IT is always a pleasure to visit a hunt that still honours the tradition of the blessing of the hounds, and the Rev William Bennett performs the brief ceremony at the Bray Harriers opening meet each year.

The Reverend is no stranger to hunting as, in the past in his various ministries, he has hunted with the Bray Harriers, the Fermanagh Harriers and the Laois Foxhounds. The new chairperson, Marie Moynihan, welcomed all the followers and supporters in her speech at the opening meet at the wonderful venue of Bel Air, owned by the Freeman family, in the shadows of the Wicklow hills.

She mentioned some of the initiatives that the committee have introduced. To help the master John Wilding with organising country, they have appointed a new joint master in Jason Kelly and a new field master in Brian Sutton, who owns Enniskerry Livery Stables.

They have also formed a sub-committee that will assist them with the hunt country. She also welcomed those that would like to join as members and of a weekly social night at Chesters in Ashford where, by consensus, the sizzling prawns and the roasts are very popular. This weekly venue would allow retired followers to catch up on hunt news and get to meet new members.

Popular

The host of the meet at Bel Air was William Freeman. The family have owned the estate since 1937 and, in the meantime, had run a popular hotel, which is sadly no longer in operation. The third generation of Freemans now run the extensive farm and there is also a very active equestrian centre. It was named Bel Air by the previous owners from the USA, the Burns family.

The Bray master is John Wilding, whose estate Rosanna nearby would be familiar to many equestrians, as it welcomes annually hunter trials, eventing and Pony Club events over the extensive range of fences on the farm.

Johnnie Murphy is in his second season as huntsman. He is a familiar face in horse production in the Killinick Harriers hunting country and he had probably the two youngest whippers-in the country in his daughter Charlie (10) and 14-year-old son Noah, who are both excellent riders on two cracking ponies. He has increased the size of the pack since last year, with drafts from the Iveagh Foxhounds and West Wicklow Foxhounds.

I met up with hunt honorary secretary Sarah Magee, who really knows her way around, and Cathy Fisher, who normally lays the drag, but was taking it easy for a few weeks after a procedure on her leg. I also met Sharon Small, whose son Max is studying veterinary medicine, as well as honorary treasurer Mairead Watters. Sarah’s jeep is for sale and she told me that it has had one careful lady owner!

The ladies do enormous work on behalf of the hunt; chatting with landowners, making sure gates are closed and traffic is not held up on the roads in between lines.

The Magee family of Seamie, Jackie, Abbey, Norrie, Jack and Marie out with the Bray Harriers at Bel Air \ Noel Mullins

It was great to see former huntsman Norrie Magee, who is now rising 80 years of age, on a young three-year-old hunter by his own Irish Draught stallion Eponastables Mac Uibh Fhaili. He has hunted for 70 seasons overall, and the Bray pack for 14 seasons. He was joined by family members Seamie, Jackie, Abby, Jack and his wife Marie.

Side-saddle

Alicia Devlin Byrne was hunting side-saddle aboard Crossdrum Gemini, steeplechase winner at the Summer Racing Festival in Croan in France this year. It was the first side-saddle race over jumps in France and Hazel Valentine was second and Susan Oakes third. Her father, Bernard, who was her best supporter and so proud of her achievements in the show ring, sadly passed away last December.

Many will be familiar with Alicia’s Connemara Pony Blackwood Fernando, a prolific winner in the ring, having won HOYS and, at 27 years of age, won at Balmoral again this year. Akysha Kelly, a daughter of joint master Jason, was also riding side-saddle and it was an experience just to see how they attacked every fence cross-country and with perfect balance.

Shauna Waters was on her trusty hunter Granite, who has been laying the drag for many years and sets a good challenge for the followers. In the absence of the regular drag crew of Kathy Fisher and show horse producer Jane Bradbury and her hunter Pablo - who will be back shortly, former master Mary Fenlon joined Shauna on drag duty. Shauna is often referred to as the drag queen, but Mary has earned the title of not just drag queen but the grandmother of drag!

I was reminded of the late chairman Eamonn Holmes, who always had a great welcoming smile when I visited each season. He was a long-serving Chief Steward in the Simmonscourt arena at the Dublin Horse Show.

I met another man associated with the Dublin Horse Show, the Chief Steward of the showing classes, John Crowley and his son John-John, who must be the youngest Dublin steward at 18 years of age. He will be back hunting shortly on his smashing cob, appropriately named Cobeen.

Another familiar face was Donal O’Beirne, who is known all over the country for his equestrian business, Hoofprints. Donal provides everything for the horse, rider and the stable in his mobile display trailer and also his website.

He carries a special line on safety equipment for the rider and he is expert in the area, as a result of a serious hunting accident that he was so fortunate to survive some years back. But you can’t keep a good man down and he had his cheque book out to pay his hunt subscription!

Following was former master Lynn Clements (1999-2000), who recalled hunting with the former master and huntsman Michael O’Brien (1943-91) and his daughter Denise (1975-99). Galwayman Michael Freely was hunting his 17hh hunter by Ricardo Z.

Also out was Robert Watson, Sophie and Emily Gleeson, Rachel Farrell, Lynda McGarry, Robbie Scott, Yvonne Briscoe, Gina McGarry, Darragh Callinan, Ann Marie Cullen, Suhaila Binchy, Rob Watson, Darragh Callinan and Catherine Clarke, whose daughter Louise was hunting.

Stylish

The first line was laid in Bel Air with the pack screaming away down the New Steps by the pond, on to the bottom of the avenue through the grove, where they jumped a decent ditch off a bank, where Norrie Magee put his three-year-old to the test and he answered in style. On to the Grove of Trees, and on to Madam Banes, named after the aunt of the Shah of Iran.

Then a short run through Donal Kelly’s farm, who hunted the Bray pack at one time and over the river and up though Carrig Wood. Then they came back and jumped off the road near Ballylusk Quarry and on towards Donal Kelly’s house.

The ‘Jumping Lane’, which has a variety of uprights in Danny Miley’s Devils Glen Equestrian Centre was next. Danny produces both thoroughbreds and sport horses.

The hunt was then welcomed by Mrs Von Teichman, who runs a very modern dairy farm. Although the farm is laid out for strip grazing, they have maintained all the natural ditches and up-banks for the hunt to cross. The lanes between paddocks have a carpet surface and cows decide when they are ready for milking and make their way to the milking parlour, where their collar is scanned and they are milked by a robot!

Adriana Von Teichman told me that she hunted when she was younger and I got the impression that it would not take much of an effort to get her back in the saddle.

As is the custom in the Brays, everybody is fed and watered before they go home. Mairead and Shauna Waters set up the picnic table and laid out a display that caught the eye, with the centrepiece delicious egg sandwiches that I had the last time I visited the pack. They are special, as they are from rescued battery hens that Shauna gives a second home to.

Her best-producing hens are Lady Fetterston, Hettie and Polly. I noticed that Gillian Hughes’ two dogs, Kale and George, were ready for any food that came in their direction.

Yes, the Bray Harriers are a fun pack and very welcoming to visitors and are open for membership, and you are sure to have an action-packed day, as jumping across natural country is what they do best.