My last pair of hunting dogs were 17" beagles. They hunted deer, and loved it. Particularly the older dog. If she stayed out overnight, and that was rare, she'd be back on the trail at dawn, and in one instance, we could hear her running track at night across the lake from the camp. They were both really good at coming back, but sometimes that took a bit.
I'd be at camp a few days before the hunt, and walk the dogs on leads until the hunt. I would sometimes cover a lot of ground on those walks, exploring trails etc. So, we went out on our hunt, many miles from camp, across two ridges, and a couple of streams, a good half hour drive around to get there. The dogs took off on a chase that went the wrong way at some point that morning, and after waiting about an hour for their return. I put one of my shirts down, and went back to camp for lunch, figuring to pick them up later.
Dogs! They beat me back to camp! The only thing I can figure is that they crossed one of my dog walking trails, and back tracked all the way to camp. Hell of a tour for a pair of beagles, but they did it, and were itching for more.
We used beagles, because they don't push deer really hard, the deer are, except at the very start of the chase, far far ahead of the dogs, and often walking. Easy shots. most chases are over in 20 minutes, and it takes exceptional circumstances to make it longer, like picking up additional deer along the way, a really slow deer that isn't running way ahead, or there being visible tracks in snow.