h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

It's snowing again, and rather heavily as well!

The stuff isn't settling as the ground is too wet, but it's having a go, so A+ for effort

This afternoon I had to go up over the hill and down the other side to see someone, and to pick up some odds and ends.

Well, over there the snow has most definitely settled. It's about 4 inches deep on the roads and fields and houses and stuff. The driving conditions are pretty treacherous, not so much because of the snow on the ground, more because all the local drivers have little or no experience in driving in snow. As for myself I'm fine, I've got a reasonable amount of experience from my days of living and driving in Sheffield. But I felt today that I had to pay particular care over the strange behaviour of other drivers.

Ah yes the 'brake as normal, panic when nothing happens, swerve wildy' snow-driving technique. I have seen it many times from idiot tourists trying Snake Pass in the snow.

Back in the first few days that I was living in Sheffield I came across the signs saying whether the various passes over the moors were open or not. I must say I was very surprised to see them. I had never before considered that main roads in England could be shut by bad weather for long enough periods to justify setting up some automatic signage.

What a sheltered life you must have led before then GD Oh, and when I first went over Snake Pass (around '78 or '79), the signs weren't automatic, some poor bugger had to go up there and flip them over

Well it just never snowed that much down in the west-country

Though it did snow heavily one year (1978?) and all the towns and villages in the area got cut off for the best part of a week. Food stocks were running low in the shops, and to get milk you had to take a jug to the local farm where the farmer was selling his supplies straight to the public, as the milk tanker couldn't get through to collect his milk.

That week was good fun

When I was a kid we got snowed in several times - cars could not get to us and we had to walk to everywhere. My parents house was at the top of a hill - one time I remember people walking up to ours and then skiing down - yes skiing in Hampshire!

We have had alot of snow here over the last week or so - often settling and then melting. I was in brum today and it made a really really good attempt at snowing - really good snow as well. Luckily it did not stay and I was able to get home

I guess I'm used to large amounts of UK snow, leaving on teh edge of the Peak District. I have many happy memories of sledging down Chatsworth park. Plus some interesting memories of sledging in a more local park- big hill, lovely bumbs all teh way down- but some git put the river Derwent right at the bottom.

it's a funny thing snow. in quebec, the can get a metre in 24 hours and 6 hours later everything is up and running. in provence, 5 centimeters brings the whole region to a halt for 2 weeks.

We have been having more snow here too - I have been getting up in the morning to find an inch or (on Friday) two and then by the evening ti has all gone again

The strange thigs for the UK (or the south at least) is that the world has not ground to a halt

we finally got enough snow this weekend for the kids to do some sledding... a novelty for march!