Well guys and girls,
I have not known snow like this. I now have something like my tenth day of snow. On Thursday it almost became too bad for the land rover. I shall tell you that story in a second. Last night we had a huge thaw and it sleeted. However, overnight it has frozen and the roads are snowed up again. I suspect I will be sleighing this morning.
On Thursday the weather was cold with a little bit of snow, but a good day. The local Funeral Director has just bought a Toyota Hilux and wanted some off road experience. One of the local beaches here has a run of about 4 miles that is easily accessible. You drive on sand and mud. So we went down, drove for about a mile, tried to get round a muddy puddle and immediately sunk up to his axles. It started at that point to blow a blizzard. We tried for 15 mins to get out, no way could we.
I phoned Jan - to bring my Land rover down and to remember to bring the NATO two strap. Well she duly arrived. I directed her slowly towards him and something like 20 feet away the Land Rover sunk up to it's axles. Nothing would shift it. Now we had a Reverend, his wife and little daughter and a Funeral Director (this is like a carry on film) all stuck on the beach. So after ten minutes I phoned the Police, the weather had deteriorated badly and we needed help. The Police were very helpful and gave me the number of local recovery firm that had specialist vehicles.
They quoted £105, but I said to them we needed a tractor, they firmly told me they knew what they were doing and they did this all the time. I insisted that they need a tractor a normal vehicle would not do it. They put me firmly in my place and told me to wait.
We waited for half an hour and through the blizzard I could see this truck coming towards us, spirits were cheered and we felt elated. Suddenly 400 yards away he stopped, Something was wrong. The blizzard increased in strength and the wind picked up severely. The funeral director and I ran towards the truck. When we arrived I saw that he had also sunk up to his axles. He was muttering rude words in Saxon and saying he would need digging out. I asked him what we do. He said he was not going to recover me as he was going no further. He muttered and I pressed him to help. He finally gave me the number of a company in Hartlepool. I ran back to the car (I was only wearing a jumper) and I realised that half an hour had elapsed and I had become very chilled and I was disorientated. I had stopped shivering which was worrying.
I telephoned the next company, yes they had a tractor with huge mud plugging wheels and they would get us out, cost £300. I decided that if the tractor could not get us out, then all hope was lost and we abandon the vehicles.
Tractor arrived, no problems, got up towards us and a big farmer just laughed and said no problem. He pulled us out, we thanked him, I felt like kissing him and we got on our merry way. We passed the stranded truck and the farmer was just about to help him, for a cost of £300 also. We waved and we were not stopping for anything. Got back on tarmac, kissed it and checked the vehicles - no damage whatsoever. Total time 4 and a half hours.
So my days of beach driving may be over, or at least next time I shall stay away from that beach.
I am just worried now the headline in the local paper will be "Reverend and Funeral Director buried on the beach."
A