Winter 1995/96 vs Winter 1996/97

[SqueakheartLW]

Summary

These are the only two colder winters I can remember from my childhood as Feb 1991 is a bit before any time I took any notice and in general the rest of the 1990's winters were poor for cold although they had their cold snap/spell moments such as:
Feb 1994 - Colder month
Jan 1995 - A snow day on the 25th
Dec 1997 - Short cold snap with heavy snow then a thaw
Winter 1998/99 - Short cold snaps scattered throughout what was a mild winter

Although not a 90's winter this one sticks in my memory:
2000/01 - Only for that Christmas to New Year cold spell before further cold snaps in Jan to Mar 2001

 

Now to get back to the topic in hand

I'm sure many others here have memories of both of these winters. An ideal winter for me would be early to mid December 1995 followed by late December 1996 and early Jan 1997 before switching back to 1996 for the remainder of the winter to remove as many of the less cold, milder spells out of the winter.

December 1995 vs December 1996

Both of these months returned colder than average CET values of 2.1C for 1995 and 2.7C for 1996 and in both cases were promising starts to what looked like decent colder winters.

December 1995
Dec 1995 got off to a very mild start but this soon changed to an icy cold easterly with snow showers. The cold then stuck around for a bit with freezing fog becoming an issue. Then mid month a battleground set up when milder air tried to move in from the south but blocking was setting up to the north too. Snow fell along the boundary region which shifted north and south. The cold air eventually won out in the last week of the month when the coldest days of the winter arrived in northern areas in particular.

December 1996
Unlike 1995 the December of 1996 started out wetter than 1995 did and the snow events were initially quite marginal from what I remember but by mid month we started to see more easterly winds setting in but at this stage it was dry easterlies. Around Christmas the high pressure pulled out into the Atlantic and I recall a Boxing Day band of snow sinking through the UK. It remained cold after this before at the end of the month the coldest period of the winter started to see in the New Year with snow and strong winds.

January 1996 vs January 1997

The divergence between the two winters began here. 1996 was a close to average CET month by a small amount at 4.3C, 1997 was a below average CET month at 2.4C.

January 1996
The cold that had come in December 1995 was soon pushed away and then entered a 20 day period of record dull conditions with milder than average temps and if it were not for the last 10 days of the month January 1996 would have come back significantly milder than average but the very cold weather that came after the 20th with further snow dragged the mean back to close to normal. I particularly remember the snow that fell on the 26th and 27th of the month and was the heaviest snow I saw that winter.

January 1997
The start of the year was greeted with falling snow for me but the snow risk soon receded when high pressure took over. It remained cold for around 10 more days before the milder weather moved in and that was the story for the rest of the month and in fact the winter of 1996/97 too. This month was really a mirror image of Jan 1996. (1996 had the cold at the end of the month, 1997 at the start).

February 1996 vs February 1997

The biggest difference between the two winters takes place in the Februaries. Feb 1996 is a colder than average month with a CET mean of 2.5C. Feb 1997 on the other hand is a mild February at a CET mean of 6.7C

February 1996
Although I personally didn't see a whole lot of snow during this month unlike some other areas in the UK I remember it was cold quite often and for me the most significant snow came on the 19th with biting cold NE winds and blizzard like snow showers. Otherwise a generally dry and cold month overall. This capped off what was overall the coldest 1990's winter and if it were not for that 3 weeks of mild in January 1996 then it could have been even better than it was.

February 1997
This month was similar to 2011 in a way, only a lot drier than that February but the CET values are very close to each other (6.7C for 1997 and 6.5C for 2011) and I often think of 1996/97 as a watered down version of winter 2010/11. This February 1997 was really nothing more than a mild bore fest from start to finish, so much so that I remember little about the month and was a disappointing end to a winter which showed promise back in December 1996 and early January 1997 before going downhill for coldies after this.

 

Anyone else have their memories of how they view Winter 1995/96 in comparison with 1996/97. Which one do you rank as the better of the two where you are?

