Aviation Tour - Maps on www.bankleft.com

Friday 25th July

Return to Redhill abandoned - remained at Dunkeswell for the night


when the fine line between excitement and fear is crossed...


Awaking in IMC: With the whole of Lands End in raining cloud, the commercial operators offered their passengers a shuttle bus to Penzance to catch a ferry across to Scillies. Needless to say we jumped on to take the chance to walk through St Michael's Mount. Wonderful castle. Amazing. H wants one now.


Departure: After a slightly freaky departure from Lands End above cloud scattered at 600', we cruised up past the Eden Project to Plymouth. The sight of cloud rolling down the hills of Dartmore toward us made the blood run cold. With the cloud base at about 1800' amsl, crossing Dartmoor (1700') wasn't going to be possible. In orbit, burning through our reserve and with visions of a forced night at Plymouth, we decided to fly south toward the coast and low land in the hope that there was a clear way through. It turned out that there way, and we skirted the hills on our way to Exmouth. Feeling pretty freaked out even now that some of the cold sweat had evaporated, we bombed into Dunkeswell at 700', just under the cloud base covering the hill range. Just like the several dozen parachutists partaking in a week long jump fest there, we weren't going anywhere for a while.

Holing up for the night: Unable to go any further until the weather improved, we hatched a plan to get airbornd at 8am to have the plane back for the rest of the group by 10.30am, pitched tent and ordered 14oz steaks and a bottle of gronky house red. Dunkeswell has the largest and most comfortable flight school building that I've seen and they don't wear tabbards - not even the owner who was thrashing a Caterham around the peri track when we arrived. Top stuff.