Wednesday, 30 December 2020

2020 Review - March

 2020 Review - March

Click on an image to see a larger version.  All images copyright Leslie Ashe.

I was the recipient of a birthday gift of a flying lesson from Ards airfield.  I had let it sit for a while but in March Decided it was time to use it.  Apart from the take-off and landing I was in control of a Cessna 172S Skyhawk SP.  What an experience. I can understand how flying could become addictive.  I had a camera with me and I had hoped to take some pictures of Strangford Lough but I was too busy flying the plane.  I took a couple at the end of the takeoff and after I handed back control to the instructor for the landing.

My view of the instruments.


Scrabo Tower just after take-off.


Landing approach


Mid March we decided to take a walk in Tollymore Forest Park specifically to see if we could figure out the reason for a dog-leg in the boundary wall at The Drinns.  We had noticed it on a previous walk on a very wet and windy day when Tollymore was a more pleasant alternative to going high in the Mountains.  Apart from a couple of tree stumps inside the dog-leg we could see no reason for it.  A subsequent investigation involving old 6 inch to the mile Ordnance Survey maps revealed that the 1832 - 1846 edition shows a small circle inside the dog-leg suggesting there was a structure there.  Perhaps a shelter for someone looking after livestock on the open ground outside the boundary wall.  Whatever it was there is no trace of it today.

Tollymore wall dog-leg


Third week of March it was back to the Mourne Mountains.  Little did we know that we wouldn't be back until the end of May when Covid-19 restrictions were eased.  Fortunately we had a day of unbroken sunshine.






Then came the Covid-19 lockdown and imaging opportunities become limited.
This image of a new moon partially obscured by thin cloud was taken from my garden.






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