A great day for the Tumblers' Club'

The banks and drains of the Ballymacad Tuesday country provide both sport and entertainment for visitors and locals alike

- LIAM CLANCY

“THE Garden of Eden has vanished they say

But I know the lie of it still Just turn to the left at the bridge of Finea

And stop when halfway to Cootehill…”

So begins the classic Percy French song Come Back Paddy Reilly to Ballyjamesduff. I drove north across the bridge of Finea, following these promising directions to the garden of Eden, but instead found myself in Co Cavan.

It was an uninspiring February morning of louring skies and swirling drizzle, but the famous Ballymacad Foxhounds were due to meet in Finea that day, and I knew that minor details like a bit of wintry weather would soon cease to matter.

Since 1797 “The Ballys” have been hunting a country in south Cavan, North Meath and Westmeath. Their Saturday meets are almost all in the open, galloping farmland of Meath. Tuesdays are “houndy” days among the drumlins and lakes of Cavan and Westmeath.

The country is almost all in grass, with sheep and suckler farming predominating. Hounds are a mixture of old and modern English, although huntsman Kevin Donohue does not like to mix their bloodlines.

“There was a time when I was putting an old English dog to a modern bitch, but I went off that,” he said. “The old English are very good in lowscenting conditions – they’re very determined – and the modern bring the voice into it.”