The music of the pack is it’s
CRY!
Autumn
2006
I give you a toast: to friend and
to host,
To him over whose land we ride!
Who ne'er fails to spare a fox or a hare
And welcomes all sportsmen with pride!
So take a long pull to granary full,
To fruit and to crops of the soil,
To pasture and keep
to cattle and sheep,
God speed to his plough and his toil!
P G R Benson
Well here we are again at the
happiest time of the year with everything to look forward to in eager
anticipation. What no Government can take away – although it is arguable
that the current Government's attempts to ban Hunting were for this sole
purpose – is the community spirit that hunting engenders and it is
wonderful to be catching up with everyone as we all draw together again
after the Summer's activities. In fact, apart from the absence of a
drink or two, some morning's Hound Training have more or less resembled
a Cocktail Party.
And there is a lot to look forward to as well, including our Annual
Dinner on 24th November. This year the Speaker will be Charles Moore,
erstwhile Editor of the Daily Telegraph and the Spectator and currently
engaged in writing the authorised biography of Margaret Thatcher. He is
also a passionate Foxhunter and had a memorable day's hunting here a few
seasons ago when he firstly managed to jump on a recumbent Peter
Rosselli and then had a crunching fall onto the road. Despite all this
he carried on hunting all day with the broadest of smiles on his face. I
have no doubt that he will be an entertaining and informative speaker.
As I write the Pony Club Prince Philip Cup team are competing in the
Finals at the Horse of the Year Show. It is a fantastic achievement to
have got into the Finals as one of the last eight teams and we have been
delighted to donate a contribution to their expenses.
I am delighted to say that Georgie Quinn and Natty Higham are extremely
keen to resurrect the Young Wynnstay Hunt Supporters Club. 'Young' is a
very hard word to define but anyone out there who is young at heart and
who would like to be part of the gang please contact me with details at
david@higham.taurusuk.net .
Finally some dates for your diaries – further details are available
overleaf. Not to be missed, of course, is our biennial Hunt
Entertainment & Christmas Auction 'A Fairytale Christmas' – the lawyers
are already rubbing their hands with glee at the prospect of the writs.
Having been inveigled into doing the questions for the Quiz Night yet
again (who on earth could refuse the advances of Alex Martin?) I promise
that the questions will be a tad easier this time......
15th October Area III Ride – Malpas area
19th October Hunt AGM Bangor on Dee Racecourse 7.30 pm
29th October Area III Ride (Second Ride)
1st November WHSC AGM Bangor on Dee Racecourse 7.30 pm
9th November Area II Quiz Night Welshampton
24th November Hunt Supporters Dinner Bangor on Dee
15th December Hunt Entertainment & Christmas Auction Overton on Dee
16th December Hunt Entertainment & Christmas Auction Overton on Dee
23rd February 2007 Farmers Hunt Ball Whitchurch
FROM OUR CHAIRMAN
Jo Roberts and I have just met the
new caterers at Bangor – choosing a delicious menu for our Annual Dinner
on Friday 24th November. Do please come, bring your friends and hear
Charles Moore. He is looking forward (I hope) to returning to the
Wynnstay country and will speak before having another day's Hunting.
Charles is a former Editor of The Daily Telegraph, The Spectator and The
Sunday Telegraph and is currently writing Margaret Thatcher's authorised
Biography. Lest this put you off above all he is a passionate Foxhunter
and will undoubtedly be very entertaining as well as throwing an insight
into the current political situation. Book early to avoid
disappointment!
After a wonderful warm September it is now Ride Time and it is raining!.
I would like to thank each Area Committee for their hard work in
organising our three Rides and all the Farmers who so generously allow
us to cross their land and jump their fences.
I think it is amazing that Charlie Barnett of The Hully, Tybroughton
has, with his select team, organized Area II rides for a quarter of a
century. Yes, he arranged his first Ride in 1981 and has done it each
year ever since – quite a record. There have been many people who have
really loved his routes, jumped across those fabulous Tybroughton
hedges, been through and round the Wyches and enjoyed the wonderful
grass and beautiful scenery. The Farmers have been great in allowing
Charlie to plan such super Rides and give us all such a great time so I
would like to say a special thank you to Mr & Mrs Barnett. I wonder
whether this record will ever be matched again? Their foresight and
innovation in introducing these Rides to the Wynnstay have been
responsible for raising such a large amount of money for the Wynnstay
Hunt Supporters Club and hence, indirectly, for the Hunt.
Thanks to your generosity, the weather being kind at Ride time, less
calls on our funds for political purposes and a general restoration of
our financial position we have been able, over the last eighteen months,
to donate to the Hunt money for fencing and bridging materials, refenced
the Kennels Drive, bought Bertie a tractor for the Kennels, made a
substantial donation to our Pony Club Prince Philip Games team ( the
Future ) who qualified for the finals at the Horse of the Year Show
which, whilst being a great achievement is extremely expensive, and are
currently finding a replacement vehicle for Paul whose M306 HAW with the
ballerina mascot is finally coming peacefully to the end of her days. If
her successor lasts as long as she has done then it will be money well
spent. All the spending is carefully considered and I hope you think
spent wisely in achieving our one aim of supporting Sir Watkin Williams
Wynn's Hunt.