[Weather-history]

2 minutes ago, SqueakheartLW said:

 

 

Anyone else have their memories of how they view Winter 1995/96 in comparison with 1996/97. Which one do you rank as the better of the two where you are?

Easy for me, 1995-96 was easily the better of the two. February 1997 was winter free, so effectively winter 1996-97 was over by the 11th January 1997 

The one issue for me with 1995-96 was those first three weeks of January 1996 but what saved that month were the snowfalls on the easterly. 

Also for my area, winter 1995-96 was snowier than 1996-97 by a fair margin. 

 

[Thundery wintry showers]

1995/96 and 1996/97 to some extent remind me of 2009/10 and 2010/11, in that 1995/96 was a generally cold winter whereas 1996/97 was "front loaded", cold in the first half and then turned mild.  Although January 1997 was a cold month overall, and some areas retained their snow cover from the New Year through to the 10th or 11th, there was very little snow after the first few days.

However, I don't think the early part of 1996/97 was colder or snowier overall than either December 1995 or late January & February 1996, so for most of the UK 1995/96 would win comfortably, with the limited exception of areas that dodged most of the snowfalls of winter 1995/96 and got a dumping from the easterly at the end of December 1996.  It's less clear cut when comparing 2009/10 and 2010/11 because of the exceptional intensity of the cold spell between 25 November and 26 December 2010.

[Summer8906]

Of the two, 1995/96 was definitely the most exciting. It felt like a "proper cold winter", no other winter from 1991/92 to 2007/08 inclusive felt like that. Perhaps Dec 1995 was a bit like Dec 1981 but with the low track a little further north? I say that as both had "battleground" scenarios across the south, but while in 1981 these often produced snow, in 1995 they tended to produce mostly cold rain. Another similarity of course is that both years had notably fine Augusts and notably cold Decembers - in my remembered lifetime, from the late 70s onwards, I think they are unique in that respect.

1996/97 was very good from perhaps mid-Dec to mid-Jan. The second half of Jan was benign and anticyclonic, but February became increasingly wet and windy - and persistently mild.

Some reminiscences of 1995/96 :

I was in various places including Bath and Hampshire during this winter, so experienced typical "southern" conditions. There was definitely a battleground in December, with the cold weather dominating, but despite some promising forecasts, I never actually saw any falling snow. I think north Hampshire got some though.

I remember the initial easterly being biting cold in the first week of the month; as often happens it developed during a mild Atlantic spell with the easterly "pushing back" the Atlantic weather, so it went from mild/damp -> cold/damp -> cold/dry. Feb 1994 started in a similar way. The first week I think was bright with occasional wintry showers.

I think it then got a bit milder and anticyclonic towards mid month, then cold and dry again, before the battleground setup just before Christmas. The low track seemed to be across S England so while it was predominantly cold it was also very dull and wet - just rain, no snow (despite some heavy snow forecasts, evidently my area was that bit too far S).

The cold won out around Christmas Day which was famously crystal-clear and cold with blue skies and a biting northerly wind. Such conditions continued on Boxing Day and then the coldest few days followed, though it became hazier and cloudier. What ought to have been an epic snow event on Sat 30th as a front moved NE turned into a memorable freezing rain event, which for me personally was a bit alarming as the car I was in skidded on black ice. One of my nine lives, perhaps...

After that the mild won out for around three weeks as already said. The early days of the new year were dull and dry with temps close to average, before wet cyclonic weather took over around the 4th and there was a period of stormy cyclonic weather with some active fronts and heavy showers at times for perhaps 8 or 9 days. This period was very reminiscent of winters 1993/94 and 1994/95.

Around the 14th the weather settled down (due, I think, to an anticyclone to the SE extending NW-wards) and there were a couple of mild, bright days. During the following week, under an anticyclone, it turned dull and foggy at times and temps progressively dropped, the first cold day was Sat 20th with the easterly picking up again and temps perhaps 5c.

