where we cast the hounds up by the truck. Anthony had a few anxious moments about "big" hounds being on the ground near us but I reassurred him that they wouldn't bother us. They moved on down the road and out of hearing and that was that. In the meantime we were getting closer to the bitches and finally got ourselves positioned to get some shooting. The "TROOPER", Reggie, did the honors killing this one after a couple quick shots. I managed to shoot three over the bitches in this spot and we all got plenty of shooting. Dewey had his hearing gear with him and got to hear quite alot of the running. After some four hours we picked up. Our plan was to put the bitches away and run the males in yet another cover we wanted to check out twenty miles away. Before we moved an inch however, nature called upon Reggie so we had to wait for him to do his thing! After Reggie did his "job" in the woods he went over to Dewey and asked if he had any candles he could borrow. We got a chuckle out of that one. Dewey had to leave so he took the four hounds we just hunted back to his house and we'd finish the day with the four males in an unknown cover.

12:30 P.M.  We're at a new area now and the wind is still pretty steady but the skies are crystal clear and the temperature about fifty degrees. BRUNO, SIMON, TIMMY and PETE are cast and Bruno as he often does got the start. This hound is a great hunter and starts alot of rabbits. All the hounds got together quickly and off they went. This cover had alot of tall grass and ferns and it was tough to see through, but when the hounds run as steady as these do all you need to do is to find a lane where you can see a bit and wait. We got three hare in this one spot after some steady running. Reggie had troble with his Browning automatic jamming so I took his gun and tried to fix it. I have a Browning too and in the attempt to work on in I had a brain cramp. I mistakenly took my own gun apart and didn't see much wrong so I pushed the magazine spring down with a stick and let it snap back up and when it did the retainer ring popped out and so did the magazine spring. I found the retainer ring but the spring went airborne and got lost. Then I realized I just screwed up my own gun not Reggie's. I checked out Reggies gun only to find that all that was needed was lubrication. Oil the cheapest maintenance you can buy. So my semi automatic was now a single shot. We cast the hounds again and this the fourth hare really gave us a chase and crossed the road we drove in on and took us to some low ground that was tough to move through and see. This run lasted an hour and a half or so and Reggied blasted that one. During this run our buddy ANTONIO hurt his knee. Wounded in action! Evidently Tony twisted the thing just right and had trouble walking. Reggie said we should put him on the "DL" (disable list). We had a bunch of hare and decided to quit because of our injured companion but he insisted we hunt some more. I decided to pick up all the hounds and just run BRUNO in a thicket not far from the truck. We cast BRUNO solo and he had a hare in less than ten seconds. The hound ran as steady as steady could be. I used Tony's gun as mine was reduced to a single shot. This rabbit was real accommodating as he ran small circles in tight cover close to the trucks. He got by Reggie and I a couple times then we heard a shot near the road by the truck. ANTHONY took himself off the "DL" and on one leg shot the hare just off the road with my single shot. We picked up to finish the hunt that had gone extremely well. Great running, plenty of shooting, and alot of laughs.   After supper I told Dewey that I would use his single shot the next day as my gun had a lost spring. Dewey said let me try something and made a phone call. He hangs up and says "get your gun and let's go". An old semi retired gun maker lived in town and told Dewey he might be able to help us out. Carl "Bill" Morrison was this guys name and he was at one time a world class gun maker. Old Bill took the gun apart, looked it over and went to the back corner of his shop and pulled out an old cardboard shoe box. He had a spring in his hand and in minutes had the gun reassembled and working "slick as a whistle". "What do I owe you Bill" I asked. He said gimme 5 bucks. Can you believe that! Back home it would've taken me weeks to get fixed and a whole lot more than a 5 dollar bill woulda bit the dust. I gave Bill 10 bucks and shook the old craftmans hand. Bill made custom barrels in the days of years ago and showed us around his shop as he reminisced about them "GOOD OLD DAYS".

