HIGHLIGHTS



  • Started 14 puppies this season

  • Congratulations to Gregory &
    Winter Paxson on the birth of their
    son Clayton December 2010



  • Awesome Joint Meet with the
    Warwick Village Hounds

  • Great turn out for our holiday hunts



  • Two Teams represented RHF
    placing at Hunt Night at PA
    National Horse Show
RIVER HILLS FOXHOUNDS 2010-2011 SEASON
      THANK YOU

There is no hunt that can go without
recognizing the generous support first
and foremost from its landowners. Not
a hunt out there can be successful with
out this support by the ability to 'get
out and hunt'! Great hounds, a great
huntsman, and fast horse's are nothing
without the rolling hills of farm lands
like that at Wiles and the Tree Farm,
the deep ravines of the River Hills at
Ankrum's and Down Patrick, the thick
coverts at Herr's Stone Lane and Mt.
Rocky, the healthy fox population
growing at Red Pump, and
relationships with farmers like that at
Funnel Lake.

Our hunting country stretches over
thousands acres of landowner
permitted hunting ground. Some of our
meets individually having over 200
landowners to visit yearly, along with
keeping track of farming, livestock and
construction being done at farms
proves to be an on going, daily job to
making sure we respect and keep good
connections with the very people who
make hunting possible. There should be
no greater voice than that of a happy
landowner who gives permission to 50
or more hounds hunting through their
woods and over their fields! To that
we are extremely grateful.

A special thanks to the Gibson Family
for so graciously opening up their
property as a meeting place for us
throughout the Cubbing Season,
Opening Day, Children's Hunt, Joint
Meets, Blessing Of The Hounds, New
Years and including many, many other
days of great hunting. In addition the
Gibson's hospitality spills over by their
opening up the 'Pigery' to us at
anytime. This has become a place
where we have enjoyed many after
hunting lunches with all of our hunting
friends.

Along with the Gibson's we would like
to thank Tim Hanks for allowing us to
hunt through his property which is
better known to as the Ankrum's Dog
Box. Tim also hunts with us regularly
and has become very active in keep
trails clear, at helping to keep hunting
land open for fox hunting.

In addition a big thank you to Jim and
Louis Herr and Herr Foods Inc. for all
of their support with opening up the
Red Pump and Holy View Meets, as
well as Herr's Stone Lane. Their
support has been tremendous
throughout the years. Jim who also
hunts with us has been out many other
occasions to help improve the trails,
adding new jumps, and giving us full
access to hunting through out the
Cubbing and Regular Season.

Another Thank you to Wilson and
Vikki King as well as John and Lea
Reynolds for opening and maintaining
the Fox Mill and Mt. Rocky Meets.
Both adjoining meets are comprised of  
hundreds of acres, lots of trails, and
many great jumps.

Lastly a thank you to our Amish
farmers and friends, too many to list,
but all of their support and kindness
cannot go without mention. To the
Amish, land and livestock, and way of
life is everything. They farm, hunt, and
fish off the land to help keep and feed
their families, so, understanding the
Amish way of life and respecting their
traditions has helped River Hills to
grow great relationships and respect
from our Amish landowners.

Amish landowners have educated
themselves over that last 10 years to
fox hunting through the efforts of our
masters. Because fox hunting is seen
by some Amish as a 'worldly' past time
it is very important to us that we have
been given the support from our Amish
landowners in keeping the Southern
Lancaster County and parts of Chest
County open to fox hunting. Many of
our Amish landowners can be seen on
Saturdays and holidays enjoying the
hunting day with us and their families
by watching the hunt off and enjoying
the hounds work.

Because of our landowners support
and interest in what we do, they have
helped to educate their neighbors,
friends and family about American Fox
Hunting.

In addition to thanking our landowners
a very special thank you goes out to
our members. It is rare to find so many
people who are truly passionate about
hounds, and horses. On a slow day
when the scenting is not there you can
always look and no matter what see
that we are surrounded and supported
by fox hunters.

It also, cannot go without saying, a
great BIG thank you to our River Hills
Staff. Our staff has become like
family, and we embrace them under
our wings. The tireless commitment to
hunting four days a week, along with
keeping 'real' jobs, waking up to go
Cubbing at 3:30am to hunt at 5:30 in
the mornings of August or what seems
like negative temperatures of January,
no matter what they are always there.
This particular thank you goes out to
James Paxson, Fred VonCzoering,
Duncan Patterson, Leo & Flora Erb,
Gregory & Winter Paxson, Gary,
Karen, & Alyse Kennedy, Dott
Cochran, Dr. Carl Mease, Hoppy
Stearns, and Priscilla Godsoe. We
would not be where we are without
you!
SEASON OF ADVENTURES

For the River Hills Foxhounds the
Cubbing Season started August 9th, 2010
with the addition of 14 puppies, and last
years 5 new entries. Although the
Cubbing Season started in August we had
been out hound walking, and leash
training the puppies throughout the month
of July. 'Pre- Season' is always a lot of
fun around the River Hills Kennels as we
try to include as many children, parents,
and members to get out with us, learn the
hounds names, socialize with the puppies,
walk the hounds on the loop around
Funnel Lake, take the hounds for a swim
in the creeks and pond near the kennels
and just plan have fun!

