Annual Washington's Day Fox Hunt and Dog Trials to be Saturday
By From staff reports
Published in News on February 17, 2017 9:57 AM
ALBERTSON -- The annual Washington's Day Fox Hunt and Dog Trials will be held Saturday, Feb. 18, at the Albertson Ruritan Community Building.
The event has been a tradition for nearly 70 years, ever since a small group of people got together in this rural Duplin County community to hold a fox hunt and meal to celebrate the George Washington's Birthday holiday.
Sponsored by the Albertson Ruritan Club, the proceeds are shared by the club, Albertson Volunteer Fire Department and Albertson Recreation Center.
Last year's event cleared about $4,300 for each organization.
It is always held on the Saturday before George Washington's birthday (Feb. 22). This year it falls on Saturday, Feb. 18.
The event starts before sunrise at 5 a.m. with a $5 breakfast of scrambled eggs, grits, sausage, toast and homemade biscuits. The meal ends at 8 a.m.
Breakfast is followed by a lunch of barbecued chicken or pork, or fish stew, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The cost is $7, eat-in or take-out.
The dog trials -- which replaced the actual fox hunt some 30 years ago -- start at 7 a.m. and end around noon.