Thursday flights

Flying first. The sky didn't look that great but soon improved and we were getting 6kt climbs into clear blue sky. A fair amount of cloud which made distance flights more challenging, and the easy climbs tended to stop at 12,000ft, and it was extremely cold, but it was excellent flying and great fun. Here are the scores:

Geoff GA - a quick trip to Loch Ness
John JH - Linn of Dee and Tomintoul, 15,000ish ft
Glyn G1 - Marr Lodge, "only 10,000ft on the way, I stopped at Balmoral on the way back to warm up"
Dave/Craig 315 - Linn of Dee, 9,000ft
Bob 279 - Linn of Dee, 14,950ft
Julian ECZ - "I went up the valley somewhere, I don't know where"
Jane 118 - Braemar, 12,500ft
Rolf 318 - 12,000ft
Chris 987 - 14,000ft
Barry JDV - 11,500ft, towards Balmoral
Rob RM also flew, don't know what he did

After the big toys were put away, the small ones came out and Glyn and John flew Glyn's Funjet while Rob tried to avoid it with Bob's little Cub. Jane found her flying skill improved by a glass of Glenlivet.

And then off to dinner in the Boat in Aboyne, another excellent meal, the butternut squash and pistachio risotto is particularly good, and there were compliments for the steak pie. This time the desserts were tried and seemed to go down well. The oatcakes with the cheese platter were excellent.

Today is wet and not going to improve, so we are forming plans which will no doubt involve tea shops. Rob, Rolf and Craig have left for the south. Craig has had his eyes opened to the possibilities of gliding and the special nature of wave soaring, and will be back next year.