Through the Cubbing season we had a lot
of terrific hunting. The puppies were
brought out slowly and worked into the
pack really swell. In the midst of Cubbing
season we were able to attend the
Kimberton Hound Show on September
19th, 2010. We had three 2nd place
finishers and a 4th.

The ending of October was the finishing
up of the Cubbing season and start to the
Opening Season. In the middle of October
two teams represented the River Hills
Foxhounds at the Pennsylvania National
Horse Shows Hunt Night. Gregory
Paxson MFH, placed 6th, Kelly Conner
placed 6th, and Wilson King placed 7th.

Our very own Master & Huntsman was
featured in an article about his 'Heart to
jump 7'3" walls on his thoroughbred horse
Ilion.

Our Opening Day Meet, October 30th,
2010 held at the Gibson's Down Patrick
which was a great success.

November's Hunting was just a blast and
filled with probably the most fun tails!
November 13th we had a Joint Meet with
the Warwick Village Hounds at Gibson's
Down Patrick. 22 1/2 Couples of fast
hounds and foxes that just ran
everywhere from all different directions.
It was a great day, with great people!

Hounds were prime this season, and as
hard as it is to admit but we have a great
story about loosing the hounds on a
fantastic run at the Ankrum's Dog Box
Meet November 22, 2010. The saying of
that day was, 'The hunting gods were
with us!'.

In addition to some great hunting we had
a very memorable Children's Hunt that
was coupled with the Huntsman For The
Day. The Children's Hunt included two
Pony Clubs, and the Work To Ride
program out of Philadelphia.

Also in November the River Hills Staff
could be seen out riding at the
Pennsylvania Hunt Cup on our fleet of
greys.

December hunting was a bit shorter with
only 9 hunts,the time off from the Deer
Hunting season slowed us down a little
but we went out of 2010 with some good
times on December 31st New Years Eve
Hunt. December also included the addition
of Gregory and Winter's healthy baby boy
Clayton.

January, March and February were the
hardest months on all of us as fox
hunters. We were plagued with two good
snow storms and lots and lots of ice! The
Blessing Of The Hounds on New Years
Day at the Gibson's Down Patrick meet
was just wonderful. Reverend Jo-an Glass
blessed the hounds, horses, riders, and
the hunting land. The day of hunting was
fast, and we enjoyed a great lunch
afterward at the Gibson's 'Pigery'.

January 24th, 2011 we hunted on a day
with the temperature well below freezing,
more like the single digits, we had just
enough snow to ride around, but boy was
it cold. The going joke that day was that
we were hunting with Arctic Hounds, no
longer Penn Marydels!

February hit us the hardest in two ways:
we only hunted twice because of the
crazy ice and snow that we got, and our
hardest hit was the loss of our dear
Beazie. She was a wonderful hound, and
she will be missed terribly.

March weather cleared up a little, we
went from ice - to mud - to rain! We
finished March by getting out 9 times.
The hunting was good when we did get
out. Funnel Lake, Herr's Stone Lane, and
Red Pump were pretty much thrillers!

To highlight a couple, there was a hunt
March 2nd, 2011 at Herr's Stone Lane,
the fox was very fun, he would go in and
out of different holes, and just a pleasure
to watch and enjoy with the hounds. That
day left us jumping in and out of more
pastures, over logs and coops than any
other day this whole season.

One particular hunt at Funnel Lake,
March 4th 2011, we ran out of horses
just keeping up with the hounds. It was a
fast day and we covered A LOT of
country. We cannot forget to add the
March 19th Hunt at Red Pump and the
hunt over the 'extended' Red Pump
hunting country through the Barrens! Not
many pictures were taken that day due to
the sheer amount of galloping to keep up
with the blistering speed of the hounds
into country we are not overly familiar
with. Perhaps this summer we can open
up new trails in this section of our
country? Hint - hint!

In the closing of our season we were very
thankful to Alex Brown in benefiting
$5.00 from each book sold at the 1st
Barbaro Book Signing held at the
Kennedy's Puddle Duck Creek Tack Shop
in Quarryville, PA. Alex was very
generous in supporting River Hills in our
efforts to saving and re-started off the
track thoroughbreds into new careers as
fox hunters, and show horses. In the
middle of writing his book Greatness and
Goodness: Barbaro and his Legacy, Alex
was out hound walking, cubbing, and
hunting on many occasions (as long as it
wasn't too cold) as a bit of a mental
break. We were very pleased to be a part
of the journey and watching the book
unfold!

Our very last day of hunting was March
30th, 2011, at Herr's Stone Lane. We had
planned three more hunts but the weather
and farmers planting and proved to get the
better of us. We were able to finish out
strong, safe, and healthy with no bumps
or bruises along the way we enjoyed a
terrific season of hunting!

                                             Tally ho!