The next few days saw a renewed battleground as more potent easterlies arrived but lows started trying to push in from the SW again. There was a further freezing rain event around the 23rd/24th; had never experienced freezing rain before then got two episodes in a month! Then it became very cold indeed with a really potent easterly and occasional light snow. However overnight 27th/28th (I think) it turned notably less cold (though still cold), enough to thaw the snow overnight and the final days of the month had less of a noticeable easterly but hard frosts at night and temps a little below average.

These conditions continued into Feb and were typical of the first 4 days: hard frosts and temps somewhat below average. Forecasts were suggesting a full on breakdown the following Monday with the Atlantic moving fully in and a return to mild, wet weather. However in the event something else happened. The first Atlantic low met the block and, rather than pushing across the country, "slid under" it into France, drawing in colder air as it did and causing a memorable, several-hour-long snow event where I was at the time (Bath). It then turned seriously cold again with the 6th and 7th dull and intensely cold with full snow cover. A further 'slider' was expected to top up the snow on the 7th but in the event went too far south.

Early on the 8th a small trough brought a little snow but it then seemed a less cold but brighter airmass got in. The 8th was sunny, but temps close to average by day which thawed much, but not all, of the snow. Cold by night though. But on the 9th an active Atlantic low finally got in ending the cold spell. The following weekend was unsettled and slightly milder than average with further Atlantic lows, before, behind a trough which produced thunder on the 12th, the wind turned NWly and temps dropped to average or just below for a few days. It also became settled again.

The following weekend (17th/18th) a NW-SE moving low produced a spell of fairly heavy rain but then the second cold spell of the month, mentioned upthread, began with a strong NEly with the low now over perhaps Germany. There were snow showers for a couple of days and it was cold with windchill, but not enough snow to settle. Then, towards the end of the week it turned milder with a further Atlantic low. Finally at the end of the month, settled anticyclonic weather arrived and it was mild by day but cold by night.  A curious fact about 29 Feb 1996 was that it was the sixth consecutive 29 Feb to have either anticyclonic (5 out of 6 years) or northerly (1988) conditions, starting 1976.

Edited May 16, 2022 by Summer8906

[damianslaw]

Ah the memories... winter 95-96 hands down much colder and snowier than winter 96-97. Best December since 1981 for cold and snow. Although snow amounts were nothing special, we had a number of light snowfall events. The cold of the last week was very severe, a run of days temp failed to make 0 degrees, and very sharp frosts. First 3 weeks Jan were quite mild but very dull so it didn't feel especially mild. Remember the cold easterly digging in weekend 20 Jan, we had a 5 inch snowfall 27th Jan. The big snowfall came on 5/6th Feb, 18 inches and not bettered since. Feb was generally cold throughout and similiar to 2010 and 2013 but obviously much snowier. 

Winter 96-97 started off promising  cold snowy end to November. Not much snow in December, blizzards on New Years Eve were memorable. The first 10 days Jan very cold but after the 11th no snow from memory and little cold. 

[Summer8906]

20 hours ago, damianslaw said:

Ah the memories... winter 95-96 hands down much colder and snowier than winter 96-97. Best December since 1981 for cold and snow. Although snow amounts were nothing special, we had a number of light snowfall events. The cold of the last week was very severe, a run of days temp failed to make 0 degrees, and very sharp frosts. First 3 weeks Jan were quite mild but very dull so it didn't feel especially mild. Remember the cold easterly digging in weekend 20 Jan, we had a 5 inch snowfall 27th Jan. The big snowfall came on 5/6th Feb, 18 inches and not bettered since. Feb was generally cold throughout and similiar to 2010 and 2013 but obviously much snowier. 

Winter 96-97 started off promising  cold snowy end to November. Not much snow in December, blizzards on New Years Eve were memorable. The first 10 days Jan very cold but after the 11th no snow from memory and little cold. 

