60 years ago last night

[slartibartfast]

The start of one of the hardest Winters in history. Blizzard upon blizzard from December 'till late March, the entire country gridlocked by snow and ice............. as an eleven year old, it was great 1

Anyone else remember it ?

[phantom]

Not that year but can remember deep snow in Weston late 70's early 80's

[miser]

I remember a emergency retreat from visiting relatives in order to beat the snow home. Would have been 6 at the time.

[PHILINFRANCE]

36 minutes ago, slartibartfast said:

The start of one of the hardest Winters in history. Blizzard upon blizzard from December 'till late March, the entire country gridlocked by snow and ice............. as an eleven year old, it was great 1

Anyone else remember it ?

I was (and still am ) a few years younger than you, but I do remember certain aspects of it very well.

We had no central heating in our house at that time, and one of my most vivid memories of that winter, the snow aside, is of my father using my mother’s hair dryer to defrost the water pipes.

[Enclosure Old Timer]

I remember City were drawn home to Villa in the cup 3rd round.Due to be played early January, finally got played late March.

[Midred]

1 hour ago, slartibartfast said:

The start of one of the hardest Winters in history. Blizzard upon blizzard from December 'till late March, the entire country gridlocked by snow and ice............. as an eleven year old, it was great 1

Anyone else remember it ?

Lived in Clevedon in the 60s and we used to go down to the sea front and watch the diggers and tipper lorries dumping all the snow over the sea wall onto the beach. Dial Hill very popular that winter, can't remember too many casualties but going up and down Park Road to school (never closed in those days) every day was quite dicey! 

Regularly peeled back the net curtains from the ice on the inside of the windows. As on another thread the optional cranking handle on my dad's Singer Gazelle was used a few times and that was after we'd dug the drive out again! Happy Days!

Always amazes me when all the Chelsea tractors in London struggle with a couple of inches of slush.

[Maltshoveller]

2 hours ago, phantom said:

Not that year but can remember deep snow in Weston late 70's early 80's

Remember it well

Spent days on a home made sledge in Ashcombe park

[Mike Hunt-Hertz]

Winter 1981/82 was a good one. Almost came.off my FS1-E, on black ice.

[Lanterne Rouge]

I remember it vaguely (I was 4) but do recall long walks in the snow around North Curry. I think we managed OK but back then you still had everything you needed in the village and didn`t have to travel like now.

The one in the 70s I do remember very well. Taunton was basically cut off  and I had to go up to The Parade every day to pick up milk, bread and stuff which had been brought in on tractors and trailers. One thing that sticks in my mind is that all the snow that was cleared from the town was dumped in a huge pile in the car park next to the old rugby ground and there was still some there in June!

Edited December 27, 2022 by Lanterne Rouge

[Robbored]

I was 8 and dad built me a toboggan and I was envy of the estate. It was hung up in the shed for years but never got to use it much after that winter.

Walking to school and sliding whenever I could. It was great fun for us kids.

As the thaw set in we saw the bus stop gradually reappear- we’d been walking and sliding along the top of it! The snow must have been we over 8ft deep.

[AppyDAZE]

10 hours ago, slartibartfast said:

The start of one of the hardest Winters in history. Blizzard upon blizzard from December 'till late March, the entire country gridlocked by snow and ice............. as an eleven year old, it was great 1

Anyone else remember it ?

I was a baby, but my mum used to tell me about it later.

The other ones I hear talked about are 1947 (?)  and I also remember myself well, 1981-1982.

Sometime in 1982 I believe it got to minus 15 or lower for a few days and it did go on too.

Bleedin' freezing.

PS, is it a bit childish to actually LIKE it when we have extremes like these?  :laugh: There's something in me that does.

Edited December 27, 2022 by AppyDAZE

[AppyDAZE]

Next up in the series...

Floods, but we have to wait until August until we really get stuck into this one.

!968  anyone? i was a small kid, but I really, really remember that one.

Cold, hot., windy, wet  , come on, UK extremes,  let's have 'em.

 

 

Edited December 28, 2022 by AppyDAZE

[Port Said Red]

9 hours ago, AppyDAZE said:

I was a baby, but my mum used to tell me about it later.

The other ones I hear talked about are 1947 (?)  and I also remember myself well, 1981-1982.

Sometime in 1982 I believe it got to minus 15 or lower for a few days and it did go on too.

Bleedin' freezing.

PS, is it a bit childish to actually LIKE it when we have extremes like these?  There's something in me that does.

1947 my dad had started working for DHSS and ironically was so poorly paid he was in receipt of benefit himself. My eldest brother was only months old so his boss made a request of his superiors, for a couple of them to chop down some old dead trees in the office grounds and it was refused.

My dad, another colleague and his boss went back in the middle of the night and cut down the trees. If it was ever noticed no comment was made.

