And back to winter
After the glimpse of spring in my last post, here's the other side of January in Scotland. When we left Speyside on 2 January to travel back to Edinburgh sleet was beginning to fall. Between Grantown on Spey and Aviemore the snow started - 'blin' drift' in Scots (translation: 'blizzarding snow, blown by strong winds so that it obscures your vision. 'Blin' pronounced as in 'pin'. I'm feeling rather Inuit-ish with my Scots snow terminology!) - and the road filled up very quickly. South of Newtonmore the traffic halted completely. We were comforted by the sight of a snowplough/gritter a few cars ahead of us, but all the same it was sobering to sit in a car rocked by a gale, on a desolate stretch of road, with only a food stock of left-over Christmas cake, mince pies and kettle chips. Plus the survival blankets which we always carry in the winter.
We eventually got moving without any digging out being required, and by the time we reached Perth there was no snow to be seen. Yesterday and today we're back to gales, so the year has got off to a turbulent start.
Among the pictures of this week's storm damage on the BBC Scotland website, I noted the irony of a house featured in the 'Grand Designs' programme which had lost its roof (it's the 7th photo along). On either side the stolid, very ungrandly designed houses appear unscathed.
Yes it is the weather we should be having but are not. I don't miss the snow and yet it doesn't seem right when we get up to 60 degree F. That seemed a little scary to be stopped and not knowing why.
ReplyDeleteBundle up!
ReplyDeleteWe are experiencing our coldest weather so far, but nothing like yours! Edward loves it with a passion!
Keep a car kit of supplies!! Make sure it has some mince pies in it, too~! I LOVED those when I visited Scotland. Cannot make them nearly as good myself!
ReplyDeleteStay safe and follow the 'gritters' when possible.
I'm very glad that you made it safely through that journey. How is 'blin' drift' pronounced? blin' rhyming with blind?
ReplyDeleteNot much snow in the forecast for us in the next 10 days...hope your winter is without too much extreme weather!!!
ReplyDeleteI don't envy you that journey, especially as you must do it many times a year. Re. words for snow, if you buy something from the shop at the ski centre on Cairn Gorm, they put your purchase in a paper bag circled with Scots and Gaelic words for snow. I love this so much that I've kept one of the bags, so here's a selection for you: 'Blin drift' (indeed), 'owerblaw, skifter, skirlie, wauff, smeuchter, brak, skimmer, dry drift, snaw bree, sneachda [I love that Gaelic word], yird drift, skiftin, smeuk'. And there's plenty more. There has to be a poem in that! (Tho not a Haiku, obviously ;) .)
ReplyDeletePoor you. We managed to get through before the traffic came to a standstill. What a very windy time we had in Edinburgh! I hope all is well with you and your family.
ReplyDeletePs..I remember watching that Grand Designs house being built on television, with all the usual trauma that follows that programme!
I love snow, and that's a good thing because we average over 250cm a year at our house. But I don't particularly like driving in it, so I work from home when it's bad.
ReplyDeleteIt does sound as if you are having horrible weather and I feel sorry for you having to be out in it. Interesting that you carry blankets in the car for a "just in case" situation. The food you had in the car sounded pretty darned good to me. Of course it may be that I just have such a sweet tooth lately that any kind of cake or Christmas goodies sound good (especially if I didn't have to bake it).
ReplyDeleteI just can't imagine what your winters are like though. I am pretty spoiled living here in this beautiful desert where people seem to flock to from such cold places as Canada and back east in the winter. They wouldn't like it so much in the summer though.
I do hope that your early flowers don't get frozen out. Still, when your spring really does come, I am sure you will have many beautiful flowers to enjoy and I hope you will take pictures of them.
I do hope that you have a Very Happy New Year, Linda and thank you for being such an interesting loyal blogging friend.
Hi Linda,
ReplyDeleteEven though I keep a blanket and emergency supplies in the van, just in case, I don't think much is likely to happen down here in the boring old south coast. The weather up there looks amazing, if somewhat tough.
I remember being stuck in a snowstorm on Rannoch Moor one Easter a rather scary feeling but we were well equipped and it was a good adventure to tell later. We are just being buffeted by gales and rain but no snow.Oh poor Grand Designs house!
ReplyDeleteit makes a superb photograph!
ReplyDeletewow you're not lucky with the weather ! i wish you 'll have a great sunny spring time , happy 2012 ! :)
ReplyDeleteYou forgot to mention the incredible tragedy involving a runaway trampoline caught on video by a possibly sober (but most likely not) bystander...
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPKb9z4l7eM
Sounds like you are experiencing much nastier weather than we are in Canada!
ReplyDelete