Actually you've just reminded me of the other feature of the extended winter 96/97 - namely November 1996. An unusual combination of very sunny, cold but rather wet, it was distinctly NW-ly with a mix of active frontal systems moving NW-SE with some anticyclonic interludes. A good number of cold, frosty sunny days (and some cold wet ones too admittedly) but no snow here (though the low of the 19th I believe produced extensive snow further north).

Early Dec 1996 was cold-ish I think but nothing record breaking. It became foggy for a while and then on around the 10th I spent one week in California (and being there in December is an experience in itself - think wonderfully deep blue skies, mild days but cool nights, and very dry air) so missed that week, though I then came back to perhaps the worst weather imaginable, very wet, dull, and being almost the solstice, very very dark. A shock after California!

Nonetheless the weather then improved as the cold spell set in. There were distinct phases IIRC, an initial slightly showery easterly which was cold but not spectacularly so, the a NE-SW moving frontal system around Boxing Day brought in colder NElies. A futher NE-SW frontal system a bit later (perhaps the 29th?) then brought in deep cold NElies with frequent snow showers from Cbs. The cold seemed to deepen towards New Year and while snow was light (I was in Cheshire during this period, not down south) it never melted so there was a light covering.

In the new year it became duller (late Dec was often bright) with a classic dull but intensely cold easterly for the first 10 days (went back south again during this period). A breakdown was forecast but the nature of it proved wrong; at first it looked like a messy damp breakdown with a cyclonic SWly taking over. Thankfully that never happened and on the 11th a very weak front produced milder but still dull weather with the wind shifting from E to S, if I remember right.

The following week of the 13th Jan was, if I remember right, was very sunny, with temps around average, maybe a shade above by day but hard frosts by night. Rather like parts of this January, perhaps. Definitely felt mild after the cold spell though!

Then it got a little colder again with a weak low producing slight rain around the 21st IIRC, before the final week of January had an intense anticyclone with variable cloud and average temps. So even though two thirds of Jan was very average temp wise, I believe Jan 1997 was the coldest January from 1988 to 2009, inclusive, such was the intense cold of the first 10 days. The dryness was notable, possibly the driest Jan on record?

February started with a progressively sinking jetstream. So average and dry became mild and dry, and then mild and damp, and then full on mild, wet and windy. Most of Feb was very  unsettled, even producing one instance of night-time thunder (perhaps around the 10th) so the second Feb in succession to feature thunder, unusual for what most be the least thundery month of the year on average. There was no real let up until early March and then of course we had a famously warm and dry spring, and (aside from June) much of the rest of 1997 until the end of October was also fine and dry.

So a mixed official winter due to the poor February, though the three-month NDJ period was definitely interesting.

 

 

Edited May 17, 2022 by Summer8906

[SqueakheartLW]

On 16/05/2022 at 18:22, Thundery wintry showers said:

1995/96 and 1996/97 to some extent remind me of 2009/10 and 2010/11, in that 1995/96 was a generally cold winter whereas 1996/97 was "front loaded", cold in the first half and then turned mild.  Although January 1997 was a cold month overall, and some areas retained their snow cover from the New Year through to the 10th or 11th, there was very little snow after the first few days.

However, I don't think the early part of 1996/97 was colder or snowier overall than either December 1995 or late January & February 1996, so for most of the UK 1995/96 would win comfortably, with the limited exception of areas that dodged most of the snowfalls of winter 1995/96 and got a dumping from the easterly at the end of December 1996.  It's less clear cut when comparing 2009/10 and 2010/11 because of the exceptional intensity of the cold spell between 25 November and 26 December 2010.

November 1996

Now that you have mentioned it I now do remember snow in November 1996 as well

The 24th was the main action for me that month. None of it stuck but this could have been the teaser to what the early part of the winter had in store. This one was the right side of marginal.

