I probably tend to agree now. Confess to having partaken of several glasses of a rather pleasant Pinot Noir when I wrote my initial post. Naughty but nice.
Later analysis of the pic does lead me to conclude that yes those contrails in the original pic could well be real. In the line of sight but well behind and away from the aircraft.
Hey at least I rose to forget's challenge though.
And now, not being an aviation professional I think I'll go back to lurking.