Waking to a winter wonderland
On Sunday morning Bath residents were treated to an unusual sight – ducks made of snow scattered across the city.
The frozen creatures were spotted on pillars, on walls, on fences, on fountains and even nestled in front of Bath Abbey.
Many people were seen enjoying the sight and shared their pictures on social media expressing their wonder at who the “snow fairy” could be.
One tweet about the phenomenon got close to 50,000 likes with people retweeting it saying “the world needs more fun things”.
The strange occurrence also got a shout out on Good Morning Britain.
The Bath Chronicle had already been sent pictures showing the ducks across the city so we tracked down the creator.
Andrew Nicholson, 54, from Bath went out at
7am to start nestling the ducks, snowmen and penguins around the city.
He said: “I just wanted to put smiles on people’s faces.”
Mr Nicholson explained he had bought a mould two years ago and had been awaiting the chance to use it.
He said: “I bought it two years ago ready for the snow after we had that huge snowfall but then we didn’t have any last year. I’d been planning on getting out at 5am to just leave them scattered around but I stayed up too late and only got out at 7am and people saw me. I kind of wanted to do it incognito but it was so nice seeing people enjoying them.
“I wasn’t expecting that kind of attention online but it’s so nice to see. I suddenly had a few more followers!”
He added: “One of the best moments was when I rounded a corner and saw this four-year-old with his mother and he had one balanced on his hand looking so happy.
“It’s just for the fun and novelty of it.” Mr Nicholson, a programmer from Australia originally but who has lived in Bath for 16 years, said he probably spent eight hours walking around putting ducks around Bath.
He explained he had a taste for doing fun things and has dressed as a unicorn and blown bubbles for Bath Festival previously. He also makes a habit out of paddleboarding down the River Avon dressed as a viking.
He said: “I just think it’s good fun to do something different. All of the tourists down the river ask me why I would do this.
“And I just say why not do it because it’s making you smile.”
Heavy snow hit the South West on Sunday leaving many parts of Somerset covered in a white blanket.
Residents enjoyed the winter wonderland, though snow caused some disruption on the roads with several main routes across Somerset closed early on Sunday due to collisions and stranded vehicles.
The A361 near Frome was closed, with Avon and Somerset Police Mendip describing it as a “ski slope” on their Twitter page. Other roads affected were the A303, A361 and the A37, while traffic on the M5 was restricted to a single lane in many places.
A number of minibuses and other vehicles carrying people to the Quantocks to go sledging also caused difficulty on Somerset’s roads, according to police.
Sedgemoor Police carried out patrols across the area as people took to the roads despite lockdown.
An uninsured driver who was breaking coronavirus regulations triggered a huge emergency services response after skidding off the road on Sunday.
The incident occurred on Buncombe Hill near Bridgwater and prompted 19 firefighters, three ambulances, an air ambulance, and several police officers to be sent to the scene.
Despite initial reports that it was a multi-vehicle collision, it turned out that only a single car was involved.
Parts of Somerset could see some snow or sleet at the weekend according to the latest forecasts from the BBC and Met Office.