Horsemen chase thrill of the hunt, scent of a fox
A hound's howl breaks through the cold rainfall. Dozens more hounds emerge from a stand of trees and bound across a field in search of a fox's scent. Horses carrying riders in red and black coats follow from a ways behind, quickly disappearing again over a hillcrest, minutes away from Baltimore's growing suburbs.
The Elkridge-Harford Hunt Club has roots dating back to 1878, but records show organized foxhunts took place in Maryland as early as the 1790s. In order to preserve a pastime that requires vast open space in the midst of one of the world's densest regions, the club has managed to protect a patchwork of land that is larger than Manhattan. According to the website of the Masters of Foxhounds Association of America, there are nearly 160 organized foxhunting clubs in the U.S. and Canada.
And while the sport's ban in Britain over animal welfare concerns 10 years ago is still debated, the American hunt is a chase - the intent is not to kill a fox. But from dress to decorum, many of the traditions remain unaltered from its inception.
Here's a collection of images from recent hunts.
See more images of U.S. fox hunting
Follow Patrick Semansky | Twitter: @psemansky Instagram: @patsemansky
Spotlight is the blog of AP Images, the world’s largest collection of historical and contemporary photos. AP Images provides instant access to AP’s iconic photos and adds new content every minute of every day from every corner of the world, making it an essential source of photos and graphics for professional image buyers and commercial customers. Whether your needs are for editorial, commercial, or personal use, AP Images has the content and the expert sales team to fulfill your image requirements. Visit apimages.com to learn more.
Written content on this site is not created by the editorial department of AP, unless otherwise noted.
AP Images on Twitter | AP Images on Facebook | AP Images on Google+
Visual artist and Digital Storyteller at The Associated Press