A new initiative very much to be applauded is the instigation of the
'Young Hunt Supporters Club' – details of which are included in Cry. As
far as I can gather the description 'Young' is not an age group but
rather a question of how you feel so anyone is eligible! Please support
and spread the word.
Finally I must thank the Main Committee, each Area Committee and Jo
Roberts and John Godwin for all the help they give me. Happy Hunting!
AREA I (WREXHAM)
The heavens opened on the morning of 21st May and the rain continued
until dusk. However, in true Area 1 style the Bryn y Pys show went on!
Thank you again to Mr Rosselli and Mr Probin, members of Area 1 and
everyone who helped & supported the event. Despite the inclement weather
we all had a thoroughly enjoyable day.
On Sunday 24th September, the day of our ride, I couldn't believe it, we
were woken up by a great thunder storm and heavy rain! thankfully the
sky was clear by 10am and over 200 riders enjoyed the ride. In keeping
with tradition we started at Pickhill, a huge thank you to the
landowners for your continued support and once again we are delighted to
be supporting Nightingale House Hospice, Wrexham. Thanks have to go out
to the Area 1 team for doing a really fabulous job preparing this years
course and route.
We would warmly welcome any new members to Area I with new ideas and
support for our fund raising events. For further details please contact
Catherine Byrne on 01978 351 027.
AREA II (WHITCHURCH)
The Hog Roast held by kind permission of Mrs Warburton Lee on 23rd
June at Broad Oak was a perfect setting and a huge success, raising
£1,349. Everyone put in a large amount of work – as I am so chaotic it
is very wonderful having such an excellent committee to work with!
Bronington PTA were kind enough to lend us their marvellous tent and the
Leas were there again with their delicious ice cream despite a busy
weekend at the West Mids Show. Thank you to everyone.
On Thursday 9th November we have our inter-hunt Quiz at 7.30 at
Welshampton Village Hall. There are limited numbers so ring soon for
your tickets – only £5.00 each including hot pot supper. Tel: 01939 233
227
The Farmers Hunt Ball is once again being ably organised by Mary & Bryan
Probin at Whitchurch Civic Centre on Friday 23rd February 2007 – a bit
later than usual. There were some disappointed people this year, so book
early to avoid disappointment!
AREA III (Malpas)
We sadly had to cancel our first ever Spring Ride owing to bad weather
but we are hoping to be running two rides this Autumn, again weather
permitting. Once again, we were very kindly invited to have an art party
at Lower Carden Hall with Euan and Fi McAlpine so 'Autumn Cocktails and
Colours' was held on a lovely September evening with local artist and
dressage rider, Di Breeze exhibiting. In spite of the short notice lots
of people supported us and we were able to boost funds to the tune of
over £500. The McAlpines have already bravely invited us to return next
year so the hunt is again on for another equestrian artist to exhibit
that evening; so watch this space!
We were all very sad to hear of the sudden death of Roger Darlington. He
had been a member of this Committee for more years than he cared to
remember and we will sorely miss his input. Our sincere condolences to
his family and friends.
FROM THE HUNT CHAIRMAN
This season can only be described
as remarkable given the concerns that all of us had at its commencement.
Our Mastership and Hunt Staff are to be warmly congratulated and thanked
for the manner in which they have adapted to the provisions of the
Hunting Act 2005 and provided us with some outstanding sport. However
this has only been possible because of the wonderful support given to us
by our farmers and landowners. Despite any concerns they may have had on
their own account they still made us so welcome on their land and we owe
them an enormous debt of thanks.
Budgeting for this season early last year was not easy. Concerns about
how support would hold up were very real and as a result the Committee
felt unable to guarantee the Mastership more than £89,000 at the time. I
am happy to report that in the event support has remained solid and, as
a result, finances look reasonably healthy. It has thus been possible to
give the Mastership an additional £10,500 to relieve the pressure on
their exceptionally tight budget and in recognition of their superb
achievement of providing service as normal.
The introduction of standing orders to assist Subscribers and Supporters
is proving popular and successful. Car Caps and the Whisky Draw have
also held up well and continue to provide very useful income for which
we are most grateful. The Point-to-Point move to Bangor has been popular
and financially sound. Johnny Turner and his Committee are to be thanked
and congratulated on organising the move so successfully and raising a
record sum of £8,000. It is also pleasing to report that the labour
costs for fencing and repairs in the country have been saved thanks to
the hard work and guidance of Johnny Turner together with the help of
the Mastership, Field Masters and Wire Area Managers.
You will all be aware that the Countryside Alliance, with the backing of
the MFHA, continues their fight against the Hunting Act. Early last year
the Legal Challenge Appeal was set up and Hunts given targets to reach.
