1 day Ago
Horse riders were seen enjoying a run across the seafront. The Argus Camera Club member, Lee Prince, captured the horses running from Normans Bay to Pevensey Bay in East Sussex. The riders were members of the Coakham Bloodhounds hunt, a group which hunts “the cleanboot” – the natural human scent of human runners who set off ahead of the pack.
The hounds hunt by scent alone, unlike many other breeds of hounds that hunt by sight. The group was founded in 1976 and is one of the oldest bloodhound packs in the UK. They meet every Sunday from mid-October to the end of April.
A day hunting with the group typically consists of three hours in the saddle, jumping a range of fences, hedges, ditches, and fixed timber. The hunts often follow three to six lines and cover between 10-20 miles. The current pack consists of bloodhounds crossbred to the Dumfriesshire Foxhound, a unique outcross which has developed the ability of the pack to follow a natural human scent with voice, speed, agility and drive.
As well as more traditional hunts, the group also holds meets on the Downs for less confident riders, as well as “big hedge” days for those wishing to challenge themselves. The hunt covers the South East of England, with the main counties being Kent, Surrey, and East Sussex..
