HUNDREDS of huntsmen and women set off in defiance from Postbridge on Saturday for a mass hunt meeting ? the day after the controversial law banning hunting with dogs came into effect. Members of the Dartmoor, Mid Devon, Spooner?s and West Dartmoor hunts, the North Dartmoor Beagles and the Devon and Cornwall Mink hounds gathered en masse at the East Dart Hotel to show their determination to keep the tradition alive. Master of Spooner?s and West Dartmoor Hunt Guy Morlock said there were about 240 horseriders and 3000 people supporting the hunt on foot. He said: ?It was quite jovial, a bit like a point-to-point meeting with five different hunts meeting up. It was also very defiant. We wanted to show everyone that we are not going to back down and the show will go on. It was a day to be seen to be out.? A ?trail hunt? was the chosen method of hunting within the law ? a fox was killed legally and a scented trail set out across the moor in the morning. Robert Barkwell, master of the Mid Devon Hunt, said that although this way of hunting was not going to be easy, hunts were determined to carry on to the best of their endeavours. ?We are very upbeat and intend to continue. I was delighted with the turnout and the support that we got,? said Mr Barkwell. ?We are determined to continue, albeit in a different way. We want to carry on hunting within the confines of the law.? In a further act of defiance, an effigy of the Prime Minister was left hanging from a branch above the road approaching Postbridge. Peter Anderson, West Devon spokesperson for the League Against Cruel Sports, said a few people were out monitoring the hunting activities on Saturday. ?It seemed to be very much an exercise in having a gallop across the moor and if that is the case I wish them all the best for the future. I?ve got nothing against it. ?It?s a shame that they had to kill a fox but it?s preferable to chasing it across the countryside before being ripped to shreds by the hounds.? Mr Anderson said that before the ban, 400 foxes were reported to be killed at hunt meetings on an average Saturday but hunts claim fewer than 100 were killed across the country this weekend. A police spokesperson said the day passed peacefully and officers at most of the meets were only there for the public?s safety, as it was known there would be big crowds and a great deal of traffic. Police are satisfied there were no breaches of the Hunting Act. The recognition of the Hunting Act by all of the Dartmoor Hunts has been welcomed by Dartmoor National Park Authority. The five hunts ? Dartmoor, Lamerton, Mid Devon, South Devon and Spooner?s and West Dartmoor ? have advised the NPA that they have undertaken to hunt within the law, which means they intend to mirror their existing activities as far as the law will allow. They may exercise their hounds, hold cross-country rides and trail hunts. They have also said that they will seek the permission of landowners, farmers and tenants wherever such activities are planned. The hunts and the NPA are currently in discussion concerning the future management of hunting activities, particularly trail hunting, as legal organised recreational pursuits. The NPA say they will work closely with the Hunts and other organisations to maintain the tradition and spectacle of activities associated with the hunts while ensuring that full respect is afforded to the conservation of Dartmoor, to the enjoyment of other recreational users and the interests of local residents.