I am pleased to report that as a Hunt we have met our target of £15,000
by raising almost £10,000 and donating a little over £5000. It will
obviously be necessary to continue funding the Appeal however this will
now be achieved through an increased MFHA Hunt subscription.
It is so reassuring that the support for the Hunt throughout our country
remains so strong at this time. We are also fortunate to have a
Mastership that has been so positive and innovative in their approach to
providing good sport within the provisions of the Hunting Act and to
have farmers and landowners who have continued to allow us over their
land. Let us hope that next season will be as successful as this. Thank
you all.
ECW MORRISON
MASTERS' SUMMER REPORT
After a successful first season of
flushing and trail hunting, we decided to once again employ a second
whipper-in in order that Bert has some help in the kennels. So with the
help of a bursary from the MFHA we welcome Edward Winnington who came to
us on the 1st of May. I would like to take this opportunity to thank
Peter Shepherd who stepped in to help last season in the kennels, and
also Gerard Owen who, over the last eighteen months, has been a huge
help to Bert.
The Puppy Show was held on a beautiful sunny day on the 9th of June. The
hounds were judged by Andrew Osborne, Master and Huntsman of the Bedale,
and Robin Gundry, who kindly stepped in when our second judge was unable
to make it.
The Doghounds and the Championship was won by Bullet walked by Rosie
Curran, the best Bitch was Bullfinch walked by Mrs S Darlington and The
Twemlows Cup for the best working Hound was Clammy walked by Anna
Turner.
We took Hounds to Builth Wells and the Great Yorkshire Show. At Builth,
Sailor and Samson won the best Unentered Couple. Hamlet was 4th in the
Stallion Hound Class and Primrose was 3rd in the Brood Bitch. At
Yorkshire, Sailor and Samson took the Old English Prize and were second
in the Open. Primrose won the Brood Bitch and was Reserve Champion Bitch
winning The Hon Bobby Corbett Memorial Trophy. This accolade has not
been won by an Old English Hound for many years and was particularly
special to me as Bobby Corbett was my Joint Master and great friend when
I was at the Eglinton.
Training of the Young Hounds started at the beginning of August and is
going well, so we can look forward to an enjoyable season. Many thanks
as ever to all the farmers and landowners who continue to support us and
make our sport possible.
ROGER DARLINGTON
RD, also known as Splodge but
usually just plain Rodge, always lived his life in the fast lane,
cramming many different things into every available second; we always
did tell him he was at least a month in front of everyone else! First
and foremost of course, he was a son, a brother, an uncle, a cousin and
a Godfather. One of his greatest pleasures lately had been to take
nephew Michael and teach him to fish; one of the few times he had
patience!
At the time of his death he was Chairman of Malpas Farmer's Club and
almost fanatical about playing Bowls; there wasn't a night during
summers when he wasn't either playing or watching a game somewhere. He
had also been a long standing Committee member of Area III and he was
also on the Point to Point Committee and an excellent Clerk of the
Course at Eaton Hall for some years.
It was partly because of this that he was one of, if not the first,
person who didn't ride to hounds to be invited to become a Member of Sir
Watkin Williams Wynn's Hounds - an honour of which he was so rightly
immensely proud. He was also a brilliant photographer and has left
behind some brilliant hunting shots. Apart from all of this in his busy
life, he was, to us, one of the best neighbours you could find; always
ready to drop everything to come and help; but better even than that -
he was a mate who we had many a good time and laugh with.
From when we moved back to Bradley there was hardly a week go by when he
didn't call in for tea most days; he was almost our lodger and many a
tale we could tell you - he even called one Sunday morning when we were
having an unheard of lie in and made his own! There was always a race -
which he usually won - between him and Paul as to who could reach the
biscuit tin first - he hated to lose at anything!
A neighbour made him a lovely large apple pie to thank him for letting
their son watch United on Sky. “Take it with you but I would like the
plate back when it is finished.” Half an hour after collecting it he was
back with a clean plate to be told he shouldn't have bothered until he
had finished the pie - "but I have" was the reply! Or the time at Eyton
on Severn races, standing on the hill watching a friend coming to the
second last in the lead. He started to run down that big bank gathering
momentum as he went and ended up rolling down and straight through the
hedge at the bottom, almost into the medical tent. Not only did they
have to patch him up with plasters but to add insult to injury, the
horse was beaten a short head!
There are umpteen tales like that we could tell but the thing we will
always remember about Rodge was his commitment and enjoyment of the
immediate moment whatever he was doing and the race on to the next thing
on the list. Above all that however, we will miss a bloody good friend.
R.I.P. Rodge, may all your races be won - else we won't hear the last of
it!
HUNT BRIDGE TOURNAMENT
I'm afraid that I was late starting the Tournament off last autumn as
sadly husband Philip died in November and I was short of time as he was
very ill in hospital for two months before that.
However nearly 80 couples entered and I was able to give £600 to the
Hunt and £500 to the Whitchurch Support Group of the Severn Hospice. It
was nice too to be able to entertain many local farmers and Hunt
Supporters at the Hog Roast Party held at Broad Oak in June.
