Back on familiar ground once again. Give or take a year, this was the 15th 
Opening meet of this hunt that I've sabbed. Along with a few of their older supporters, I have seen the back of 5 different huntsmen and countless disillusioned hunt staff who soon realise what a mistake they've made joining a shitty little hunt like this!
This was the 200th Opening meet of the hunt, and as we waited in the woods for them to come to us, we could see the Horse & Hound photographers clicking away with the redcoated riders smiling their fixed grins.
We were waiting at several points around the meet to cover their movements whichever way they went. Unfortunately for the hunt, it seemed someone had let off some belated fireworks in Birches wood where we were, giving them their first blank draw of the day. Having said that, the huntsman managed to make the unforgivable mistake of losing the entire mounted field in the first wood. We had a right laugh watching first the hunt staff gallop past us in the middle of the wood, followed five minutes later by a red faced and swearing field master (who is meant to keep control of and direct the riders). 2 foxes crossed a path in front of us in the wood, along with several roe deer, but the area had been well sprayed with citronella by us earlier, and the hounds never got a sniff of them.
They drew out at Waleys and back to Eversheds farm, where the terrier men were waiting, and funnily enough, they seemed to expect to get onto a fox! When they didn't, they legged it about 3 miles across Gatton manor golf course, past Mayes court and on to Lower Breache. Not stopping to let those of us on foot catch up, the hunt raced through Lowerhouse woods and South towards the brickworks on the Horsham road. I have to admit I was a bit shagged by this point, and somewhat rosy-cheeked, found them in cry at Wet wood. I could see there were already plenty of sabs up with them so I skirted around the edge and beat them to Honeybush wood.
They didn't stay here for long, probably because the police had finally caught up on foot, and the woods were filled with fluorescent yellow clad coppers!
The hunt trotted up the roman road behind the kennels and Lo and behold, they instantly stumbled across a fox. They chased this one in a circle around the kennels (how strange?!) and then forced it North through the woods in front of the kennels. The local badger group informed us at this point that the badger sett in this wood had been dug some time in the preceding week - obviously nothing to do with the hunt. It being on their doorstep and all that.
From here we were all on into Chapel copse where the fox was chased through people's gardens and pandemonium broke out as sabs realised that the police were panicking and out to nick anyone doing anything to stop the hunt.
The police that were trailing us, did their usual trick of chasing sabs who were running around looking like they were doing something exciting, instead of watching us old bastards who stayed on the top of the hill (just out of grabbing range) blowing our horns and pulling the hounds out to us. We were just starting to get most of the pack (and the attention of the puffing coppers) when the huntsman started to blow for home, so we made our excuses, hid our horns and headed back to the road before the police could collar us.
Football Clubs have to pay for policing. Hunts in Surrey get this lot for free!
All in all, a great day, when we know they didn't kill, and we could tell we had pissed them right off because of the way their cheesy smiles had disappeared. When they realised they weren't going to catch a fox, they turned on the police and started to slag them off for not arresting us - always a good sign!
After the ritual piss-taking over the gate at the kennels, it was back to a certain pub for a few jars and off home for a hot bath.
Nothing beats an opening meet like that to get you ready for the cold weeks to come…..