Mid December 1996

The following was predicted to be a potential snow event but on this occasion I was on the wrong side of marginal and all that we got was icy cold rain from this event

Christmas 1996 period

Finally the cards fell properly here and on the night of Boxing Day into the 27th the first covering of snow for me

This was predicted to only be snow over the hills with a wintry mix lower down. We got snow and a decent covering too which stuck around along with the snow from the coldest spell until 11th January 1997

New Years 1996/97 Snow

I did very well off this easterly with over 8 inches of snow in total over the 3 days we saw snow. Got around 3 inches from the band between 30th and 31st December before then getting stuck under a snow shower Humber streamer later on the 31st which gave another 5 inches.

This easterly in the Humber region gave as much snow depth as the easterly back in January 1996. What made this cold spell better than the January 1996 one for me was how the snow from this one stuck around for the next 10 days or so whilst the January 1996 easterly's snow was all gone 2 days later.

The tame breakdown of the cold January 1997

This was a rather disappointing end to the cold spell with very little if any snow to be seen which was a big let down to what could have been a much better end to the cold.

[Don]

Both disappointing winters IMBY, seeing little snow compared to many other parts of the country!  I think 1995/96 was the better of the two, though.

[Thundery wintry showers]

I had falling and lying snow in South Tyneside on the night of 20/21 November 1996 after the big low on the 19th moved out into the North Sea.  It snowed for most of the day on the 24th but didn't settle.  There was also falling and lying snow there on 17 November 1995, during a northerly outbreak in what was otherwise a fairly mild November.

[Sunny76]

Hands down, 1995/96 was probably one of the best for cold weather, although not much snow in the London region. Still had a light covering on Boxing Day, and another small dusting in February 96.

The 96/97 winter was pretty cold during the early part of December, after a cold November, up until mid January. 
 

 

[Summer8906]

5 hours ago, Sunny76 said:

Hands down, 1995/96 was probably one of the best for cold weather, although not much snow in the London region. Still had a light covering on Boxing Day, and another small dusting in February 96.

You didn't get the Feb 5th snow? I wondered how far east that extended, I was in Bath at the time but would be interesting to see if Hampshire, for example, got anything.

For me, that one was the best snow event from March 1991 to December 2009 inclusive, in a 20-year period notable for a lack of snow.

Edited May 23, 2022 by Summer8906

[I remember Atlantic 252]

2 very good winters here for snow!

[North-Easterly Blast]

Winter 1996-97 effectively ended around January 11th - it was another pear shaped winter in some ways similar to 2010-11 - in 1996-97 December was cold (though obviously nowhere near as cold as December 2010) , then a cold spell lasted into the first third of January then it all went belly up and that was it - the cold was never to return during the rest of the winter, whereas in 2010-11 it was the severe spell from late November and through December 2010, but once the cold abated at the end of December that was it, the cold never really returned during the rest of the winter and in 1996-97 and 2010-11 both the Februarys were ridiculously mild.  

Another so called pear shaped winter was in 1981-82 - that was another winter that effectively ended in mid-January and the rest of the winter was not up to much.

You are right that winter 1995-96 was a good example of a winter as a whole being good for cold spells - with cold spells in it from start to finish.  In some ways winter 2009-10 was also cold as a whole; the period from the middle third of December to the first third of March overall was cold.

In fact although winters 1996-97 and 2010-11 had cold starts that deteriorated into nothing, there have been very few examples of "back loaded winters" in recent times - the best example that I can think of is 2012-13, which had that notably cold March, and in that year the period from around January 10th through to early April overall was cold.

Edited May 24, 2022 by North-Easterly Blast

[damianslaw]

On 17/05/2022 at 19:31, SqueakheartLW said:

November 1996

Now that you have mentioned it I now do remember snow in November 1996 as well

The 24th was the main action for me that month. None of it stuck but this could have been the teaser to what the early part of the winter had in store. This one was the right side of marginal.

