Teamwork at the fore

A slow start does nothing to dampen the spirits as the promise of a second lockdown brings out a record number of followers for a midweek meet

- REBECCA JORDAN

IT felt chaotic and perturbing as we filtered out in groups of six on to Dartmoor at Creaber Gate. The horses were obviously enjoying the sunshine on their backs; a sharp drop in temperature also lifted their spirits. At last we were free from weeks of debilitating wind and rain.

It was the last day’s hunting before a month’s lockdown. Ever since Boris Johnson’s announcement, texts had winged their way through the Mid Devon ether to find out who could take a day off work; was there a spare horse anywhere? Our new secretary, Hayley Jansz, had her hands full as she checked off everyone from her list and tried to recognise a handful of foot followers through their masks.

Upon the moor, a snipe darted up and away and, as my horse cantered up the track, skylarks lifted out of the gorse bushes. Soon their song filled the sky and, as I looked back, their chatter was matched by the excited greetings emanating from the field.

For the past few days, there had been a heightened atmosphere, matched just once before – on the eve of the hunting ban. Yet again, faced with restrictions beyond the hunting community’s control, we had chosen to come together and celebrate what we love.

There were also a number of new faces in the field; people who had put a day’s hunting on their bucket list and used this situation as the catalyst to tick it off.

As a result, numbers swelled to just over 25 – a record for a midweek meet here. Christl Cole lives locally and had only hunted a handful of times before – but never here –so it was a delight to see her out.

TURNING BACK THE CLOCK