[redysteadygo]

Yes, remember it well. Had my 15th birthday in January. I did a morning paper round on my bike starting at 6 o clock in the morning and finishing at about 8 o clock in time to have breakfast and then cycle to school. Paper round covered Knowle West and Hengrove and I managed until Easter before coming off the bike due to the snow melt turning to ice overnight.

[slartibartfast]

56 minutes ago, redysteadygo said:

Yes, remember it well. Had my 15th birthday in January. I did a morning paper round on my bike starting at 6 o clock in the morning and finishing at about 8 o clock in time to have breakfast and then cycle to school. Paper round covered Knowle West and Hengrove and I managed until Easter before coming off the bike due to the snow melt turning to ice overnight.

We had a little lane in Downend which turned to a skidpan, we got our bikes and played speedway !

[ralphindevon]

Before my time but I heard lots of stories from my postman grandad and local journalist dad who both covered the Quantocks and Exmoor that had unbelievable scenes.

I can remember missing school in 78 & 79 and walking 5 miles to work in 81 & 82.

We had some great sledging spots near us. We would fill coal sacks with newspaper to use as a sledge. One day a lad cam over from one of the posh houses with a purpose built sledge, looked like a Ferrari compared to ours.

Anyway, his first go from the top of the hill saw him overtake us at great speed. Sadly, unlike our slow old sacks there was no stopping him and he crashed spectacularly into the thick hedge at the bottom of the field breaking his arm in the process.

It doesn’t always pay to have money. 

[redsquirrel]

either late 70s or very early eighties, my friends father rebuilt written off cars, gave us a dented mini roof hed cut off to use on tickenham hill,it was mental fun and pretty safe with pillars to hang on to when crashing into hedges to stop

[PHILINFRANCE]

31 minutes ago, redsquirrel said:

either late 70s or very early eighties, my friends father rebuilt written off cars, gave us a dented mini roof hed cut off to use on tickenham hill,it was mental fun and pretty safe with pillars to hang on to when crashing into hedges to stop

We used to do something very similar, although we would 'rip' the bonnets from scrap cars.

When I reflect on all those jagged edges, and how we used to tear down the slope, I wince!

[1960maaan]

Too early for me too, but we seemed to get proper winters back then.
Remember the one 76 or 77.
Not long been working in Avonmouth and got other train or Bus. After I got to work, and after about 2 foot of snow,  Radio announced all Busses and Trains were cancelled . Managed to get someone to drop me the 12 miles home, I'd probably still be walking otherwise.
Around then I remember there was a really cold winter, about minus 14*. I was told workers were going into freezer units as it was warmer than outside. 

[redsquirrel]

12 hours ago, PHILINFRANCE said:

We used to do something very similar, although we would 'rip' the bonnets from scrap cars.

When I reflect on all those jagged edges, and how we used to tear down the slope, I wince!

nobody ever got really hurt though did they. you knew the definition of sharp in those days

[southside]

On 27/12/2022 at 12:04, slartibartfast said:

The start of one of the hardest Winters in history. Blizzard upon blizzard from December 'till late March, the entire country gridlocked by snow and ice............. as an eleven year old, it was great 1

Anyone else remember it 

Only got snippets of memories of it, apparently my dad was really ill, my brother was ill, I had bronchitis, all looked after by my mum who eventually got ill herself, couldn't have a fire in the grate as the pipes were frozen, so the heat for our place was provided by a borrowed two bar electric fire, constant snow, bitterly cold for months, huge icicles no fresh veg as the ground was frozen. 

Apart from that, all good

[Erithacus]

I was fresh out of the oven in the winter of '63 so I don't remember anything about it. Suffice to say my parents managed to keep me warm enough and I like winters but still have a fixation with blankets. 

[BigTone]

I was only young but I do remember my Dad opening the front door to a wall of snow

[Open End Numb Legs]

Was talking to an ex farmer about this last week. I was only 1yo but he lived on a farm and helped dig out some neighbours from their bungalow down the lane. Apparently only the chimney was showing above the snow after the 1st of the storms.

[Port Said Red]

25 minutes ago, BigTone said:

I was only young but I do remember my Dad opening the front door to a wall of snow

Like this?

https://youtu.be/gu9VC1MyAEU

[BigTone]

3 minutes ago, Port Said Red said:

Like this?

https://youtu.be/gu9VC1MyAEU

Pretty much yes. Reminds me of working in the Atlas Mountains in Morocco also. Lost the car on numerous occasions.

[bpexile]

On 27/12/2022 at 22:34, slartibartfast said:

The start of one of the hardest Winters in history. Blizzard upon blizzard from December 'till late March, the entire country gridlocked by snow and ice............. as an eleven year old, it was great 1

Anyone else remember it ?

Yes I remember it, I was a newspaper boy & the trains stopped delivery, well everything just about stopped. Am I right in thinking that the sea actually froze around the south coast ?

[slartibartfast]

4 hours ago, bpexile said:

Yes I remember it, I was a newspaper boy & the trains stopped delivery, well everything just about stopped. Am I right in thinking that the sea actually froze around the south coast ?

Yep, and the east .