Filed under: General — Cheryl @ 6:41 am
Lots more great work was completed at Wallis Farm Monday. Thanks to Steve and David for bringing wood and building another hefty coop and a cool log jump. Log jump has already been road tested and approved by yours truly and the brown beast!
Tom, Jacob, and Lili installed a gate on either side of the woods, sort of parallel to the gasline going into Robinson’s, so we don’t have to use the gasline and all its gates to get through. Plus we can go through the hardwoods and hunt hounds through the great covert instead of the open gasline.
Cheryl, Dr. Cheryl, Bill, Marie and Earl cut a trail through from Chambers logging road through the hardwoods to come out to Cedar Stump field. We have the gate, but it’s not yet installed. Hopefully we can get to that before we hunt here again on Tues. 2/5.
David Gilliam has generously offered more wood to build more jumps from the lumber company where he works. Thank you, David!
Tom created a neat map of the area and its new trails and gates. Click here and you all can study it so you know where you’re going! 
It really does help to come out on work days and also to look at the maps.
Filed under: General — Cheryl @ 3:01 pm
Thanks to everyone who is helping to open up this new territory. We have a big double gate with special rigging so we only have to open the small half, this is down to the right of Loee’s back field to cross Crane Creek to the gasline (bye bye Texas gate and briars!!). We also have a gate by the fallen down house at the big bottom fields of Robinson’s, which will take us out to 601 across from Louella’s hay fields. These are 2 very important spots!!
Two coops were built, one by the big gate on Crane Creek, and a big one up at the back of our parking area, leading to Loee’s back field. Thanks to Steve Green, that one is a big solid 3’3″. They have been road tested by Yours Truly and the Brown Horse, and they ride well.
We have plans for a couple more gates and coops, hopefully this Sunday 1/27 we can do a couple more things. Then eventually want to work on the other side of the road, where we have even more open territory (meaning no fences!), to have the whole area between Suanee Creek and Vaughan’s Creek available and open for our hounds to run.
Hope you all get to come enjoy the fruits of our labor soon.
Cheryl M.
Filed under: 2007-2008 — Cheryl @ 4:24 pm
Fixture:Â Wallis Farm, 10 am
Members: Lili on Jubilee, Judy on Anne, Cheryl M. on Opus, Tom on Dancer, Jan & Steve, Sarah, David and Lee
Weather:Â COLD! but not too windy, and overcast, scenting should be good
Map:Â Map of 1/19/08 Wallis Farm Coyote Chase; Tom estimates the field traveled 15 miles from start to finish
Hounds:Â 11 1/2Â couple, including some first year entries, Tennessee, Solomon, and Solitaire
Misc. Notations: Cheryl M. goes in early and loses her horse while closing gate and has to walk all the way through Robinson woods trail. Horse is waiting at top gate wondering what took her so long. Marie and Emma arrive after field is gone, so they hilltop on their own.
I.D. Awards:Â none today!
Tailgate/Breakfast:Â Delicious white bean chili from Judy B, some chips and cookies, and hot tea!
The Hunt: Lili draws at top of new trail in pines along Crane Creek Rd. Hounds not finding much. Start down new trail in pines toward creek, and hear Jazz boom the opening cry. All hounds scramble furiuosly to honor her, and they are OFF! I see Dawson and Pearl hanging back… which indicates “COYOTE”. But hopefully it will give us a big circular chase and make for some good sport.
They go up and cross the pipeline, and down toward the back of Loee’s bottom field. We follow up the gasline toward Robinson’s Silos, and cut off into a field out to 600. Hounds have crossed 600, so we cross too (completely new unridden country). Earl shows up with Silver, just in the nick of time, and heads out to 627, as Tom and the field hear them down by Vaughan’s creek.
I can swear that they are going to circle back, and we’ll get a full view of the coyote coming across those big cow pastures, but they keep right on moving out of country, in full cry. We scramble through fields to find gaps, and then gallop as fast as we can (WHEE!!) to keep in the chase.
We can hear them a good ways, and figure we better make our way out to 600, and down to 627, and we find a farm road (Silo Road) that Tom thinks will cut across. As usual, he is right!