We eventually had the Finals here on July 31st – this should have been
between Richard Christmas and Viv Nicolson playing against John and
Marion Threlfall. However, just before, John ended up in the Coronary
Unit at Shrewsbury Hospital. Val Rile and Cathie Ritchie, who had played
in the quarter finals, were last minute substitutes and accordingly won
the Cup from Richard and Viv who are both regular players at Trumpers
Bridge Club at the Cholmondeley Arms.
As usual a lot of good players ended up competing in the 'Plate.' This
time Janie Hall and Petrina Hughes won after playing two well known
local players David Mottershead and Ted Hollins. Congratulations to them
all. I have recently moved to Threapwood as my step-son John and his
family are coming to Broad Oak. I'm delighted to say that Peter Rosselli
is taking over the Bridge Tournament – it will be in good hands as he
and Sally Kenyon got it going long before I took over. I would like to
thank everyone who has played and supported me so well over the last few
years.
DIANA WARBURTON LEE
LIFE AT OLD BEACHIN FARM HOME
GUARD AND GYMKHANAS
During the war all able bodied men
who worked on the farms had to join the Home Guard and report for duty
after a full days work; they would change into their uniforms and report
to company H.Q. at the village hall and take turns on patrol round the
local villages while we all slept peacefully in our beds.
Sunday was not regarded as a day of rest it was taken up with special
training and mock battles and very often involved attacking Barton
quarry. In the early days of the war there was very little equipment for
the Home Guard and the only arms were the old twelve bore shot guns from
the local farms, or anything else they could lay their hands on such as
pitch forks and the like.
To make mock battles more realistic they tied things like you find in
crackers to the side of the guns to make a bang. Later on they were
issued with the old .303 rifles and the occasional hand grenade to lob
into the quarry; they would savour the moment until some poor
unsuspecting person was riding their bike down Barton hill and shout
here comes the enemy and let fly with the grenade then laugh there heads
off while the poor cyclist picked themselves up off the road and beat a
hasty retreat in search of clean underwear.
Towards the end of the war they had more modern equipment and moved on
from Semaphore to Morse Code and finally to Field Telephones. One Sunday
morning there was great excitement as the Regular Army were to
demonstrate a machine gun in the Mud Field. They arrived with two army
wagons one with the gun and one with the ammunition and every one was
told to stand well back but after about half an hour it was discovered
they had the wrong ammo for the gun so it was end of show and we all
went home.
Bill was a wireless operator and Tom was a stretcher bearer which
involved sitting on Mr. Mathew’s front lawn in Barton with the telephone
on the window sill, drinking cups of tea and waiting for an urgent call
to say the Germans had invaded Britain. No such call ever came and no
body ever got hurt so Tom had quite a good job. They had to sleep in the
village hall in between duty and spent many hours trying to catch a
mouse by putting a line of bread crumbs from the hole by the old fire
place and when they got him far enough from the hole trying to hit him
with the fire shovel. I don’t think they really meant to catch him and
he became quite a pet.
The parson used to go and sit with them at times and would report on the
latest letter he had received from his nephew in the Middle East. These
must have been very lengthy reports when they heard the Rector coming
some one would say here comes my nephew in the Middle East. The only
time the local Home Guard came near to being wiped out had nothing to do
with Mr. Hitler it was the night they held the first Home Guard Supper
and thanks to Mrs. Moore’s generous offer of some of her vintage damson
wine, a fruity little number, pleasing on the palate with a subtle hint
of ripe berries and with a kick like a cart mare. Best headache mixture
and a slight laxative; anyone who was in the local Home Guard has never
forgotten it.
One legacy of the war was the Army Greatcoat and with clothing still
rationed a firm set up doing a roaring trade dying them blue for about
ten bob and for an extra ten bob changing the brass buttons with blue
ones. The well dressed young men of the day had a smart new best over
coat. Many a local family tree owes a few branches to the goings on
against the crossbar of a bike enclosed in a nice warm ex army coat
after the Ball was over as the old song goes. And many a Land Girl
became a Farmers wife. These things were indestructible and I bet there
are still a few about on farms, Before the introduction of tractor cabs
a Home Guard coat was the next best thing, I have ploughed many an acre
on a Standard Fordson on a cold winters day in one. We still have a
photograph of Jim Humphreys in a blue army coat with old Windsor the
cart horse taken in the Beachin Meadow long after the end of the war, it
was his brother Bruce’s who had been an officer in the regular army. I
bet the chap who started the firm ended up with tons of brass Armed
Forces buttons and his descendants are living in the Bahamas and are
still flogging them on E-Bay.
THE LOCAL GYMKHANA
After the end of the war local villages started holding annual Gymkhanas
or as one old timer put it one of them fancy hoss jumping do’s a “Jim
Knacker.” With sports events for the children, pony jumping and other
competitions for the young riders and an open event for the budding show
jumpers of the day at first these were local events; petrol was still in
short supply so it involved being able to ride to the event, no big
Chelsea tractors and smart trailers and horse boxes then. An ex army
jeep was the first thing to come on the scene followed by converted ex
army wagons these things were high off the ground and you needed a good
horse to get into one.
