Tag: weather

Ribblesdale spring – blame the Russians (10 pics)

Ahh, spring in Upper Ribblesdale. As I write, snow flakes are doing a drunken dance, not knowing which direction to take next. The village looks like a Christmas card, and I have to conjure up a vision of the surrounding hills because they’re shrouded in cloud, or should that be clouded in shroud. Let my photo diary record that this is all the fault of the Russians. They seem to be getting the blame for everything at this moment in history, so why not the weather? I’d best not go all political here. I was around when Russia got it the neck during the Cold War, today I have a war against cold around my neck. Top photo shows Penyghent just before the latest snow Ribblesdale.

I watched some new-born lambs looking distinctly miserable in temperatures that with added wind-chill dipped as low as -12 in Ribblesdale this week.

Ribblesdale
Langcliffe: rooftops at sunset, and the village ‘green’.

The bathroom needs a lick of paint. Unenthusiastically, I dug out a half-full tin of emulsion and a brush from the cupboard under the stairs. Of course, everything had to be removed from the abyss before I found said items at the back. I took them to the bathroom, wondering if I formally introduced them to the walls, would they strike up an instant rapport and just get on with the job themselves. As I turned to fetch a dust-sheet, sunshine burst through the bathroom window. Within minutes I was driving up Ribblesdale, camera by my side. The tin of paint and brush are still on the bathroom floor, walls remain unpainted. I’m presuming they didn’t form any kind of relationship. Perhaps they just need a little more time to get to know each other better.

Ribblesdale
A different angle on Whernside from Chapel-le-Dale. In my youth I followed that wall up to the top from Ingleton. What a slog. Thankfully, never again. I can’t imagine what hell the wall builders went through.
Badly cropped photo of cows looking over Ribblesdale early in the week.
Scaleber Force close-up.
Above, and two following photos, a tree theme – early spring in Ribblesdale between Horton and Helwith Bridge.

Ice to see you and paws for thought – 15 dales pics

I suppose I have to talk about this week’s weather here in the Dales. As a nation we’re not very good at dealing with cold winds, snow and ice, are we? Thankfully, there are a lot of individuals who can cope – and not surprisingly they tend to live in the country’s higher, more exposed regions.
I had an early* walk in a blizzard for some emergency tea bags one day and saw that a farmer had been up early* to bring his sheep down off the hills and spread out some hay on a low-lying field for his animals.
(*The difference between my retirement early and a farmer’s early is about five hours.)

Dales hill-farmers knew what was coming and when it would arrive; they were prepared, took action when needed and just got on with dealing with the job without much fuss. On TV I heard someone complaining because he was being restricted to driving at 30mph in his 4×4, and another person moaning about her recycling bin not being emptied. Before I start on a Jonathan Pie-style rant (he’s brilliant, by the way) I’ll move on …

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Battling through a blizzard in search of Yorkshire Tea. Below, I did check to see there was no one asleep on the bench.


My son ‘kindly’ reminded me that I was a child during the bad winter of 1962/3 by asking what it was like in those days. I lived in a town in those days but there were plenty of hills, and I remember the enormous icy slides and much sledging … and scraping ice from the inside of our bedroom windows.
He and I have also being trying to identify paw prints in the snow around our houses. Stray dogs seem to be the most numerous – I say ‘stray’ because I’d hate to think pet owners were chucking out their dogs on such cold nights.

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Left to right: fox, dog, cat, badger.

Photography-wise, I’ve not felt inclined to dig out the car for a drive around the Dales looking for stunning snowy scenes – I’m not sure I can justify that heading into the wilds to take pictures is a ‘life-or-death journey’ (unlike the aforementioned tea-bag catastrophe). But I have managed some local shots …

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Frozen mill pond, Langcliffe
Snow drifts between Langcliffe and Settle
St John’s Langcliffe
Mill pond overflow, leading to the Ribble.
Snow-bound lane from Langcliffe.
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Snow-topped rubble on the Ribble.
Wintry sunset over Langcliffe.

Dales Three Peaks path plea

If you haven’t already seen this, please watch the video here, uploaded by the Dales3Peaks people, and help maintain our paths around the Dales: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcrZftnuhqw&feature=youtu.be

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Two views of Whernside seen earlier in the week. Above, looking over Gauber; below, with Ribblehead Viaduct.

And finally … ice monsters emerging from the depths to slowly climb the memorial in Langcliffe. Don’t have nightmares, folks.

Prelude to more snow in the Dales

ingleborough-snow

The unmistakeable outline of Ingleborough greets those motorists driving from Hawes towards Ingleton near Ribblehead. This afternoon the sun was getting low in the west; there was icy blue sky to the east, while snow clouds were building up all around me. There’ll be much more of the white stuff here by the morning.

Feeling blue in the Dales

treeswall

Amazing what just a spattering of bright blue in the sky can do to lift the spirits. My part of Ribblesdale has been lying under low grey cloud or been battered by rain for what seems like an eternity. For a brief spell this weekend I managed to get out and grab this picture of a small copse near Wigglesworth. There was a strong wind bending the tops of the tallest trees and the noise level rose and sank as it sought to find a way through the trunks and branches. A couple of years ago a large deer ran out of these trees, leapt the boundary wall and darted across the road right in front of me. I don’t know what had spooked it but the animal certainly gave me the willies.