2022/23 was beyond shocking after the snow departed on the 18th December. There was just 10 frosts the remainder of the winter with none at all in February. Last winter was almost as poor. Immediately following the end of the snow on 19th January there was one frost in the next 18 nights and only seven for the remainder of the winter.

On a similar run of abject horror at the moment with no frost for a week, at a time of year it should be regular. Dropped to +0.2C last night which if anything is more irritating than not even getting close.

Worse of all is the continuation of the horrific sunless Sundays that have been relentless since November 2022, as the repellent gloom that has been suffocating the south for days moves in with perfect timing. 

It's just getting worse and worse. The most sun on any Sunday this winter has been 2.2 hours. You have to go all the way back to 24th November for the last time 50% has been achieved. A diabolical run on it's own but in context of what proceeded it there are no words to do justice to the extreme depressing horror.

2023 had the lowest Sunday sun average in my 18 year records and last year was almost as bad with the second lowest. Just 30% of the possible sun since November 2022 when all other days are between 35 and 39%. It defies any rational explanation. It's the equivalent of being constantly stuck in the dullest possible years, as only 1980 and 1993 in the past 55 years have had an annual total as low as 30%.

When are we going to break out of this tedious rut of absolute and utter hell?

HP is the main problem where is sit and kill our seasons, for a best sunshine set up in winter is HP over the Altantic and we get clear cloud free zone and in summer HP need to be in the East or SE to bring clear skies but sadly both -set-up had been absent so we get wrong placed HP and over us bring lot of gloom and wet weather.

Mesmerising ice formations cover US lake

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/c360038jnndo 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c2d34ye13z9o 

Look I get the Synoptics of it all, but it makes it no less frustrating. And thanks for that very system, our winter gets blown away.

Agree 

Especially as it's been on and off drizzle here for 36 hours

Currently 7in and countering there now. That is more snow that I have seen in decades.

🥺

I always know the main reason we can't get proper powdery snow is the HP where it sit that prevent proper cold snowy set-up over UK.  We can easily get snow and proper cold if every LP move East or SE.   The last crap cold spell was destroyed by this current cloudy HP and now this storms are such a wimp not able to get into Europe at all by this same winter killer HP sitting ther deflecting it.  For sure Alps resorts are fuming now to as they wanted this coming week LP to dive to those areas to give much needed snowfall but instead stuck under dry cloudy HP.  

Change that to 36 days, pretty much for here!

The biggest mistake we ever made was calling it global warming at the outset and not climate change. Played into the hands of the deniers. It is clear that snow in New Orleans is as about the nearest thing you could get to confirm climate change!

Today was just close to wall to wall sunshine and under the LP and tomorrow full sun again before any nasty cloudy HP move back in, Despite the winds, today was very pleasant and much far enjoyable than recent HP gloom hell.  Heating was little use today thanks to the sun amount to warm up indoors.  

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/c87dy8qwvlqt 

It was let's say interesting here earlier too. 

A lot of agricultural land is on its way to the sea, looking at the murky floodwaters in some of the pictures.

The Frome, normally a clear chalk stream is thick with silt from open farmland without winter cover crops to protect the soil.

Some years ago I was having a walkabout in Nepal and got chatting to a local farmer with excellent English. We talked about the usual stuff and he remarked "Do you know what Nepal's biggest export is?" I said "No!" and he replied "Bangladesh!" Years of deforestation and erosion of steep slopes - you know the story. I took a colleague from Bangladesh to Skegness on day - to Gibaltar Point - and he said: It's just like Bhola Island!" 😁

https://live.staticflickr.com/1943/43631885920_6605a18622_h.jpg 

I took my Bhola Island colleague to see Lincoln Cathedral. He was impressed. Being rather communist in his view he remarked: "It is very important to preserve such buildings because they show the Church's exploitation of the Broad Masses." Taking him back to London we stopped near Wembley for a curry. The manager was from Bangladesh so they got into a good discussion. He was a bit startled when the manager said "What Bangladesh needs is Mrs Thatcher! She'd sort those ******s  out!" Seems we are still having a similar discussion here! 😁

100% agree unfortunately, and as a fly fisherman in the beauty of our English chalkstreams, I am fully supportive (in all ways, not just financially) to the work that Fergal Sharkey and many others do to try and protect such an important ecosystem...it is so sad to see the decline in the last 10 years let alone decades.

Perhaps a bit though I feel it also very much fits the pattern of recent winters in the modern era, that being a brief cold snap in late November or early December, a very mild rest of December, a cold snap or cold spell in January and then what looks like being a mildish February. The main difference this year being the cold spell in January was longer and more severe than usual, however looking like another warmer than average winter overall though nothing like as mild or unsettled as the long range forecasts were suggesting before the winter.

Largely agree with this. I much prefer the gradual descent into winter (Oct, Nov, Dec) than that grueling ascent out of it. (Jan, Feb, Mar). I think once December ends, the prospect of lengthening days begins to daunt. Not a fan of the longer daylight hours at all, except for that period around the summer solstice for some reason, as that near all night twilight has a sort of ancient magic about it that I can't really explain. 

I'm not really sure I agree with that. To me this winter has been more interesting, but it has been curiously unsatisfyingly. A bit like watching a test match batsman reach 40 and then get out.