One such event was held alongside the old Aldersey Hall on the field to
the left of the drive and they used to hire Billy Milton and his mobile
commentary box for these events - a big trailer one which had to be
towed in to place. Each jump was manned by a local farmer and a young
lad or two to report on the progress of the competitor and rebuild the
jumps, on this particular afternoon as the sun started to go down. It
was shining straight at the box and the commentator could not see the
jumps so they had to shout in either clear, one down and so on, all went
well until some local wag who had entered a horse with a fancy name rode
in on a half legged cart horse, what he lacked in his prowess as a show
jumper he made up for in his noble ancestry as a war horse. He charged
round the course and demolished everything in sight ( the tout ensemble
) this really livened things up and caused great amusement when as a
very excited farmer put it shouting at the top of his voice “the whole
bloody lot.”
The Cart Horse Race was very popular with great local interest and
fierce competition, it involved three laps round the course, the walk,
the trot and the gallop and was very carefully judged to see they kept
to the correct procedure and did the three disciplines on each lap. When
you got eight or ten heavy horses in full gallop it sure made the earth
move. These events also brought Pat Collins' Fun Fair out on to the road
again with Merry go Rounds and the old Swing Boats and side shows. Very
tame compared to the modern white knuckle rides, the most exciting thing
was the Chairaplanes, bits of seats fasten to two chains which swung out
as the thing gathered speed as it went round, you had to hang on to the
chains for grim death. A Safety Officers worst nightmare, but thankfully
such jobs had not been invented then and nobody flew off as I know of.
These events became very popular and led to the modern pony club events
and show jumping of today. A lot of local young men of the day went on
to be National Show Jumpers winning many prizes. I never graduated from
the old Cart Horses - I never aspired to a pony and after a gymkhana at
Farndon cousin let me ride his pony back, a little roan pony shaped like
a barrel - a real Thelwell. I didn’t know how to ride the thing properly
and by the time I got home I felt sick and my knees where about a yard
apart and I seemed to lose interest in equestrian events.
Gentle caress of a muzzle,
Soft little whimpering neigh!
Stronger than words to awaken
Memory's wondrous array.
Measures can fathom the ocean,
Reckon the swiftness of light;
Where is the standard for sorrow?
Where is the standard for right?
Where is the meter of sadness
Gauging the grief of good-bye
Bid to a favourite hunter?
What is the depth of a sigh?
Standards of measure are futile,
Vain is the effort to tell;
Only the one who has felt it
Plumbs the full depth of farewell.
One loving pat in the stable,
One little catch at the heart,
One little sorrowing silent
kiss of two spirits that part.
P.G.R. BENSON.
" Easier to blow one's 'orse than one's 'orn."- Jorrocks.
A good rider on a good horse is as much above himself and others as
the world can make him.-Lord Herbert.
Happy are they who go out to please themselves, and not to astonish
others.-Facey Romford.
" 'Tain't the 'opping over 'edges as 'urts the 'orses 'oofs, but the
'ammer, 'ammer, 'ammer on the 'ard 'igh road."
A Maxim.-Never go into the stables to-day of the horse you were hunting
yesterday !
FOR THE ONE-HORSE MAN
An old Creed:
One horse will carry you well to do the whole day's work " up till
Christmas," because the days are short.
The Corollary
After Christmas the same horse can do the whole day's work, as he is
in condition.
EXTRACTS FROM A VICTORIAN
WYNNSTAY DIARY
Once again I am indebted to
John Wright for some fascinating insights into hunting with the Wynnstay
during Victorian times. As these excerpts show they seemed to get along
pretty well without horse boxes, mobile phones, air ambulances and the
like and it is fascinating to hear of hunts in areas where we can no
longer go.
The winter of 1896 was a difficult one for Hunting due to the severe
weather conditions; even the River Dee froze over when 18° of frost was
recorded. During this period foxes were running amock in the countryside
– so much so that they were mentioned in the local papers and even in
the Bryn y Pys Game Book.
“Foxes are most numerous and are playing great havoc amongst the poultry
and from all accounts have any amount of pluck. One fox, angry at the
persistent barking of a dog made for him, collaring him by the leg and
would have succeeded in getting him away had not the chain been a pretty
strong one.
BRYN Y PYS
The following Gentlemen shot over Lightwood Green on Wednesday 9th Dec
1896:- Mr Hugh Peel, General Mostyn, Captain Fenwick, Captain Ethelson
and Mr Mainwaring, Otley Hall. Only cock birds were disposed of and the
bag amounted to seventy head. Foxes were noted to be in strong force.