October 4, 2003   5:00 A.M.  DAY THREE of this hunt. It's cloudy out with the temperature at forty degrees and rain forecasted for the afternoon. We huddle up around the table and suck up some coffee. Get away day so we won't run the whole batch of hounds. We'll run Timmy, Bruno,Simon and Pete. Just the males. Matthew my nephew came in late last night and would hunt this day with us. Matt as you recall gave that great shooting exhibition last year with his father on our hunt with Steve Corey. Our famous "ROADMAN" Dewey would not hunt today as he would go to a field trial with the male his son bought from the Lyle Chamberlain estate. Tony jerked Dewey around a bit wanting to know why he would go to a trial on a hunting day??? These two children threw a few more "word spears" back and forth and finally it ended. Dewey can't get around for health reasons so trials are for him at least a fun experience. But I'm with Tony on this one as long as my health holds up I'll hunt before trialing anyday. It was decided to hunt a cover not far away as it minimized lost time due to travel. Got some breakfast and hit the woods.

The hounds were cast and and it took a long time to get a start. This cover usually holds a bunch of hare but until the cold weather comes and the leaves fall, rabbits get spread out and can be spotty to find. Bruno and Simon work a line and jump a hare. "THE TOOLMAN" hops in and off we go. I told the guys to let them run a while before we shoot the thing so as to allow the chase to move some other hare that might be nearby. After a fashion we decide it was long enough and we'd attempt the kill. We're all standing together talking and the hunt turns our way. I tell Matt to shoot the thing when it passes if he wanted to. The hounds were pounding steady as they had been doing since they started the hare thirty minutes before. We're in a pretty good place to see standing on an old logging road with only tall grass and ferns in the way. Here comes "PETER RABBIT" hopping along at a moderate pace. Matthew lifts up his RED LABEL 20 and touches it off. At that moment we experienced a HUNTING ACCIDENT. Matt missed the hare with a shot that I considered a "set up". The hounds came through and kept going only to check about eighty yards away. Reggie instructed Matt to go see if he hit the hare as the hounds might've caught it. Matt goes to check only to discover that the shot ACCIDENTLY mortally wounded this little tiny frog that was in the wrong place at the wrong time and one pellet went through his little heart. Oh well Linda will get frog legs for supper.  The dogs found the hare again and it was later shot .Once again it took a while to get a hare going but eventually they did and we got another good run that ended as they're suppose to, "dead rabbit".  Tony's knee was still bothering him and we decided to go scout another place for future hunts.

An hour later we arrive at another place and "the Italian " is bemoaning his plight. He wouldn't hunt anymore because of his "WOUNDED KNEE", and Reggie placed Tony on the official "disabled list". We decided to hunt just BRUNO as he covers alot of ground and is a great starter plus the two "old guys" would have it easier corraling hounds at the days end. True to form BRUNO gets a hare going and runs flawlessly solo. Shots were fired a number of times to no avail and the hunt continued. We got a great run out of this hound and then the rains began to fall. Reggie shoots the hare finally but before we could decide what we were gonna do BRUNO starts another one. We got enough rain the other day so I told the guys that we would retreat out of this place as soon as we could shoot this other rabbit he was running. Of course now that we wanted to exit the woods nobody could hit the broadside of a barn door. A bunch of misses ensued and BRUNO kept a running. Forty five minutes later and the bunny is still alive and well. Raining alot harder now and I was a praying for somebody to end this thing. A shot rang out a bit later and MATT ended the day. Nice shooting Matt. Like I always said "Matt's a great shot".

This ended our first hunting trip and we managed to get some great running with all the hounds performing well and every rabbit we started was eventually shot. Couldn't ask for a better hunt.     SEE YOU GUYS NEXT WEEK FOR A RECAP OF HUNT #2....

