March 1st 1981: A date to remember | The Belfast Hills

A date to rememberDates can evoke powerful memories for all of us. The birth or death of a loved one; a wedding; a new job; a joyous family occasion or a tragedy. Some memories can be so strong that it’s as if we are still there now. The smells, the noise, the fear, the joy, the sadness.March 1st, the date I pen these words, is one of those dates for me. Walking the Belfast HillsI have always enjoyed walking. Especially with a dog. Or dogs. As youngsters my brother Paddy, Joe Magee and I would tramp the Black Mountain above Ballymurphy and beyond. The enjoyment of walking dogs, especially across open fields or hills, has remained with me all my life. Sometimes we walked to Glenavy.  Later we graduated from walking to cycling. Later again on a Honda 50. Joe and I went often to Glenavy and up, down and around all the countryside along that part of Lough Neagh. But we would always spend part of our day walking. .