Several American accents were picked up on the trail field at Cold Fell this week – and no wonder.
A group of eight tourists were attending the meeting, and bringing back fond memories for one of the elder members of the party.
Anna Wasden was with her husband, three sons and their partners – two wives and a girlfriend – after making herself a promise that on a visit to Cumbria she would visit a hound trail.
She told Cumbria Crack: “My mother grew up in Cumbria and I attended many hound trails with my grandfather, who was a bookie called Syd Hunter who was from Pica. My grandmother Mary (nee Williamson) was from Arlecdon.
“I remember going to hound trails with my grandfather in Ennerdale, Loweswater and Lorton. He would take my sister and I, always to the Kirkstile Inn and to the Greyhound pub (between Distington and Pica) which no longer exists and was his regular pub. He called it The Dog.
“After they passed away we rented cottages in both Loweswater and Buttermere with our family. My three boys really love it here as well and I hope they continue to visit Cumbria with their families.
“I really wanted my sons and their wives to see this wonderful part of Cumbrian tradition. We planned it to visit the Cold Fell trails after having a ride on the La’al Ratty.
Anna and her husband Wiley live in Savannah, Georgia, USA. Their eldest son Anderson and his wife Kirstin (who have a one year old son Quinn) live in Weston, Massachusetts.
Middle son Chris and his wife Landyn live in Atlanta, Georgia. Youngest son Hunt (named after the Cumbrian origins in the Hunters) lives in Washington, DC as does his girlfriend Talor.
Anna’s Cumbrian mother had moved to Eleuthera in the Bahamas (then a British colony) where she met her father who was from Colorado. He was working for a company that was importing cattle (Charolais) from France.
They married, Anna and her sister were born, and they moved to Florida and then later Georgia. Anna has lived in Georgia since she was about 11 while her husband is a native of Savannah where they live.
The family will be leaving Cumbria tomorrow, enriched and thrilled at their visit to Cold Fell and the hound trailing scene.