OCTOBER 8, 2003   2P.M.  Heading north alone for another hunt and I have three dogs with me. Tony's Ruby dog and two of my own Timmy and Sophie. Beautiful day and the coloration on the maples are appoaching peak color and the landscape is nothing short of beautiful. I arrive at Deweys around 5 P.M. and just Alice is home. Dewey and our two guests for this hunt are out running hounds somewhere. In a while the "boys" are back and the introductions take place. "BUDDY" Grantham and Paul Belding from Texas are up visiting to get a gander at this "hare hunting" thing we do up here a few miles north of the Mason Dixon line. We spent the evening talking and getting acquainted and it didn't take long to figure out that these guys were true houndsmen. It was a bit cool out this evening and the forecast was for pretty seasonable temperatures for our hunt tomorrow. Mid forties make for pretty good hunting this time of year.

OCTOBER 9, 2003   5:30 A.M. The alarm was set for 5:30 or so we thought. The "alarm man" failed to get it on line but "BUDDY" beat the clock anyway and was up and ready to go before reveille was called. After a few cups of coffee we got loaded up and headed north some more. We stopped at a preferred little restaurant along the way and had some breakfast. No matter how early I try to get the "troops" going we never seem to be able to get hunting before 8:30 A.M. Finally we collar the three hounds and cast them. I explain to BUDDY and PAUL the lay of the land and what to expect. It took a half hour or so to get a hare going and the dogs got it on pretty good. I was carrying my Contender with a .410 barrel and didn't figure on shooting much as I planned to take the job of "whipper in" for the hunt. The dogs drove well and the hare came by me loping along crossing some three feet away. I let him go and he ran by Paul who saw the hare but couldn't get in a shot. Some 10 minutes later the hare made the same swing and Paul cranked out a round or two and the hare dropped dead as they do in the "WILD WEST of TEXAS". This was Pauls first hare ever and the smile on his face told a story. Before long another chase was on and the hunt moved out of hearing for a while, then back again. This run had been on for some time and the "TEXANS" were getting some learning on how to hunt these things. I worked myself into a pretty good position where the hare had crossed a couple times before and I set up to ambush him. Sure enough he came into view and I sent a round his way with the "pea shooter". The hare acted a bit differently I thought after I fired but never stopped and the hunt moved down by the road. Now our WORLD CLASS "Roadman" was covering the road and he got a whack at the hare trying to cross it and turned him back to the side he had just come from and the hunt continued. By now the hounds had cranked the chase up a notch or two and pounded pretty hard. The hare came back out to the road once again then turned and ran up the road a hundred yards and ducked back in to the same side he had been on all the while. I talked to DEWEY on the phone and he said that the hare acted as though he was hit. A short circle took place and he tried to cross the road again but "THE ROAD MAN" nailed him and the hounds ran down to the dead hare and sunk their teeth into the furry critter. The hunt continued as it had started with one good run after another until we decided to pack it in. Both Texas boys shot a hare or two as well as Dewey. The dogs had performed well and I was satisfied with how the day went as we ended up with eight hare, quite a bit of shooting and some pretty good running. Our friends from the south had a good time and that's what really counted. We'll try it again tomorrow....MORE TO COME.