Mid December 1996

The following was predicted to be a potential snow event but on this occasion I was on the wrong side of marginal and all that we got was icy cold rain from this event

Christmas 1996 period

Finally the cards fell properly here and on the night of Boxing Day into the 27th the first covering of snow for me

This was predicted to only be snow over the hills with a wintry mix lower down. We got snow and a decent covering too which stuck around along with the snow from the coldest spell until 11th January 1997

New Years 1996/97 Snow

I did very well off this easterly with over 8 inches of snow in total over the 3 days we saw snow. Got around 3 inches from the band between 30th and 31st December before then getting stuck under a snow shower Humber streamer later on the 31st which gave another 5 inches.

This easterly in the Humber region gave as much snow depth as the easterly back in January 1996. What made this cold spell better than the January 1996 one for me was how the snow from this one stuck around for the next 10 days or so whilst the January 1996 easterly's snow was all gone 2 days later.

The tame breakdown of the cold January 1997

This was a rather disappointing end to the cold spell with very little if any snow to be seen which was a big let down to what could have been a much better end to the cold.

Interesting to note how both cold spells 31 Dec 95 and 10 Jan 97 failed to bring significant snowfalls, 31 Dec 95 was a feeezing rain event, Jan 97 a bit of sleety wet snow which quickly turned to rain. What often happens is the air in advance of warm fronts becomes very saturated very quickly in the upper atmosphere and very quickly mixes out the cold air left at the surface.

[damianslaw]

4 hours ago, North-Easterly Blast said:

Winter 1996-97 effectively ended around January 11th - it was another pear shaped winter in some ways similar to 2010-11 - in 1996-97 December was cold (though obviously nowhere near as cold as December 2010) , then a cold spell lasted into the first third of January then it all went belly up and that was it - the cold was never to return during the rest of the winter, whereas in 2010-11 it was the severe spell from late November and through December 2010, but once the cold abated at the end of December that was it, the cold never really returned during the rest of the winter and in 1996-97 and 2010-11 both the Februarys were ridiculously mild.  

Another so called pear shaped winter was in 1981-82 - that was another winter that effectively ended in mid-January and the rest of the winter was not up to much.

You are right that winter 1995-96 was a good example of a winter as a whole being good for cold spells - with cold spells in it from start to finish.  In some ways winter 2009-10 was also cold as a whole; the period from the middle third of December to the first third of March overall was cold.

In fact although winters 1996-97 and 2010-11 had cold starts that deteriorated into nothing, there have been very few examples of "back loaded winters" in recent times - the best example that I can think of is 2012-13, which had that notably cold March, and in that year the period from around January 10th through to early April overall was cold.

Winter 46-47 was backloaded though there had been a bit of cold in December, 55-56 to an extent as well with a very cold February. 1985-86 a great example as well, Dec very mild, Jan a little below average, Feb very cold. More recently winter 04-05 reserved its coldest conditions late Feb, but overall it was not a severe cold spell, but it did last well into March and had it happened 2 weeks earlier it would have resulted in a cold Feb. 05-06 is an odd one, consistently chilly throughout but again coldest conditions reserved end Feb and into March.

 

[North-Easterly Blast]

9 hours ago, damianslaw said:

Winter 46-47 was backloaded though there had been a bit of cold in December, 55-56 to an extent as well with a very cold February. 1985-86 a great example as well, Dec very mild, Jan a little below average, Feb very cold. More recently winter 04-05 reserved its coldest conditions late Feb, but overall it was not a severe cold spell, but it did last well into March and had it happened 2 weeks earlier it would have resulted in a cold Feb. 05-06 is an odd one, consistently chilly throughout but again coldest conditions reserved end Feb and into March.

 

I meant to say backloaded winters in recent times - there have been very few since 1988 - the only good example of one in recent times that I can think of is 2012-13.  All the other backloaded winters that I can think of were before 1988.  You are correct about those earlier examples like 1946-47 in terms of when the severe spell occurred; 1955-56 was a good example as was 1954-55, and 1953-54 to some extent as well.  1985-86 was a great example, starting off mild then it got colder for a while in late Dec / early Jan then got a bit milder for a while before turning cold in late January leading on into the very cold February.  

Before 1988 backloaded winters were relatively common as in the above examples but since 1988 we have only really had 2012-13.  

