Hi all. Before I contact the hunt secretary for a couple of the hunts near the Cotswolds where I <may> get to hunt this winter, I thought I would ask everyone who has hunted in the UK for help. I’m a competent rider who can easily hop on unfamiliar horses but I don’t get to hunt regularly here in the US. Soooo how hard are the jumps over there and is there a second, non-jumping, flight? I have someone who hires out great horses I’m told but I’ve about scared myself a bit silly watching you-tubes of British hunting jumping ‘huge’ hedges! --lol 
Background-- I have ridden (mainly shown hunters) for almost 40 years and hunted (sporadically) for almost 30 years. I’m smart enough regarding my abilities to like a second flight in a new hunt. Thank you all for your advice!
The Cotswolds is very varied countryside with hills, deep valleys, woods, pasture, arable and stone walls. It is lovely for hunting because there is a lot of support for the activity and big estates welcome hounds. You get to see places that are usually inaccessible to the public. Hunts do build fences to get around and these tend to be wooden rails, tiger traps and rails on the walls. They are not particularly large or high (approx 90 - 100 cm) since the objective is to be able to follow hounds easily. It is not well-known hedge-jumping country. Do not expect anything to be trimmed and manicured: you jump as is, e.g. 90cm out of rough growth under a tree. Riding up and down sudden steep slopes might be more of a problem. The local hunts go out 2, 3 or 4 days a week (dependent on their particular location) and the character of these days may vary greatly.
All those videos online don’t show you the state of the scary hedges and fences after 100 horses have jumped, scrambled, wiggled, crashed and fallen through them. Stay at the back and often you will be jumping over toothpicks or through a hole. And there are gates. The hunt goes round afterwards and rebuilds and repairs and pays the farmer for damage.
The field follows the Field Master but there is only one flight. It is all far more organic and very much less orderly than hunt clubs in the USA.
When you contact the hunt hon sec explain your circumstances carefully. They will generally know where you can hire a horse, which meet will have appropriate amount and type of jumping and may be able to suggest a guide to mentor you. Or maybe not (Beaufort) since some hunts are far more visitor-friendly than others. Another consideration is size of field. A weekday with 15 ladies out is very different from a Saturday with 150 horses out.
A different approach is to contact a hireling yard directly and they will generally do the rest, sending you out with a guide to an appropriate hunt. You say you know where to hire a horse so talk to them.
Thank you Willesdon! Much appreciated.
I took a photo from a road, today, of a pair of hunt jumps in The Cotswold Hunt country to show you. But I can’t upload it!
If it doesn’t have hair and four legs, I don’t understand it.