October 9, 2003   6A.M. We're sitting around the kitchen table figuring where we would hunt and again talk wasn't followed by action so I pressed the issue to get going. The "ROADMAN" gave me the evil eye! Oh well off we went. Got Sophie, Ruby and Dewey,s red dog "NICKIE" to hunt today. Travel another hour and a half to get to our selected hunt spot only to find other hunters already there. So we travelled again and decided to hunt the same place we were in the day before. Got the dogs ready and cast them and I hit the woods to handle the mutts while the TEXAN's were relegated the duty of killing the rabbits. Sophie started one after a while "over yonder". I learned that slogan from Mel Stewart a few years ago and never did get from him the definition of what "over yonder" meant. How far is "over yonder" anyway? Them southern boys say that all the time.  The three hounds got it going pretty good and this was the beginning of what turned out to be a "good news bad news" hunting story. After a fashion the "SOUTHERN BOYS" got a couple whacks at the hare but to no avail. The cover was pretty thick and at times the hare passed by them guys without getting seen and the hunt continued. Somewhere along the line "Nickie" got shook out of the run and was "missing in action". But the two bitches continued to run and at times drove really well. The "BOYS" nearly screwed up one of my guns they were borrowing by putting some misses through the gun's barrel. But later on the barrel got straightened back out as the kill was made. PHEW! This run was a great one as the hounds persued relentlessly for two and a half hours before Paul brought the chase to a near end as he wounded the hare. About ten minutes later the hare ran by Paul again and a finishing shot of the twenty gage brought this run to a close.  Nickie had been missing quite a while so I got a bearing on him with the "tracker" and took off to find him a half a mile away pretty tired. I finally got back to the truck only to find that the two bitches were out somewhere. I put Nickie in the truck and got the two bitches after forty five minutes or so of dog hunting and worked them some more. Sophie I guess hit my track where I had gone to get Nickie an hour before and she had worked her way all the way up to where I caught Nickie earlier. After alot of lost time of dog retrieving I worked the two bitches through a small piece of woods and couldn't get a start. About 2 P.M. now and we decided to quit. GOOD NEWS is we got one great run, BAD NEWS is that it was the only run of the day we got. And so it goes in the life of a "HARE HUNTER", nothing is guaranteed!. I trust that BUDDY and PAUL had a good time and perhaps they'll be back another day with some of their hounds?  I'll get more photos of this hunt later when the film gets developed.

OCTOBER 19, 2003    11A.M.    Tony pulls into the driveway as I'm pounding nails in the kennel rushing to get my refurbushing job on the kennel done before snow flies. We're heading north for another 3 days of hunting. We mess around a while shooting the "bull", then go get something to eat in East Rochester, hit the "Candy Store" for some odds and ends, then head home to load the truck and "move out".

We leave my house with six hounds. Tony has Bruno, Ruby, and Brunette and I have Timmy, Simon, and Sophie. On our way we stop off at ROGER LISTER's snowshoe making shop right here in Lebanon. Roger is a retired school teacher and is occupying alot of his time making snowshoes. His product sells under the name "SNOW JET" and he inherited alot of his manufacturing equipment from his grandfather Elmer Aldrich who once was the owner and manufacturer of the famous "SNOWCRAFT" snowshoes of years ago. The "Snowcraft" snowshoe making company operate by Mr Aldrich was based in NORWAY MAINE and perhaps many of you reading this have a set of SNOWCRAFT's in your shed. Now they are made of ash and strung with nylon rope and are light, strong and don't absorb moisture like the old product used to do. Roger uses some of the same forms that his grandfather used in his shop in the early part of this century and for some fifty years. Tony purchased a pair with the "ALASKAN" style shape. That is to mean long and narrow with an extreme turned up front end for gliding over the deep fluffy powdered snow of mid winter. The length also prevents the user fron falling through air pockest in the snow that often occur around blow downs and small evergreen trees. ROGER can be reached at 1-207-324-6367 should any of you be interested in a custom made pair of "shoes" and note his web site address on the photo of his truck.

We arrive at headquaters, that is the home of Alice and Dewey. Got some coffee and brownies to munch on and we spend our usual two to three hours of "slinging the bull". Dewey finshed the male "BHUDA" that he bought of the Lyle Chamberlain estate and tells us how his training has been doing in preparation for the big trial coming up November 1. This is the Large pack National Championship that is being held at Spacetown in New Hampshire. Dewey is all wound up about this competition and has been training his hound hard. The plan is to meet up with Mark Wormwood at our usual eating place in the morning. Mark has been anxious to hunt with Tony and his dogs for some time now and tomorrow is his chance.

