THE RAMBLINGS OF A STRUGGLING ARTIST ON LIFE WITH TWO TERRIERS, A PONY WITH ISSUES AND OTHER WILDLIFE AND BIRDS THAT CROSS OUR PATH

24 March 2013

HOAR FROST


South West England seems to be the only area of Britain to escape the snow. We are very lucky but are still suffering temperatures down to minus five centigrade today. The last few days the moor has been shrouded in thick mist, contributing to today's amazing hoar frost. Nothing really on the ground; just attached to everything above ground and blown into directional banners by the freezing Easterly wind. Lots of frost flowers in lying twigs too. Yesterday I saw the first foal briefly in the fog, but it took fright when it saw me and scampered away before I could get my gloves off, let alone the camera out. It was chestnut, with a white blaze and I will be out searching for it tomorrow. Until then, the frost needs no words from me. It was magical.






















It sounds like the freeze is set to last the week and, when it says a temperature on the forecast, we can usually subtract five degrees or so up here. I hope that foal is okay. Here's Snippet, busy in the fog yesterday. Until next time........keep safe in the freezing weather if you have it.




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16 comments:

  1. rusty duck24 March 2013 at 21:12

    Fantastic photos Em.
    Yes, it's really cold. I subtract 3 degrees.
    I hope you find the foal.

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  2. angryparsnip24 March 2013 at 23:36

    Fabulous !
    I am so intrigued by the ice sculptures. Especially liked 2 and 12.

    It is spring here blue sky, breezy and right now temp is 74.
    A bit different that your day.

    That is a very Snippet photo !

    cheers, parsnip

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  3. ~Kim at Golden Pines~25 March 2013 at 01:52

    What great photos!! I remember hoar frost when we lived in Alaska. To me, there was nothing like a hoar frost landscape--One of Mother Nature's visual treats--The foal will be too, and I look forward to seeing it!

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  4. Susan Flett Swiderski25 March 2013 at 02:01

    Beautiful pictures, but you must have had some pretty stiff wind for ice to form in a semi-horizontal manner like that. Makes me shiver just to look at it.

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  5. Ragged Robin25 March 2013 at 10:01

    Magical photos Em - really beautiful. Hope the foal is ok.

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  6. The Weaver of Grass25 March 2013 at 10:58

    We so rarely get that kind of frost here - deep snow at present. Lovely photographs - I can almost hear those twigs tinkling in the breeze. Poor little foal in the cold - hope he gets plenty of his mum's milk.

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  7. Anonymous25 March 2013 at 11:54

    Love the holly leaf. Hampshire is also snow-free just v v cold. No foals in the forest here yet...

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  8. Bovey Belle25 March 2013 at 15:43

    I loved the 3D holly leaf too, but all such wonderful photographs. I hope the foal will be OK - poor little mite. NOT good being born from very warm place into icy weather like this.

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  9. Em Parkinson25 March 2013 at 16:04

    Rusty D - No sign of it today unfortunately, poor thing.

    Parsnip - Ooooo - How I envy your spring! I think they're saying it will be cold here for another three weeks.

    Kim - I've never seen one up here before and, by morning, it had all gone, despite it getting even colder today.

    Susan - A VERY strong Easterly from the Arctic apparently!

    RR - I do too....bit worried having not found it today.

    Weaver - They made a cracking sound when the big ones broke off onto the rocks today where they have remained over night.

    CT - So glad you haven't got snow!

    BB - The holly was the last picture I took and I only noticed it out of the corner of my eye.

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  10. John Going Gently25 March 2013 at 20:24

    Pretty and not at all cold looking x

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  11. ShySongbird25 March 2013 at 20:31

    Lovely photos Em, they didn't do much to make me feel any warmer though! We had more snow over the weekend but not as much as some, viciously cold though :-( Love the headless photo of Snippet ;-)

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  12. Mark Elderkin26 March 2013 at 00:58

    I'm a fan of the third from the top Em. What a wonderful sculptor nature is with ice, always surprising and inviting to the eye and the mind. The horse photos in your last post look very much like the wild horses on Sable Island off the coast of Nova Scotia - rugged and beautiful! Hope you are having a great day!

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  13. thelma26 March 2013 at 08:35

    Exceptional photos as always Em, and I can just feel the wind up there with all those horizontal icicled twigs and leaves, at least Snippet has a warm coat.

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  14. Em Parkinson26 March 2013 at 10:07

    John - They could be nice warm plastic couldn't they?

    Shy SB - Sorry about that! It's not looking like it's getting any warmer either. However, this cold, dry and clear day is just what I like so I'm not going to complain.

    Mark - A better sculptor than most humans. I'm sure you see far more dramatic work where you are. How do you find it to paint?

    Thelma - Snippet's coat is unbelievably thick and yet he lies out in the sun in 'summer' as if he has none.

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  15. Gill - That British Woman26 March 2013 at 12:16

    I too love the photo of Snippet, such a fun photo.

    My mam lives in the Carlisle area and they too have been lucky with very little snow, but those easterly winds make up for it.

    Hoar frost is really pretty isn't it?

    We still have plenty of snow on the ground here as well.

    Gill

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  16. Em Parkinson26 March 2013 at 14:44

    It seems to be everywhere this year. April is looming and it feels like January. I'm surprised Carlisle has been okay!

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