MORE than 400 people gathered at Monmouth Castle on 1st January for the annual Monmouthshire Hunt New Year's Day meet.

Around 40 riders gathered with hounds and foot supporters in Monmouth Castle's square for the hunt led by huntsman James Davies and whipper-in Chris West.

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The traditional New Year's Day meet of the Monmouthshire Hunt saw the Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers (Militia) host the gathering with mince pies, sausage rolls and mulled wine for loyal supporters.

The Hunt's David Harrison thanked the crowds for turning up and wished everybody a happy New Year. He said: "It's always a pleasure to be here as it was 10 years ago to the month that

fox-hunting was banned."

The horses and hounds then left the square to the sound of the horn and made their way up to the Buckholt to follow a ten-year tradition of drag hunting.

While the Hunting Act, passed in 2005, made the hunting of foxes illegal, local hunts such as the

Monmouthshire go ahead with 'drag hunts' where an item of cloth is dragged to lay a scent for the hounds to follow.