OCTOBER 20, 2003 7 A.M.    We got up at 5:30 this morning and we anticipated bad weather driving. It was snowing when we drove up yesterday and when we went to bed last night there was about two inches of snow and still snowing. The snow must've turned to rain because there was only an inch of snow showing outdoors. However as we drove north the little snow we had as we started this trek north got a bit deeper as the miles added up. We met up with Mark at the restuarant and we put down a nice breakfast. When we got to where we would hunt we found four inches of wet snow everywhere and still snowing and occasionally mixed with rain. Everything was wet and the trees covered with the white stuff..YUK. Oh well that's how it goes in the LIFE OF A HARE HUNTER. We brought just the males today 'cause we didn't want to waste time changing dogs. The girls would run tomorrow. Mark brought his hound NATE who I ran with last year. Nate runs a nice rabbit consistently but would have his "paws full" with these males. We cast the hounds and it took a while to get a start. The dogs worked some old scent a bit with a little tongueing here and there. Finally I jump a hare and off they went. We let him run some twenty minutes and he made the mistake of running by Tony and that ended his life. We walked around another hour and a half without a bark. Couldn't find another hare here in what was great hare cover. We decided to move to another place that usually yielded pretty good results. After another drive of forty minutes or so we cast the four hounds. We got a start right off but the hounds had trouble driving steady. The area here is very thick and the hare eluded us a number of times. With the "cobwebs" shaken out of them, the over anxious hounds settled into a pretty good drive and the hare high tailed it out of there in a straight line out of hearing. With our "TRACKERS" we were able to pinpoint their whereabouts and moved up to them a half a mile away. Round and round they went. With all the commotion of running fast and furious covering alot of ground we were able to cut a bunch of stray tracks. The hare population seemed OK here. The hounds pressed on and the critter was missed several times by some of us. Now I kill every hare I hit, problem is sometimes I don't hit? All the hounds got their share of the run and Nate did his best and stayed in the hunt O.K. The three males we brought run a bit on the strong side and even Simon the youngest of our three hounds has some experience on snow and has some get up and go. Nate was in pretty tough company but he hung in there. As it turned out we all got plenty of shooting and when we finished up the day seven hare "bit the dust". When we quit, we were all soaking wet from this days hunt as it never stopped spitting snow and showering rain all the day long. On the way back we stopped for supper and that coffee sure hit the spot. We hunted hard as usual and didn't finish up 'till nearly dark. Long day at the office. Hare hunting the way we do it is alot of fun but alot of work too. Suppose to be dry tomorrow. Sure hope so.

OCTOBER 21, 2003    We're up early today and meet Marc at a different place for breakfast some 50 miles east of where we were yesterday. Good move as there is all bare ground here and everything is wet from the rains/snows delivered in these parts yesterday. A real nice day with clear cool skies. We have the girls RUBY, BRUNETTE, SOPHIE and Marc has NATE. See the photo on the left of a Bruno X Sue pup anxious to make the hunt next year.  

We arrive at our hunt destination after twenty miles or so of driving. Cast the hounds and it takes a while to get a start. All the hounds contribute a bit of off and on barking as they work on some old night lines. Finally a hare is up and running. These hounds now pound steady and checkless for nearly thirty minutes before a shot rang out and bunny was declared deceased. This pack bunched tightly and the hounds shared the work equally as they moved each rabbit swiftly and with a great deal of authority. We shot a couple more hare in non stop runs that were fast steady driving affairs. All the bunnies died in a shower of lead and depending on who was pulling the trigger the showers could better be described as downpours. Run number four was the run of the trip. Two and a half hours of steady fast running and the hare made us all expend a few rounds for naught. Fact is more than just a few rounds got launched during this chase. A long fast driving affair with a closely bunched group of hounds were relentless in pursuit until Anthony nailed the sucker in thick cover, on a dead run with a bit more luck than skill. All in all we took 5 hare on this day after some great running. All the hounds performed well and NATE had a good day running with these females. Marc was pretty pleased with his hound's performance as he should be, and I'm sure he drove home a happy camper.

We stopped for supper before heading for Dewey's and the end of a great hunt started to unravel. THE CURSE of the BAMBINO raised it's ugly head!

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