Less than a week had passed since an early blizzard had slammed into Colorado on Oct. 11, and the members of the Bijou Springs Hunt were wondering as they drove to the hunt country near Castle Rock, Colo., if they could even get into the parking area and what the footing would be like.

Well, the footing was great, with nary a snow bank to be found. The weather was downright balmy, especially for October, and the hunting was glorious.