The Lunesdale & Oxenholme Staghounds - A History

Today, the Lunesdale and Oxenholme Staghounds are consigned to history and for the most part forgotten. The deer they chased, including Lion and Mabel, have gone to that great rutting ground in the sky. The horses, among them White Wine and Lionel, push up the grass instead of grazing it, and the sound of the horn and halloa has been replaced by the rumble of traffic and the high-speed train. More

As you pass Junction 35 on the northbound M6 the road slowly begins its climb, which will ultimately end at Shap summit. To the west, the hills of Lakeland fill the horizon. To the east, Ingleborough, once thought to be the highest peak in England, peeps over the trees and motorway barriers. To hunting folk the Lakeland fells are home to the fell packs. Small hunts with a long history run on a shoestring by hard men. However the country that you’re currently traversing was for around 80 years hunted by a wealthy group completely different to their brothers in the North West, who began by hunting hare, and when hare became scarce moved on to deer. This book is an attempt, using material written at the time, to tell the story of the Lunesdale and Oxenholme Staghounds.