I would not call winter 2005-06 consistently chilly throughout - it actually wasn't particularly cold - for most of the winter it was consistently fairly average with HP often close to the UK and never really setting up into favourable HLB to bring cold northerlies and easterlies to the UK and the really cold air never really quite made it to the UK that winter, although the pattern did come together into HLB with winds in from a northerly or easterly quarter for a time in late February and through a good part of March. 

Winter 2005-06 was more like a failed cold winter = the building blocks were there but mostly did not set up favourably for us in the UK, although I think that north and east Europe saw some good cold spells that winter.  05-06 is an example that even if there is blocking over northern Europe, the pattern still has to fall favourably for us in the UK, and in that winter it just did not quite come together.

[SummerShower]

On 23/05/2022 at 17:33, Summer8906 said:

You didn't get the Feb 5th snow? I wondered how far east that extended, I was in Bath at the time but would be interesting to see if Hampshire, for example, got anything.

For me, that one was the best snow event from March 1991 to December 2009 inclusive, in a 20-year period notable for a lack of snow.

Feb 1996 in this area (Basingstoke) had about 2.5 inches on the 6th and another 2.5 to 3 inches on the night of 19th to 20th.  Was the best month for snow here at the time since February 1991

[Don]

On 23/05/2022 at 17:33, Summer8906 said:

You didn't get the Feb 5th snow? I wondered how far east that extended, I was in Bath at the time but would be interesting to see if Hampshire, for example, got anything.

For me, that one was the best snow event from March 1991 to December 2009 inclusive, in a 20-year period notable for a lack of snow.

Only a little snow on 5th February in Woking Surrey, but I think areas slightly west got a lot more, so perhaps Hampshire did ok?

EDIT:  Just seen the comment above! 

Edited May 25, 2022 by Don

[Cheshire Freeze]

Nostalgic memories of December 1995.

I was 7 at the time and it was the last Christmas period up at the farm before my grandparents sold up and moved. The farm was a good few metres higher altitude than the rest of the surrounding area (up into the Cheshire Plain) and I can remember my grandad having to get the JCB to get rid of the snow drift that had formed against his garage door.

He's no longer with us these days, and I look back with a sense of strange sad happiness. I wish I could remember more. The memories I do have are treasured

I remember the snow lying inches deep and my grandad being so put out by it all. Of course as a kid I loved it!

Edited May 25, 2022 by CreweCold

[StretfordEnd1996]

On 25/05/2022 at 08:58, North-Easterly Blast said:

I meant to say backloaded winters in recent times - there have been very few since 1988 - the only good example of one in recent times that I can think of is 2012-13. 

2008-09 perhaps? 

[MP-R]

26 minutes ago, StretfordEnd1996 said:

2008-09 perhaps? 

08-09 was pretty chilly throughout until mid Feb, when the mildest weather of the winter closed out the season.

[SqueakheartLW]

On 25/05/2022 at 08:58, North-Easterly Blast said:

I meant to say backloaded winters in recent times - there have been very few since 1988 - the only good example of one in recent times that I can think of is 2012-13.  All the other backloaded winters that I can think of were before 1988.  You are correct about those earlier examples like 1946-47 in terms of when the severe spell occurred; 1955-56 was a good example as was 1954-55, and 1953-54 to some extent as well.  1985-86 was a great example, starting off mild then it got colder for a while in late Dec / early Jan then got a bit milder for a while before turning cold in late January leading on into the very cold February.  

Before 1988 backloaded winters were relatively common as in the above examples but since 1988 we have only really had 2012-13.  

I would not call winter 2005-06 consistently chilly throughout - it actually wasn't particularly cold - for most of the winter it was consistently fairly average with HP often close to the UK and never really setting up into favourable HLB to bring cold northerlies and easterlies to the UK and the really cold air never really quite made it to the UK that winter, although the pattern did come together into HLB with winds in from a northerly or easterly quarter for a time in late February and through a good part of March. 

