Saying Goodbye To 2020 With Style. And Snow.

 

It is a matter of principle for me to do certain things at least once every year. One of these is walking to Fur Tor.

Certain Things made this quite difficult in 2020, and Events conspired to make matters harder. So it was that I found myself with a very much now or never trip up onto t'Moor on the 31st...

Ice was forecast, but the day was meant to be sunny with light winds and maybe a brief shower or two. 

I went for it.

 

 

Aside from some odd patches of snow on the roads - none at all anywhere else..? - the trip out to Postbridge was simple, and aside from a slightly frosted car park, it was all systems go in bright sunshine and blue skies, interspersed with the odd light shower. Of snowballs [those little raindrop-sized balls of snow, like soft hail; actually very nice to be in].

 

While standing water had frozen over, it was 3° - same as at home as it happens! - and quite warm in the sunshine. Down side being that the ground was not hard frozen, so under the scattering of snowballs and hoar frost, a thin ice crust overlaid very much liquid water and mud.... Dangerous walking! [Well, dirty walking, with many squelchy surprises...]

 

Interesting, and quite promising, really. Would it be like this all the way up?

Let's look into the future;

 

 Cairngorm?

Heading out, looking SW from the Northwest Passage.

Departing snow shower to the left

 

Nope! :D 

But I didn't know that then.

 

What I saw was this;

 

Almost August?

On the way. Looking back towards Postbridge.

 

Up a bit higher.

The Waterfall.

 

Plenty of water flowing, and just a light dusting of snowballs stuck to exposed surfaces.

 

It took a lot of walking and climbing to find anything like 'proper' snow.

The Northwest Passage.

[Same location as first photo]

Maybe an inch of snow up on Cut Hill that seemed to be mostly accumulated snowballs. Enough to hide the path and make things interesting [when you don't know what you're putting your feet down on and how far said feet are going to go, it slows you down a touch..!]. This is why we take a stick up there, though. :)

The odd snowball showers which passed through were more fun than anything, it was very warm in the sun and the only problem I had was my glasses steaming up!

 

Fur Tor!

 

I arrived in a snow shower - first actual proper snow - so this is taken on my way back from my lunch spot. With the wind, such as it was, in the N, and wanting some snow shelter to have lunch, I had to head to my alternate picnic site on the tor, away from the main outcrop.

 

Let me show you the difference between snow and sun;

 

Schnooooow!!

 

Sun!

 

With the snow shower exiting, stage left, and blazing sun entering, stage right. :D

Looking across the Grumblies to 

Tavy Cleave, Hare, Sharp, and Gt. Links Tors

How's that? As per usual, pictures do not do it justice...

 

I was not alone up there, though. People everywhere [you'd almost think it was half-decent weather on a holiday or something?], and not just people [you saw the Raven, right?] 

Stonechat!

Found me while I was munching lunch. I have no idea why they [at least two present] were still up there, but 1cy birds, so maybe learning the hard way? Whatever, I couldn't not leave about half a pork pie up there in little bits for them..

Time was pressing, and my decision to head back sharpish proved very propitious, as even as I left the Tor, a proper snow 'shower' hit. This lasted the next hour and dumped a good 1.5" of snow, which I would discover extended right down to at least Bellever. My trodden path up and almost all the markers I'd left [rocks and bushes etc. cleared of snow*] were buried, and visibility was rather reduced in it, too. Good thing I knew the way, eh? [To be fair, I was never even slightly at risk of getting lost; it was harder to navigate when I went up in 30' mizzle that time.].

The need to be back well before it got dark [and potentially snow-covered roads started freezing?] and my camera getting a bit damp stopped me taking too many shots on the way back, but that isn't the same as none;

Snow depth

This is one of the rocks at the waterfall. You remember them from up there, dusted in snowballs?

Tip to basket on that pole is 2.5"; that's a lot of snow very fast for Devon.

Looking back north

to the waterfall. 

[The grey sky is another snow shower]

As you may have surmised, I made it back ok, though I did ping something jumping the last watercourse; on takeoff my leg gave out on me and I only got half as far as I expected... Fortunately, that was enough to get a hold of the far side and pull myself up without falling in [Hooray for deeply incised water channels]. Better, while I found my car covered in snow and getting out of the car park was a little entertaining, the roads were fine.

Oh, but it was wonderful up there. 

When I could see it.

;)

Be Seeing You...

 

 

[[* At a couple of points it's quite easy to end up coming out of an area well off from where you want to be and have to re-orient. Not helpful when you're on a clock. So I took precautions; I may be {rather} nutty, but I'm not daft. The one exception was the little cairn that marks the south end of the workings path, which I'd put back upright and was visible**.]]

[[** Unlike the Northwest Passage cairns, which had been thrown down again and I for once hadn't re-righted; due to needing at least an hour, assuming I could find the stones under the snow... If they'd been up it would have made getting back a little easier for me and a lot easier for anyone who didn't know Cut Hill well. THIS is why I put them back up whenever I pass in normal weather, and will cheerfully and vigourously express my displeasure if I ever catch whoever knocks them down...]]