Notwithstanding the piercing wind there was a large and fashionable
Field on Saturday when Sir Watkin Williams Wynn's Hounds met at
Broughall, half a mile from Whitchurch Railway Station. Amongst those
out were Sir Watkin and Lady Wynn, Mr H R Corbett (Master of the South
Cheshire,) Mr Bertie Corbett, Lord Hopetown, Sir Thomas and Lady Boughey,
Major Godsal, Capt R W Ethelson, Mr Edmund Peel, Mr and Mrs Hugh Peel,
Mr Barnett, Col Bulkeley, Mr & Mrs Williams-Vaughan, Mr Frank Cotton,
Erbistock Hall, Hon G R C Ormsby-Gore, Hon Seymore Gore, Mr Newton,
Ashley Hall, Mr C B Ismay, Thirstaston, West Kirby, Mr Frank Bibby,
Hardwick Hall, Col Biddulph, Chirk Castle, and many others.
The principal run was with a fox that was found at Ash Wood. On leaving
he ran along for Mrs Wilson's and then turned sharp back and raced up to
Mr Tunna's and after going over a field of Mr Purcell's he crossed the
lane leading to Mr Hughes' farm, then by way of Mr Cartwright's, over
Church Lane on to Ash Hallfarm, subsequently crossing the farms of Mr
Dickinson and Mr Pennill. From this point the hounds hunted somewhat
slower, with Ash Grange on the right, over Catterall's lane then past
Edgeley Hall and over the Crewe and Shrewsbury railway to Moss Fields,
to the left of Sedgeford and the rear of what was at one time known as
the Nurseries, up to the Soldiering Fields and here on account of
failing scent he had to be left. It was a nailing good gallop but the
route bothered a section of the Field who consequently only saw a
portion of the run. At one awkward fence a lady (Mrs Williams Vaughan of
Oswestry) a gentleman and a groom came down. The lady after a few
minutes pluckily remounted but the horse belonging to the gentleman
wrenched his shoulder so badly that he had to be walked to Whitchurch
and 'boxed' home. Another gentleman who had two or three spills had his
face somewhat badly cut. Later in the afternoon there was another sharp
fifteen minute burst, this fox also being lost. It was far from a grand
scenting day.
After several cancelled Meets the Field had looked forward to Saturday's
Meet but:
SNOW STOPS THE MEET AT BROUGHALL
Sir W Wynn's Hounds advertised to meet at Broughall, near Whitchurch
Railway Station on Saturday and an unusually large Field had been
anticipated, this being, perhaps, the most popular of the whole of Sir
Watkin's Meets. The previous day had been bitterly cold but there was
not the slightest appearance of a fall of snow. On Saturday morning
early risers found the ground covered with at least two inches of snow
and, as a matter of fact, it continued during the greater part of the
day. There appears to have been little snow beyond Wrenbury and a number
of ladies and gentlemen travelled from Manchester, Liverpool, Nantwich,
Chester and Shrewsbury – the Marquis of Cholmondeley, Lord Kenyon, Capt
R W Ethelstone and numerous others either riding or driving to the
station. It was all to no purpose for hunting was clearly out of the
question. In good time a telegram was received at the station that
hounds were not coming, the snow being inches deep at Wynnstay, and when
this was definitely known all wound their way home. This was the fourth
Saturday hunting has been stopped during the season of which three times
were of account of frost and , singularly, all three at Bettisfield.
THE WYNNSTAY HOUNDS AT BANGOR IS Y COED
There was an exceedingly large company present in cluding Sir Watkin and
Lady Williams Wynn, Lt Gen The Hon Savage and Mrs Mostyn etc.
A move was first made in the direction of the Cottage Gorse where a fox
was found which made in the direction of Bangor Meadow and for some
reason or other Sir Watkin ordered the hounds to be whipped off.
Broughton Gorse was afterwards tried and a good going fox darted away
which was more than a match for the hounds and Reynard after leading his
pursuers a hot trail through Threapwood and then the Wyches, near Malpas,
gave them no further change by darting through the copses and dingles.
The hounds were forced to retrace their steps to Broughton Gorse where
one of the foxes which had previously had a bout with the hounds was
espied up a tree where it had sought refuge. The Master generously gave
the fox 100 yards start, of which he took full advantage for he
eventually evaded his pursuers.
On Saturday at Bettisfield a very large company put in an appearance but
the hounds were taken back to the kennels owing to the severe frost.
This is the fourth time this season that the hounds have met at
Bettisfield and on each occasion they have not been able to run owing to
the severity of the weather. The country is over-run with foxes.
Holt was the rendevous on Friday when there was a large Field. Sir
Watkin in the first instance took hounds to the Covers near Colonel
Barnstone's residence but without success. However next to the covers at
Kings Lea which supplied the needful. Straight for the Larges he made
and soon afterwards reached Castletown where he apparently made up his
mind to get back to Crewe Covers by as circuitous a round as possible.
Fortune favoured him but as the hounds were close at his heels he must
needs to struggle on and consequently his affections were set on Carden
but here the chase was as stern as ever and it was not until Overton
Scar was reached that Reynard could shake himself from his pursuers.
This ended one of the best runs of the season, it having lasted at least
two hours.
