I will give it 8 out of 10 - deep snow with drifts, with the added bonus that it lasted until the weekend.

Warming up now, but the children are sledging and making snowmen in the field and that is what it is all about.

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I think that posters living in southern England who are awarding 10/10 are getting carried away by the rarity of the events of last week.

There's no doubt that Kent and the West Country, in particular, merit a 10/10 for severity - but the cold spell only lasted a week! What will you award when the cold spell lasts 3 or 4 weeks, as has happened in the past?

Surely the mark is dependant on people expectations taking into consideration for the time of the year ?

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I’ll just add a bit to what I posted in the Snow thread

Quite simply the biggest and best snow event here since the 80s. This has eclipsed 2010 and the early 90s here. An absolute huge fall of snow in two instalments. Yesterday afternoon and, of course, all Thursday afternoon and night. 
We had around a foot of level snow (best I can be sure - glass top patio table), and drifts far in excess of that. A truly historic snowfall here, have no doubt. 

What has impressed me the most is the way this has been modelled. From the initial signs of SSW to its evolution and conclusion. The forecasts have been quite remarkably good, including the BBC forecasts that have had some unwarranted stick. Yes the graphics are crap, but they modelled the fronts superbly well over all.

It’s possible many of us will never see a snow event again like we’ve just had here in parts of the South West. As the thaw starts there’s a part of me that’s quite sad about it. However, this is offset by the fact that one of the best things about this spell is knowing that in a matter of a few weeks we could be sat outside getting sunburnt. The best two seasons of the year are about to start.

Pics available for those that know where to find me. I’m sure many of us have witnessed an incredible last 48 hours or so. 

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I’ll just add a bit to what I posted in the Snow thread

Quite simply the biggest and best snow event here since the 80s. This has eclipsed 2010 and the early 90s here. An absolute huge fall of snow in two instalments. Yesterday afternoon and, of course, all Thursday afternoon and night. 
We had around a foot of level snow (best I can be sure - glass top patio table), and drifts far in excess of that. A truly historic snowfall here, have no doubt. 

What has impressed me the most is the way this has been modelled. From the initial signs of SSW to its evolution and conclusion. The forecasts have been quite remarkably good, including the BBC forecasts that have had some unwarranted stick. Yes the graphics are crap, but they modelled the fronts superbly well over all.

It’s possible many of us will never see a snow event again like we’ve just had here in parts of the South West. As the thaw starts there’s a part of me that’s quite sad about it. However, this is offset by the fact that one of the best things about this spell is knowing that in a matter of a few weeks we could be sat outside getting sunburnt. The best two seasons of the year are about to start.

Pics available for those that know where to find me. I’m sure many of us have witnessed an incredible last 48 hours or so. 

I think that that's a good summary of the Beast in much of Ireland too. You can certainly have your complaints and say that lower minima would have made it better or regret that it's a fairly short spell. However, like you, I saw a foot of snow and I am also quite aware of the fact that I may never see it again, not because I'm especially old but because events like this are only likely to happen a couple of times a century. There's probably never going to be an absolutely perfect cold spell - we always want more, better, colder. However, this was a truly special spell - up there with the greats of my lifetime such as '82,'87 and' 10. I'm sorry to see the thaw too and the return to normal life - it feels a bit like the end of the Christmas holidays!

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A selection of photos that I took around Berko this week.

https://www.theweatheroutlook.com/twoother/twocontent.aspx?type=hpnews&id=4224&title=Late+February+freeze

 

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9/10 Everything came together. Snow just never happens in an easterly here, whatever the depth of cold ... but a low-pressure system colliding with a deep-cold easterly - oh my goodness!

Couldn't even fault the longevity - this was taken 10 mins ago; bear in mind that THIS is the thaw:

(That's a lone female blackcap eating the apple core, possibly regretting her decision not to migrate to the Continent at the end of the summer, like the rest of her species).

Oddly enough, the only thing which prevented a 10 was the freezing rain: it left the snow as 2" of ice over 10" of snow. It really is hard work picking your feet through that, and it made sledging a lottery. You'd slide 20 yards or so over the ice, and then it would collapse and the sledge flip over. I managed to trap a finger under it, then my head and finally a testicle, at which point I felt it best to call it a day, being 56 years old now. Having said that, it was still disappointing to be the only person in the village, young or old, daft enough to attempt to use a sledge - I thought the whole point of this sort of weather was the chance to try things which are badly thought out, dangerous and painful.

Maybe a cool dispassionate assessment would be a 7/10, even for here, on the grounds of lasting less than a week. But for personal reasons I got all emotional walking through the blizzard beside the frozen river with the dog on Thursday night: I'd spent Dec. 2010 cut off, 110 m asl in the Blackdowns, and been forced to leave that house a month later. I'd given up on ever experiencing anything comparable again, being a lousy 32 m asl now. With one snowstorm, seven years of gnawing anger and resentment at the circumstances of that move rose from my shoulders. The world's a bit happier a place for me now.

By the way, I'd take issue with those wishing it had all happened in December or January (or February, come to that). It's now, in March, that sea-surface temperatures are at their coldest, and it's possible that the March date was the very factor which made it so extreme.

