Cold snowy Marches of 1984-87?

[damianslaw]

My last historic thread early March 95 received no replies.. let's try with this one..

The cold snowy start to this March has me thinking of Marches past that have also delivered the cold and snowy goods.

I think there were 4 relatively cold Marches between 1984 and 1987 all on the back of at times cold snowy Jan-Feb periods.

I have recollections of March 87, we had a couple of good snowfalls early in the month. I don't have memories of 1984-86 but looking at the stats these were cold, and I wonder whether they produced much in the way of snow?

Please share posts and memories of any snowfalls during those 4 Marches.

 

[Thundery wintry showers]

I don't have specific memories of those Marches as I was too young, but I'm aware of quite a few snow events to draw attention to.

15-17 March 1985: a cyclonic episode with northerly and north-westerly winds.  The 850hPa temperatures don't look remarkable but with low pressure around and troughs and fronts as well as showers, some areas had significant snowfalls.  Waddington near Lincoln reported 17cm of lying snow on the 17th.  A build of high pressure over Scandinavia followed, leading to more frontal snow on the 20th and 21st as milder air pushed in only slowly from the south-west.

March 1986: Not a remarkably snowy month overall, but the 1st saw the back end of the February 1986 cold spell with a strong easterly flow in the south.  Later that month, a deep depression on the 24th brought widespread snow on its northern flank, while on the 23rd and 25th, north-westerly winds brought widespread wintry showers, in a setup quite similar to that of early March 1995.

March 1987: there were frontal snowfalls in the first week as continental air pushed in from the east and Atlantic systems kept colliding with it.  Northerlies and north-westerlies then brought widespread snow showers between the 18th and 21st.

I'm not aware of any specific snow events in March 1984 that stick out, but I know it was a very easterly month with snow flurries at times and a considerable shortage of sunshine in the east.  But not all of these Marches were gloomy: the Marches of 1985 and 1986 were both generally sunnier than average despite being rather wet.

Edited March 10, 2023 by Thundery wintry showers

[Sting Jet]

All of those Marches I have some memory of and to me March then I perceived as more of an extention of winter. I remember the cold, dull March of 1984, snow flurries in 1985, the end of the month long freeze up in early March 1986 and the heavy wet snowfall of March 6/7th 1987. That one particularly sticks out as it was a Saturday, the day after the Herald Of Free Enterprise ferry disaster that was all over the news that day. I can remember all of these despite being between the ages of 6 and 9 at the time. 

[Iceaxecrampon]

March 4th 1987 Preston (Tuesday?)

We were on a coach setting off to Exeter for an away match. Decent memorable snowfall started the evening before 

Setting off through Bamber Bridge local school kids throwing snowballs at the 2 coaches. 

Long drive down the M6 M5 Somerset in particular looked glorious as the Sun came out. Off coach at Exeter warm Football Shirt weather. Few pubs Beer gardens. 

Local youths throwing bricks at the coaches after the match  

Front coach window smashed. A cold hyperthermic 260 mile journey back home to the frozen North at 3am. 

Odd. I always had Exeter down as a decent place. 
 

We won 2-1 ha! 

Edited March 11, 2023 by Iceaxecrampon

[Sunny76]

For some unknown reason I always thought March 1984 was warm and sunny lol.

I was only 8 at the time, but I do have vague memories of spring term at school being quite warm and sunny, so maybe it was 83 or 84 and April.

March 1987 was dull and cool, but I remember February half term being wet and mild at times. The cold came back in march, before the shift to a very warm and sunny April came along.

This must have been one of the subtle changes to the U.K. climate at the time, even before the Great Storm in the following October.

 

[damianslaw]

Thanks for replies and charts. Yes I am trying to pinpoint a particular day in March 1987 distinctly remember there being a good cover on the ground and having snowball fights in junior school playground. I think it was mid week either a Wednesday or Thursday morning, the 4th March event would correlate with this, also the snowfalls mentioned between 18th and 21st.. wish I kept a weather diary back then!

Despite being 5-8 during this period, I only remember 1987. 1986 looks like it gave some snow later in the month, I do remember early March being cold with a slow thaw but not much snow.

March 85 looks like it delivered hefty snow, my only vague memories of snow that winter were from Jan and / or Feb.

1984 looks a cold month I suspect some snow.

[Weather-history]

Remember Friday of 15th March 1985 like yesterday. Remember looking out the window and see large snowflakes falling that night and I can even tell you what the late evening film was on BBC 1: Two Minute Warning.

The next morning was white and it was still snowing but it cleared about midday and it was fairly sunny and the snow melted away in the sun. 

Recall the week running up to Easter 1986, there was a warning of a storm on the Monday of the 24th March. There was falling snow here but it never stuck, I think the storm low tracked to the south of here. There was a bit of sleet in the showers on Easter Monday 1986.

There was lying snow here on the morning of 5th March 1987 and it snowed up till midday but that melted during the morning despite snow falling.

We had snow on the afternoon of 7th March 1987 (day after Zeebrugge disaster) but it took awhile to stick it snowed right into the night and we had a reasonable covering. Made a snowman as the darkness developed. That snow cover disappeared the next day,The wind direction weren't favourable for the snow/hail showers of  18th/19th March 1987 to hit here and only the odd one hit the area with soft hail.

There was a good Cheshire Gap effect because you could see the showers and anvils streaming down through the gap. On the Friday of 20th March 1987, the wind backed more westerly and the showers came through that morning with snow and soft hail but it dried up that afternoon.

 

Edited March 11, 2023 by Weather-history