Monday saw the hounds at Llanypwll which proved a most attractive
fixture with many of the country's gentry attending. Operations
commenced with an investigation of Borras Cover which proved successful
for in double quick time out dashed a fox in the direction of Holt but
apparently that ancient Borough was not for his liking for at Hugmer
Lane he thought it was about time to do a bit of dodging if things were
to turn out as he wanted them. Consequently he executed a sharp turn to
the right and made for one of the Covers near Llwynknottia. There he
came across a brothership and between the pair of them the hounds were
puzzled above a bit. Eventually however Reynard number one came off
second best and he was again forced to trust to his turn of speed to rid
himself of his relentless pursuers. He was now fast approaching Llwynnon
where he found matters were not to his liking so he determined to try a
little more dodging in which he at length proved successful. By circling
round to the left he reached Bowling Bank and then after passing the
Bryn he came to Lower Hall where the hounds had to throw up the sponge
after being kept at it for an hour. That never failing stronghold Sutton
Green provided the next bit of sport but the jaded hounds were no match
for this vigorous fox who soon eluded them. The same remark applies to a
fox which was soon after set going from Isycoed Cover. The hounds were
next taken to Marchweil Cover where they were soon at work but although
the fox broke cover once or twice he could not be persuaded to make for
the open. The Hop Yard, Brynafon Gorse, Gerwyn Cover and the Eyton
Covers were successfully operated but without success. It was getting
dark when hounds were called off. A good day's hunting had been had and
everyone had had quite enough long before the hounds drew Eyton Covers
and only the most accomplished horsemen remained at the finish. Owing to
the slippery nature of the ground there were many spills and some of the
horses were badly cut. When near Penbryn Miss Peel of Bryn y Pys hurt
her ankle and was obliged to be taken home in a carriage.
TO AFRICA WITH EDWARD
Luckily Edward (Reeves) had a very
peaceful and relaxing journey from Manchester to Livingstone and on his
own admission had a good breakfast at Johannesburg because “You never
know when you may get your next meal”. He was right. Alice (Kealey,
stepdaughter of Arthur Denaro) and I met him at the chaotic airport and
all three of us managed to just carry his huge red bag to the landrover.
It was all too much for the poor “landy” which had already carried Alice
and I 5,000 kilometres through darkest Africa. It drew to a shuddering
halt just outside the airport gates.
Being English we had a quick cup of tea then put Edward, in his capacity
as Chairman of Malpas Tractors, went to work under the bonnet. All to no
avail and in the end we were towed back to our hotel by a travelling
Indian doctor from Nottingham. All afternoon we struggled with evermore
complicated electrics to find finally a lead had come loose on the coil.
The following morning, fully loaded with the huge red bag on the roof,
never to be moved again, we left Victoria Falls for Namibia. Luckily
Malpas Tractors had provided lots of American dollars so Alice and I
could pay our hotel bill.
It was a short journey of some 200 kilometres with the main excitement,
not the usual border crossing fiasco, but meeting a large family of wild
dogs on the road. They played round us for some time before wandering
off. This was a very rare sighting and made our steady progress down
roads that ran straight for 30 kilometres really worthwhile. The Caprivi
Strip was experiencing the heaviest rains for 50 years. So we had
decided to stick to the tarmac roads rather than face a potentially
fatal bogging. The first night was spent at a small camp site
wonderfully named Bum Hill. Alice and Edward sensibly had their tents on
a high platform, there was no room for me and I shared the ground floor
with two very large and inquisitive hippos. During the night Edward
frequently shouted from his safe platform for me to watch our large
visitors. I stayed deeply wrapped in my sleeping bag.
Next day another short drive to Ngepi Camp on the banks of the Avango
River a typical but upmarket overlanders camp, where one felt more
cannabis was consumed than beer. We stayed in new and attractive tree
houses, rather extravagant but at least we didn’t get wet. The time was
spent on the river with hippos, crocodiles and wonderful birds and a
drive round the local game park where we saw the largest baobab tree in
Africa.
The South African and English friends we met at Ngepi said that eastern
Etosha was an easy days drive. Mind you they were in a brand new
Discovery and our landy did 60 miles per hour flat out. After 600
kilometres and 10 hours we made it. They got had for speeding by the
only speed cop in Namibia. Etosha is 600,000 hectares of game park,
totally fenced and mostly a huge salt pan, which this year was full of
water. You go there to get guaranteed sightings of all the important
animals. We really saw the lot, but the best were three cheetahs
returning from a kill (very rare), rhino at a distance and a wonderful
duel between a bull elephant and a small Nissan car. The elephant won on
points. We had a good night at the western end of the park, then we were
on our travels again, this time to Demaraland, a stone desert east of
the Skeleton Coast.
