It feels like a long time has passed since we had this amount of snow fall in this part of the UK. There were threats and warnings that we might have seen a few flakes last week but, it only landed elsewhere. Some were sceptical as to whether anything would happen this time. I kept my hopes up though; seeing the forecast on the local news of how one white blanket would cover the entire west country area filled me with optimism…
As soon as I got up around 6am, I was greeted and delighted by the sight you can see above; captured rather poorly by my smart phone‘s camera, which doesn’t particularly like the dark (and, I don’t like flash photography so, we can never agree).
My journey to work was successful, in the sense that the major roads were more bearable than something I recall sliding along about this time two-years ago. I got frustrated following a colleague along one road, 15 miles below the designated speed limit and then, as I flamboyantly made a hard right-turn towards my exit, I almost lost the back end of my van… Yes, I am rather confident when it comes to driving on snow and ice. I don’t know why but something a bit ‘Clarkson’ comes all over me… It must be the curly hair!
Even at the time of parking, the snow wasn’t showing any signs of letting up and large flakes continued to fall. Within one hour, our cars and the tracks we’d created were hidden again. Some people can’t resist stepping outside every thirty-minutes to check on the weather, even when we’re only there for four-and-a-half hours on a Friday!
Getting home was easy, even though I struggled a little making a left-turn up and on to the drive.
I’ve mentioned recently that I enjoy my walks and so, armed with a proper camera while leaving my phone in my pocket, I donned my walking boots as I was still wearing my coat and, after a brief lunch set out for walk to see and to capture how the local landscape had changed.
My old primary school, closed for the day.
This led to a walk past my old primary school (closed for the day), where I can barely remember many days like this. Apart from one and another in particular, where I miserably failed my cycling proficiency test, never to attempt it again! I can’t imagine they’d allow drivers to attempt their tests in similar conditions today… I guess ‘the authorities’ really were more care-free two decades ago!
Many of the roads around here were still passable. They weren’t busy but, I’ve seen them covered far worse than this before. Even the country lanes were left in a reasonably safe state.
This has always been one of my favourite views of the village I live in, taken ‘from behind’, with the woodland off in the distance. I usually enjoy this on a normal day but, to see it all highlighted by the snow is quite special to me.
I tried to do something ‘creative’ with that photo, where you can see steam (sorry, vapour) emerging from the wall.
There weren’t as many snowmen around as I’d have expected to see but, these two made me smile, as I pondered whether the owners or employees here had actually made them!
There’s the local church. I’m not religious in any way but, there you go.
Friday’s walk is one I do quite regularly in the summer. All the sites are usually so recognisable and, even when I try to change direction or alter the route slightly, it can still become a bit ‘dull’, without much diversity. Seeing it all again with a blanket of white though, makes all the difference.
If it’s been snowing where you are then, I hope you can still get out and to find the enjoyment that it does offer, along with everything else that the media like to scare us with. This day was saddened by the news that my grandfather passed away not long after I set off for this walk, only one week after his 82nd birthday. If not for all the snow, we’d have been able to get to Bath to be with him in his final hours.
I do have a few other photos and I intend to add more to this Flickr album when I have the chance.