At this point I head in because of horse issue (nothing serious).
Field continues on with Lili back down Silo Road, and has no thoughts of turning back! I make my way back to home, and lose stupid red horse in the process of opening gate… but find him and get home and then head up to get hound truck.
Tom & Earl and Lili are talking about where they are on the radio and I am in total shock. Holy moly they are FAR!! I go out 2 miles to 460, and head west for about 3-4 miles, then turn onto 627 (Hixburg Rd) and then right onto Olive Branch. Still go down about 2 miles, then arrive with the hound truck to find them down Olive Branch Rd. (609) with 12 hounds. I have Pepper and Tidy in the truck, so that makes 14. We take them back and the field heads back down the road to go in with Tom.
We go back for breakfast and to take care of the horses, and then set out to track the remaining 9 missing hounds. Lili picks up a handful of them, with Earl and Tom’s help. Then Earl, Lili and I continue on into the night tracking and driving around. She picks up a few more, leaving just Solomon out but it is now 8 p.m. and everyone has got to go in. We pray that Solomon is ok, and plan to go back in the morning.
I track him the next morning in the same direction, but it’s on long range, which could be 5 miles. Turns out it was almost exactly that!! Tom comes to help, and with his excellent sense of directiona nd navigation skills, we not only learn our way around better, but we also find SOLOMON!! I almost tripped over him the tracker got us so close!!
I stop and look around, and see him on the side of the highway, curled in a ball. Praying he is not hurt, I call him and approach. He is nervous, but doesn’t move. I reach to him and start telling him what a good boy he is and he licks me and thanks us for rescuing him.
It was really scary, but ended great. Please say a prayer to thank the lord for helping keep him safe and helping us find him, as well as keeping the field and riders stay safe on the long hard chase.
I know this is long, but if you have made it this far, please post your comments and observations of the day. Til next time, tally ho!
Cheryl M.
Filed under: 2007-2008 — Cheryl @ 2:25 pm
Fixture:Â Cardwell Hay Field, 10 am
Members: Lili on Seattle, Kate on Jane, Judy on Anne, Marie on Emma, Cheryl on Koko, Cheryl M. on Opus, and Vicky on Ginger, Tom on Dancer, and Earl and his metal steed, Silver
Weather:Â COLD! and windy, scenting not great
Hounds: 8 1/2 couple, they all worked really hard in less than ideal scenting. Notable hounds were Amber seen leading a chase, and Clara opening first having found scent on a log across the creek.
Misc. Notations: Dr. Cheryl & Marie jump coop on the way back in; Cheryl M. jumps first coop post-surgery, and all live to tell about it. 
I.D. Awards:Â none today!
Tailgate/Breakfast:Â none today 
The Hunt:Â As we headed out from the trailers to the back of the Cardwell field, we began to see little flakes! Vicky and I were staying to the back, since I am still somewhat on the injured reserve list and her horse had never been out. Marie & Dr. Cheryl followed Lili.
It was neat to see the horses and riders, and the hounds being showered with white. Nothing really accumulated. We stayed warm enough for the most part, trotting when necessary to keep from getting too cold.
Hounds did speak and get on a line, but ran into #55, an errant deerhound who was intent on following a viewed deer back toward Nowlins Mill. We gathered up the hounds and moved on, back through Ralph Ogden’s to the field on New Chapel by the honey pot pines. Hounds got on something in the pines and started out to New Chapel. Staff stopped the hounds out on New Chapel because if we followed we would be heading further away from where we parked. Fox got a good clean getaway this time!
We hunted back down Tweedy Rd., and they struck again, in the big field off Tweedy Rd. Thought sure we’d see something as Vicky and I had made our way down the road, rather than follow through the woods. But they turned back then toward Nowlins Mill and ended up losing it. We all met back up at the trailers and called it a day.
Everyone had to get going so we said our goodbyes and headed home.
Cheryl M.
Filed under: General — Cheryl @ 1:18 pm
Hello!
We have created this blog for posting hunt reports, and general musings, and other information about foxhunting and especially fox hunting with Stonewall Hounds.
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Cheryl Microutsicos
Stonewall Hounds