After another long boring journey we spent the night at a luxury camp
site attached to Palmwag Safari Camp. You were allowed to go for a walk
amongst what should be the elephants, giraffe etc. Unfortunately it had
rained so hard that no animals came to the waterhole and with so much
grass they had all gone their own ways. But we did see the phenomenon of
the famous quarantine fence which is comprised of two high tensile game
fences stretching 2,000 kilometres across the top of Namibia and
Botswana. The aim is to keep foot and mouth and tsetse out of the
commercial herds that live to the south and satisfy the inspectors from
Tesco and Asda who buy the beef. It is interesting to note that although
the fence is an impressive feat of engineering the naïve inspectors
obviously don’t notice that most wild animals cross it with impunity.
Now we had a tricky decision to make. Our aim for this part of the trip
was to take advantage of an invitation to a new luxury camp at Parros in
the north west desert of Demaraland. We were advised that the road was
impassable due to rain but we decided to go north to Sesfontein on the
gravel road and see for ourselves. It was an interesting drive with
villages to go through and occasionally herds of zebra, giraffe and
springbok. Sesfontein is big on the map, but a dispersed and ugly dust
bowl in reality and that was after two days rain. To provide our comfort
I happened to know there was a welcome oasis in the shape of the
Sesfontein Fort Hotel, built by the Germans in 1903 to police gun
running and ivory smuggling. It had been renovated to provide a lovely
swimming pool, garden, 20 bedrooms and a restaurant, all very civilised.
Although we stayed on a camp site we took full advantage of the pool and
a pleasant drink in the garden. You don’t feel guilty when the local
chief had just told the hotel manager in typical African fashion that as
long as his people have a kettle and tin roof they’re happy.
Next day we knew we were in for another long drive but we all wanted to
experience the road down the Skeleton Coast. On our way to the coast we
had a rare sighting of a breeding herd of so called desert elephants.
There were twelve females with babies and teenagers at foot, sandy in
colour and rather smaller than the ones further east. There is a lot of
talk about desert elephants, but in fact they are all genetically
identical however these ones have taught themselves to be very sparing
with water.
Desert Elelphants are a great tourist draw and the guides do nothing to
discount the mystique. The Skeleton Coast road from Torra Bay to Henties
Bay is 250 kilometres of mind boggling boredom. You used to be able to
drive down the beach which took forever, but at least was interesting.
Now all you can do is stay awake, spot the occasional wreck and go and
look at it. Interestingly they mostly date from the 1970’s, the earlier
ones have disappeared into the Atlantic.
After an eventful night in the fishing camp at Henties Bay, we arrived
for a shopping trip at the fascinating town of Swakopmund. This is the
Brighton of Namibia. Due to the cold Benguela current the year round
temperature is a comfortable 75 degrees, while 2 kilometres inland in
the desert it is 90 degrees plus. All the South African and German
farmers have stylish homes in the suburbs and there is some pleasant
German architecture dating from the mid 19th century. After an all day
breakfast and supermarket stop we headed south to John Leech’s new farm
near Solitaire. As we got further south we realised a miracle had
happened. Alice and I had left a stony sandy desert behind just four
weeks before. Now everywhere was green. John’s desert farm was covered
in 12 inch high grass with beautiful silver seed heads and even the huge
sand dunes were green. People from all over Southern Africa had come to
gaze at this once in a lifetime miracle. We inspected John’s building
works for his tented camp, he was very sensibly building the loos first,
and I noticed that my plan to burn the huge piles of old sheep muck had
been totally successful.
Before our final 300 kilometres return trip to Windhoek it rained all
night. Previously damaged roads were now very difficult and there is
very little tarmac between Solitaire and Windhoek. With great
determination and Edward at the wheel we set off. Within 20 kilometres
we were forced to turn back at a river in spate, usually totally dry.
The map showed alternative routes which all entailed 100 kilometre
detours. Since we had planes to catch there was no option but to
‘kick-on’. A helpful guide at Bulls Road, with no glasses to read the
map, told us there was a new road with bridges over all the rivers. We
went for it. After two bridges we met a very dejected German party in a
VW mini bus stopped by a raging torrent. No bridge!
Our intrepid Alice on the end of a rope waded in and declared it
fordable in our landrover. With great aplomb Edward reversed through
because evidently that is what you do in a petrol landrover. We made it
but decided there was nothing more we could do for the Germans. In the
next 50 kilometres we repeated the process 4 times, Alice on the end of
a rope and Edward reversing. The whole process made me extremely anxious
because this was not my vehicle and John Leech would not have been happy
with his beloved landrover washed upside down out to sea.
In the end a very muddy landrover and slightly shell shocked crew
arrived in Windhoek. We had all learnt that in the wet season you need a
diesel vehicle with raised air intake otherwise stay at home. Our last
night was spent in Cohen Van Zyl’s small cheap hotel which is not very
comfortable and after 12 o’clock doubled as a brothel. For some unknown
reason Edward and I opted to go night clubbing with Cohen and his
glamorous young girlfriend. We listened to a drunken guitarist, drank
Jaegermeister, and went to a noisy crowded night club where we were the
oldest by 30 years. Why we went I will never know but it seemed a
fitting end for Edward in Africa.
DAVID BROOKS