Winter 2005-06 was more like a failed cold winter = the building blocks were there but mostly did not set up favourably for us in the UK, although I think that north and east Europe saw some good cold spells that winter.  05-06 is an example that even if there is blocking over northern Europe, the pattern still has to fall favourably for us in the UK, and in that winter it just did not quite come together.

Another recent winter that could possibly count as backloaded is 2017/18

We did get some early cold snaps but for most of the period between mid December 2017 and early February 2018 it was average or milder than average

February 2018 was colder at times with some snow before the big event at the end and the Beast from the East

March was also colder than average too.

[StretfordEnd1996]

31st December 1996 for my location had moderate snowfall throughout the day (well I don't remember this as I was a tiny baby but images from that day inform me otherwise!).

 

Lead me to think - how many snowy New Year's Eve's have we had since? 

2001 and 2002 both had cold spells around that timeframe but I don't think snow actually fell (of note, anyway) on the 31st.
2003 I suppose did - but for my location 170m above sea level even here it was pretty wet in nature and thawed quick the next day

But since those I'm struggling to recall anything - even 2009 (admittedly 31st December 2009 was right between two fantastic cold spells but again I don't recall snow falling on that day).  

[Frost HoIIow]

39 minutes ago, StretfordEnd1996 said:

31st December 1996 for my location had moderate snowfall throughout the day (well I don't remember this as I was a tiny baby but images from that day inform me otherwise!).

 

Lead me to think - how many snowy New Year's Eve's have we had since? 

2001 and 2002 both had cold spells around that timeframe but I don't think snow actually fell (of note, anyway) on the 31st.
2003 I suppose did - but for my location 170m above sea level even here it was pretty wet in nature and thawed quick the next day

But since those I'm struggling to recall anything - even 2009 (admittedly 31st December 2009 was right between two fantastic cold spells but again I don't recall snow falling on that day).  

Had about an inch here on the ground on New year's Eve 2001. But IIRC it fell the day or two before with a band coming down from the north, it lasted about 4 days before it melted with the cold ground after a chilly month, still remember looking at it approaching on the radar on the old met office website before netweather even existed. I liked Dec 2001 though it was dry had freezing fog, very frosty and had that snow at the end. A seasonal month. The following January and February were snowless though. Very poor end to the winter and wet. Don't think we had snow still lying on NYE 2000 think it melted just a day before after the best snow for 4 years. It even shut the airport.

 

Edited May 26, 2022 by Frost HoIIow

[Weather-history]

10 hours ago, StretfordEnd1996 said:

31st December 1996 for my location had moderate snowfall throughout the day (well I don't remember this as I was a tiny baby but images from that day inform me otherwise!).

 

Lead me to think - how many snowy New Year's Eve's have we had since? 

2001 and 2002 both had cold spells around that timeframe but I don't think snow actually fell (of note, anyway) on the 31st.
2003 I suppose did - but for my location 170m above sea level even here it was pretty wet in nature and thawed quick the next day

But since those I'm struggling to recall anything - even 2009 (admittedly 31st December 2009 was right between two fantastic cold spells but again I don't recall snow falling on that day).  

I remember lying snow here New Year's Eve night 1993. There was snow over the hillier suburbs of Greater Manchester during that day as I recall visiiting my Nan in Pendlebury and there was melting snow lying. During the evening a cluster of showers which brought snow here and it was still lying New Year's day morning 1994

There was falling snow during New Year's Eve 1994 and it was a cold frosty start to New Year' Day 1995 with snow showers later in the morning.

New Year's Eve 1995 was the start of the thaw

New Year's Eve 1996 brought frequent snow showers and by the evening it was more or less continuous snow. 

Wet snow fell New Year's Eve 2000 but it heralded the thaw.

No falling snow New Year's Eve 2001 but there was lying snow here.

New Year's Eve 2003 did bring a little bit of sleet as the front moved in that evening. That did give parts of Yorkshire a good fall of snow.