Winter pictures

[Brosville]

Bexhill has it's points too............

 

[Hivemaker.]

Is it still legal to fly that flag in this country.

 

[Finman]

Bexhill has it's points too............

I like winter storms in our sea. They are often dramatic.

 

[hedgerow pete]

worst i get is a ripple on the canal.

when i was traveling I worked on several big cargo boats, on the one we saw some monster storms, ever since i only like it to be stormy when i am at home

 

[Finman]

when i was traveling I worked on several big cargo boats,

What are the biggest waves where your chips have been?

 

[hedgerow pete]

The two worst ever times were once going around cape hope in winter, i was sat in a 45,000 ton cargo ship and the skipper pointed out that this line running across the radar screen was a wave, I did not see the point , untill he told me the radar cowl was 75feet above sea level and this wave was going to be bigger than that, me and the second mate i was with shot down to the most forward point on the bow and as the skipper said there were hand holds under the gunnels( the bit were on the titanic film she stood on, we were underneth it) with harnessess straped on and the fear of god in us we waited , why? because a ship this heavy in these seas goes through waves that big not over so we punched a hole through the wave with the bow with two lunatics on the front, and by the way 45,000 tons of boat shuddered went we hit the wave, that was frightning .

the second one was hitching a lift with a german couple on there 45 foot yatch going across the bay of biscay, around a thrid of the way across we were hit with a storm force 8, the boat was dismasted and every one and everything was smashed up, the skipper after the storm had pasted us over (16hours) could not belive that we were alive still let alone me, just after it started his wife broke her coller bone so we lashed her into bed to help her and then when we were dismasted the skipper and me had to remove all of the sail and rigging to prevent it dragging us down, basicly it was a pair of bolt cutters and a safety harnes and away we go, The best part was that durring the whole event i spent the entier time shouting obsenities to god and generaly being very unpolite to his nibs, evan to the point that when i was injured all i did was shout up to heaven " is that the best you've got?"
(its called post trumatic stress disorder and at that time i was very inflicted with it still have problems evan now)

I still have post cards fron Hubert now,
after all the things i have ever been and done that small boat was the nearest I have ever got to meeting him in person

 

[gavin]

Here is what it looked like on Monday at the largely solid River Dee not that far from where PolyHive is taking his motor-home (and Mrs!). Baltic (that should confuse Finman).

 

[hedgerow pete]

no snow what so ever at west mid lands where i am not a single flake

 

[Finman]

Perthshire in Scotland, United Kingdom of Great Britain (=wow!)

........Not a bad at all.

I found that there are over 1000 altitudes.

 

[Hombre]

Clear since yesterday evening in Rowley Regis, but on the top of the Rowley Hills (Portway Hill) there were still vestiges of snow remaining this morning; so it's closer than you think Pete.

 

[ribblesbees]

Seeing the northern lights is one of my big wishes to be ticked. Hopefully that will be achieved later this winter as we've got a flight booked to go in search of them from our local airport. OK I know its not same as actually staying in the right area but I have so many things I want to do and so I need to go for cheaper/time efficient options.

 

[gavin]

That picture above was taken near Braemar which has the reputation of being the coldest place in Britain with a low temperature of -27.2C in Jan 1982. Braemar is in Aberdeenshire, the area to the N of Perthshire.

Finman hit upon one of my favourite areas around Loch Earn at St Fillans. The 1000m Perthshire hill would be Ben Lawers, just N of the next E-W loch to the N of Loch Earn, Loch Tay:

There are beekeepers at each end of the loch.

We're still getting more snow showers most days, and we seem to be back to continuous sub-zero weather. There is a rock on my way into Perth near sea level which has icicles from time to time. Haven't seen them this big or this persistent for one or maybe two decades:

Snow is about 10 inches deep in the undisturbed parts, and driving on anything but the major routes still difficult. I suspect that almost all of Scotland has a white blanket at the moment.

Happy Hogmanay everyone!

Gavin