Might such events become more common? I wonder whether the off-the-scale nature of the sudden stratospheric warming which led to this one might have a long-term effect on atmospheric patterns. I remember unblocking a drainage pipe under a roadway a few years ago: for 10 minutes I stood in a ditch, waist-high in water, violently jabbing a long length of hazel into the pipe with no success. Then, all of a sudden, years of accumulated debris shifted with violent noise, and I was swept off my feet by the sudden rush of water. And in the aftermath the whole landscape changed: ponds disappeared upstream, while new ones formed downstream.

Now, the atmosphere is a fluid system too, and I wonder whether the effect of that atmospheric "blockage" being shifted and all that hot air being belched into space might have similar long-term effects in restoring the kinds of atmospheric flows we were used to from the Forties to the Eighties. It's a long shot, but I'd give it a chance.

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What a splendid post! It really captures the joy of snow.

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9/10 Everything came together. Snow just never happens in an easterly here, whatever the depth of cold ... but a low-pressure system colliding with a deep-cold easterly - oh my goodness!

Couldn't even fault the longevity - this was taken 10 mins ago; bear in mind that THIS is the thaw:

(That's a lone female blackcap eating the apple core, possibly regretting her decision not to migrate to the Continent at the end of the summer, like the rest of her species).

Oddly enough, the only thing which prevented a 10 was the freezing rain: it left the snow as 2" of ice over 10" of snow. It really is hard work picking your feet through that, and it made sledging a lottery. You'd slide 20 yards or so over the ice, and then it would collapse and the sledge flip over. I managed to trap a finger under it, then my head and finally a testicle, at which point I felt it best to call it a day, being 56 years old now. Having said that, it was still disappointing to be the only person in the village, young or old, daft enough to attempt to use a sledge - I thought the whole point of this sort of weather was the chance to try things which are badly thought out, dangerous and painful.

Maybe a cool dispassionate assessment would be a 7/10, even for here, on the grounds of lasting less than a week. But for personal reasons I got all emotional walking through the blizzard beside the frozen river with the dog on Thursday night: I'd spent Dec. 2010 cut off, 110 m asl in the Blackdowns, and been forced to leave that house a month later. I'd given up on ever experiencing anything comparable again, being a lousy 32 m asl now. With one snowstorm, seven years of gnawing anger and resentment at the circumstances of that move rose from my shoulders. The world's a bit happier a place for me now.

By the way, I'd take issue with those wishing it had all happened in December or January (or February, come to that). It's now, in March, that sea-surface temperatures are at their coldest, and it's possible that the March date was the very factor which made it so extreme.

Might such events become more common? I wonder whether the off-the-scale nature of the sudden stratospheric warming which led to this one might have a long-term effect on atmospheric patterns. I remember unblocking a drainage pipe under a roadway a few years ago: for 10 minutes I stood in a ditch, waist-high in water, violently jabbing a long length of hazel into the pipe with no success. Then, all of a sudden, years of accumulated debris shifted with violent noise, and I was swept off my feet by the sudden rush of water. And in the aftermath the whole landscape changed: ponds disappeared upstream, while new ones formed downstream.

Now, the atmosphere is a fluid system too, and I wonder whether the effect of that atmospheric "blockage" being shifted and all that hot air being belched into space might have similar long-term effects in restoring the kinds of atmospheric flows we were used to from the Forties to the Eighties. It's a long shot, but I'd give it a chance.

Post of the year so far.

Bathos, pathos, an element of catharsis, honesty, and an excellent analogy.

Posts like this make the forum a great community.

Cheers sfb.

Phil

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I was driving back from work this afternoon with everything looking almost back to normal... Except for a few places where the road goes over 6 to 700ft here the drifts are still very apparent. Two sections of the road are still one snow plough blade wide for about 25m making the cars wait to get through. I'd say they were about 6ft high. Strange to see this in Cornwall and it makes you realise this was actually rather exceptional whilst it lasted. The first flakes fell at 10am Wednesday and the rain moved in Thursday at 8pm. Blink and you'd miss it... But what a 36hrs it was.....

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Considering some forecasts (including the met office) were hitting at the cold lasting well into March with no sign of any reasonable temps I can understand why a lot will be disappointed for me I'm delighted.

The country was just starting to crumble shops are empty of essential supplies and the transport network ground to a halt so the fact the worst of it is over is a bonus

I thank our wonderful NHS staff who despite the conditions have provided excellent care up and down the country

This event is unusual. If you look at past snowstorms where an Atlantic low pressure comes up against a cold block eg January 1982, it wasn't coinciding with a potent easterly blast across the UK

 

If you look at January 1987, there was the potent easterly blast but no Atlantic low pressure coming against the block and getting the big snowstorm.

Jan 1982

In Feb 1978, there was no potent easterly blast by the time the fronts encroached the SW.

March 1891 was a low pressure coming up from the SW against a Greenland block/Scandi low

January 1881 was a reorientation of a low pressure coming against Greenland block/Scandi low 

Very unusual set-up

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I was thinking the charts reminded me of 31 Dec 1978 in some ways. That 1 March 2018 chart is certainly one that will be posted in "classic spells" threads for years to come.

