Lough Salt Walk Strabane Ramblers 29/9/13 John Mc Elroy When 9 members of Strabane Ramblers, led by group leader John Mc Elroy, left for Lough Salt on a calm mild Sunday morning no one could have predicted the stormy conditions awaiting them at Lough Salt car park. Coats, woolly hats and gloves had the dust brushed off them for the first time this Autumn. One hardy member, Eddie who had just back from Spain, wore his holiday shorts as the club members took off down the road around the lake before crossing over the stile onto the heathery ground. Elizabeth Mc Cauley led the group up their first ascent at a leisurely relaxed pace as they listened to Paddy and Gerry talking about their recent trip to Romania. On mountains twice the size of Ben Nevis they had experienced blizzards, alongside the local wildlife of bears and wolves. Despite this, they had a brilliant time. The summit of Lough Salt came upon the group quicker than usual, where a good stiff breeze was blowing. This stopped them from having their tea break so they wisely opted to hold back for calmer conditions. On their descent there was no denying the onset of Autumn as the bracken and ferns changed colour, gradually turning the slopes from green to brown. Continuing their descent the club members followed a sheep trail as sheep instinctively pick the best way up or down any mountain trail. As the members traversed across this trail, Paddy and Brian took the more adventurous route up along the high ridge before meeting up with the rest of the group for a welcome tea break overlooking Ards Monastery and Doe Castle. The views around Lough Salt were always fantastic but Doe Castle looked particularly inviting so the members called into the Castle on their way home. As Andy Doherty, sadly missing this week, always says “A good day was had by all”. John McElroy
Posted on: Mon, 30 Sep 2013 08:05:49 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015