ARTICLE: Seeking the Sphinx - Scotland's Vanishing Snow Patches

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Iain Cameron, snow-patch researcher and author of The Vanishing Ice, writes about the disappearance of historic snow patches in Scotland, victims of our warming climate.

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 Lankyman 08 Nov 2021
In reply to UKC/UKH Articles:

Fascinating (but sad). Have there been years when every known long-lived snow patch in Scotland has melted away completely?

Has anyone noted where snow lies longest in other mountainous areas of the UK. I can distinctly recall seeing a snow band around the summit plateau of Cross Fell (almost 3,000 feet high) in the North Pennines close to midsummer. That was back in the mid-eighties and may not have been a relic of the previous winter.

 Stringy 08 Nov 2021
In reply to Lankyman:

Yes, there are usually observations from a number of people in the Lake District, Pennines, Cheviots, Snowdonia etc. Obviously the snow patches in these hills generally only last into May or June in a good year - the latest I have observed snow on Cross Fell was June the 13th in 2010. Like Scotland the prime locations are quite well known but it's always interesting when unusual weather like the 'Beast from the East' leaves deep drifts in different places.

 Sean Kelly 10 Nov 2021
In reply to UKC/UKH Articles:

I visited the Sphinx in late July a few years back and was quite amazed by the size and thickness of it. Also the breath of the Aonach Mor snowbed at that time of the year. I think it all comes down to quite heavy late snowfall. No doubt some years witness many more patches than others.

Post edited at 10:11
 Michael Gordon 10 Nov 2021
In reply to Sean Kelly:

It might be a combination of how deep the snow is at the end of winter, and how warm the spring / early summer.


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