Out In The Cold

My primary absence from blip over the last couple of weeks has mostly been down to working long hours at our local community business - The Network Centre. As well as getting ready for the opening of our Bikes& Buggies business this Friday, I have been heavily involved in getting our tearoom decorated and fitted out after its its refurbishment for opening on the same day.

However, the secondary reason is the weather which has caused chaos here in Kintyre. Sleety snow and easterly gales were forecast, but nobody could have predicted the outcome, with snow build up and strong winds causing several electricity pylons to collapse about 8 miles north of Carradale. The power went off at 10 o'clock on Thursday evening and was eventually restored at Midnight on Monday (this is a back blip), when our part of the village got hooked up to a generator. Power cuts are a reasonably regular occurrence in Kintyre, but nobody can remember one lasting as long as this, or accompanied by such bitter gale force winds. Looks like the pylons will take a few weeks at least to repair, which means there is a high probability of further cuts.

The weird thing about the freakish weather is there is no snow lyingbetween Carradale and Campbeltown. However climb a few hundred feet or travel over to the West Coast of Kintyre and it is a totally different story. 10 foot snow drifts closed the A83 and the "Wee Road" down the East side of Kintyre. Overnight Kintyre became an isolated island cut off from the rest of the mainland. However, help was soon on hand with ships bringing equipment and supplies to Campbeltown. Most importantly, generators appeared and have slowly been restoring power to homes and businesses.

Fortunately, we were aware of the risk of power cuts when we built our house and included a good multi-fuel stove and gas hob in the kitchen area. The result was plenty of heat and some good food, the result of the freezer contents that had thawed having to be cooked. Its an ill wind as they say!

Less fortunate were some of the farmers on the West Coast who have lost many sheep and lambs in the deep drifts. For some who were struggling before it could be the last straw. I sincerely hope not.

With church even cancelled on Sunday, I ventured out briefly with the camera to get a few blips of the waves crashing on the Shore Road. In the background is Arran with the snow right down to sea level - a rare sight indeed.