Alps? No, Britain as Mad May goes on
TWO snowboarders making the most of the pristine wintry conditions... it could be a scene from the Alps.
But this was the Lake District as the crazy May weather left swathes of Britain blanketed in white.
Parts of Scotland and the north of England woke up to two inches of unseasonal snow yesterday, following falls on higher ground on Tuesday and Wednesday.
It gave winter sports fans an unexpected chance to make up for lost time.
Members of the Lake District Ski Club were able to return to the slopes for the first time since lockdown.
Club president Mike Sweeney said about 40 enthusiasts took advantage of the conditions on Raise, near Helvellyn, on Wednesday. There were blue skies and views as far as Scotland.
‘It was fabulous, people were just giddy with excitement,’ he said.
Few others would have been happy with the continued chill – with the coldest and windiest May bank holiday on record following the frostiest April for at least 60 years – especially those looking forward to a drink or meal outside a pub.
Even Britain’s only resident killer whales are suffering. Two of them were spotted off the Cornish coast yesterday.
It is believed to be the first time any of the eight-strong pod, normally to be found of the west coast of Scotland, have been seen that far south. They were possibly seeking warmer conditions or were perhaps hungry – orcas sometimes seek out food in new waters when the weather is unseasonable.
Experts say they can distinguish members of the resident orca pod from other groups by their unusual sloping eye patch and larger size.
There are some reminders it is spring, however. Micheldever Wood in Hampshire glistened in sunlight yesterday, the forest floor blanketed with bluebells.
And while Arctic-like bursts are likely to continue in today, the good news is that parts of the country will feel warmer this weekend. The bad news, however, is that it will also be wet and windy as the topsyturvy weather pattern continues.
Forecasters say the cold air mass currently over the UK will finally begin to be nudged out by a warmer system from the Atlantic.
This could lead to temperatures of up to 20C (68F) – the highest in weeks – in parts of the South East tomorrow and Sunday.
But as the new system spreads up from the South West across much of the country, it will bring high winds and up to 3in (80mm) of rain in 24 hours in places such as Dartmoor, the Met Office warned.
On Sunday, central and western areas will be hit by showers, some with hail and thunder. Temperatures will drop off again next week, while the rest of May looks set to remain changeable.
Yesterday’s snow, which even affected low-lying parts of the North East such as Gateshead as well as the Pennines, was not that unusual for May, according to the Met Office’s Nicola Maxey. There were falls in England last May, she said, but it much more uncommon for it to settle at this time of year.
The last time snow accumulated in any quantity in May was in 1997, she added.
‘Through spring you get these swings in weather types. So it’s not unusual to see a cold snap through April and May. During those cold snaps you potentially see a bit of falling snow but generally over higher ground and generally in the North.’
Snow settling is much more rare as the ground is warming up, even if it does not feel like it, she said.
‘Temperatures are rising during the day and, even if they’re not rising to what we expect in April and May, they are warm enough to melt snow.’
The sun is also quite strong at this time of year, meaning some people are suffering sunburn on clear days even though it feels quite cold.
While it will be warmer this weekend, tomorrow’s wind and rain means the weather will be ‘giving with one hand and taking with the other’, she said.