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For me I think this spell fell just short of 2010.  The depth of cold though was remarkable and the dry blowing snow will make this spell memorable for me and I'm sure many others.   We had snow everyday from Mon - Sat and some temporary blizzard "like" conditions during the showers.  We only really had snow accumulating properly on the Weds evening to Thurs lunch period when we sat under a nice streamer which gave us in the region of 8cms, outside of this the snow stuck in the shade but elsewhere any accumulations melted quickly in the strong sun.  This is what made the spell fall slightly short of 2010 when we had more laying and long lasting snow here.

I think i'll go for 8 / 10 with Nov/Dec 2010 8.5/10

So anyway, where'd spring go ?

I didn't take as much interest in the weather 10 years ago as I do now - it's my job that makes me give it extra attention. Therefore I can't give direct comparisons to what happened in previous years. However, I will try to give a balanced review.

Like many other posters, I am a big kid at heart, and I love the snow. I love driving in it too - it's more of a test of my skills, and most people tend to stay off the roads, so less traffic jams. Suffice it to say, that in 10 years of being a courier, I have never missed a day because of snowfall...

My first thought as to the spell of cold weather is that IMBY there was very little snow. Despite snow falling on 5 consecutive days, there was never more than about 3cm on the ground at any time, and that is the most snow I have seen since Jan 2013. I know that almost everyone else has seen more (maybe with the exception of idj and Gusty), and I have witnessed it myself while driving around. So yes, I feel very let down on that score.

However, look at this from a different viewpoint. I can't remember the last time I saw snow falling and settling 5 days in a row! Most events in the last 20 years have been on the basis of a huge dump in one day that hung around. Despite having 3 (maybe 4) ice days, the snow never froze! Let's not forget how hard it is to get an ice day at this time of year! (Thanks to Retron for his analysis on the subject.)

One other gripe I have on the matter is the longevity of the cold. It stopped snowing about 7pm Friday, and temps started to rise. After some drizzle on Saturday morning, everything had been washed away, and you would never have known what actually happened.

Overall, though, I think this spell will be memorable, just for the depth of cold so late in the season. My winter coat had its' first real outing for about 5 years!

Let's not forget, we still have the solar minimum to come, so there is every possibility that we might see something even better next winter. Here's hoping!!

deleted 

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Overall I enjoyed this spell.  

Positives:  

The intensity of the snow showers was very impressive, with the combination of very strong gusty winds, thick heavy snow and drifting snow really was quite exciting to experience and somewhat reminded me of the NE'ly blasts of the Winter of 78/79 here, in particular late Dec 78, and mid Feb 79.   That aspect was more exciting in fact than the Jan 87 severe spell as the wind was mainly light in that spell.

Some sunny spells in between the snow showers, which is a big positive for me.  Love the sunshine / snowcover combination.

No thawing whatsoever until late in the cold spell.  Quite impressive for so late in the season.

Negatives:

Slightly disappointed that we didn't make the more significant 15cm level for snowcover as was reached in other parts of Lincs, but even so, we got 10cm which is way better than anything in the last 4 years here.  I've always considered any Winter a failure here if we fail to reach 7-8cm snowcover, so at least Winter 2017-18 has passed that criteria!

The harsh windchill.  Reminded me of the exceptional windchill levels of Feb 1985 here. I reckon that's the last time the windchill was so low.  Jan 87 and Dec 10, despite being much colder spells,  didn't have such strong winds with the exceptionally low temps.

So overall I would rate the Feb 2018 spell a 7/10.    Quite enjoyable, although could've been a bit better.

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Its a pity energy this time was not a little further east Kev feb 1979 rings a bell

Very cold. 14th Feb east coast of England, drifts 6-7ft.

 

 

 

 

 

This event is unusual. If you look at past snowstorms where an Atlantic low pressure comes up against a cold block eg January 1982, it wasn't coinciding with a potent easterly blast across the UK

 

If you look at January 1987, there was the potent easterly blast but no Atlantic low pressure coming against the block and getting the big snowstorm.

Jan 1982

In Feb 1978, there was no potent easterly blast by the time the fronts encroached the SW.

March 1891 was a low pressure coming up from the SW against a Greenland block/Scandi low

January 1881 was a reorientation of a low pressure coming against Greenland block/Scandi low 

Very unusual set-up

Able to upgrade to a perfect 10 this evening - my only gripe had been the thick layer of ice on top of the snow, which made sledging problematic, but today's sun and rain worked their magic, and I've had a wonderful afternoon with the sledge. Reluctantly left the hill in darkness at half past six, with the rain pouring down and the snow now perfect as a consequence. Had it all to myself too. 

Absolutely sodden, the dog's exhausted, but it had to be done - it's seven years since I last had a chance down here, and in another seven years I'll be 63. I just couldn't risk never getting the opportunity again.

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I guess one way at looking at is we were lucky we did not get one of those gfs spoilers being shown at different stages leading up to the event

This happened in 1985 I was worried about that this time

 

Worth it just to see Class 37s snowploughing in East Anglia:

Lowestoft line

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