September 25-30, 2023
Imagine riding in the vast prairie lands of the Flint Hills where you can see for miles, watching hounds go flat out in full cry after a coyote. It’s an absolute adrenaline rush. Add to the prairie dry conditions, a steady breeze, a blazing sun, colorful wildflowers, migrating Monarch butterflies, and large flying grasshoppers with a few discernable landmarks to guide you. And your favorite foxhunting friends from sixteen different hunts, and you have the best week ever!
Experiencing this adventure both as a mounted foxhunter and a following photographer was one of the highlights of my foxhunting experiences. There is nothing like it!
There were three packs of hounds participating: The Flint Hills Hunt from Kansas, the Fort Leavenworth Hunt from Kansas, and the Midland Fox Hounds from Georgia. Five days of hunting with a bye day hunt on Wednesday were held in four separate fixtures. Three were in the Flint Hills and two were in Fort Leavenworth Hunt territory outside Leavenworth, Kansas.
Flint Hills Hunt
The Flint Hills Hunt, a farmer’s pack, hunted the Flint Hills on Monday and Wednesday’s bye day under tough conditions. However, those hounds provided good sport under the hunting expertise of Jim Beisel, Master and former huntsman for Mission Valley Hunt Club hounds (also in Kansas).
Fort Leavenworth Hunt
Steven Thomas, Master and huntsman for the Fort Leavenworth Hunt, guided the FLH pack to some great runs around planted crops and through hardwood stands, which produced views of a beautiful female coyote to finish the week strong. The hounds were impressively biddable when called to stop when the coyote ran out of country.
Midland Fox Hounds
It was fascinating to watch the hounds successfully master all different terrains, especially the Midland pack from Georgia. The Flint Hills prairie provided quite the change from their home country in southern Georgia and Alabama. But they hunted beautifully and ran a coyote flat out for miles under the capable guidance of Professional Huntsman Ken George.
Great stirrup cups featured decorated donuts, the usual port, Bloody Marys, and Screwdrivers. Kansas folks know no bounds when it comes to great hospitality! Memorable lunches were had when the foxhunters took over two, small-town restaurants by parking their trailers along the streets. This was a wonderful time to relax, rehash, and refresh. By the close of the week, there were requests (demands) that this should be an annual event. I couldn’t agree more and look forward to returning next fall for the Second Annual Kansas Hunt Week.
