It was Friday 2nd March 2018 and storm Emma was battering the Isle of Wight. The pavement outside was covered in ice and as I stepped onto the pavement I slide across the path, almost falling over. It was probably temporary insanity, but I decided to walk to the seafront.
It wasn’t snowing, but previously had been heavily snowing and had settled in places. The biggest danger was the ice and temperature. Few vehicles were moving and the cold wind was battering my exposed skin, such as my neck, cheeks and parts of my ears. Most people were walking on the roads, rather than the treacherous pavements. This week wasn’t a good week to shave my beard off, and whilst I had layers on, including a hat, I should have worn a scarf and my ears needed more protection.
The harbour area was deserted and the path dangerous. I kept to the side with a small amount of snow and made my way towards the beach.
Parts of the top layer of Ryde beach had been blown away, with sand built up on the nearby paths along the harbour.
I was extremely careful, but even then accidents can happen. It was the first time I had seen this amount of sand blown onto the pavements.
I strolled along the beach, stepping on the pebbles and then crossed over to the Ryde Canoe Lake.
Most of the lake had frozen over, with the birds all clustered in a small area at the opposite end of the swimming pool.
At the area closest to the swimming pool it appears that someone had thrown a bin on the lake, and its parts and other items sat on top, waiting for the eventually thaw to occur.
It was cold and time to walk home. I made a judgement error and slipped on the ice not far from home, landing heavily on my knee and right hand as I fell. I should have stayed home, and enjoyed the warmth and hot drinks.
I didn’t experience storm Emma outside at its peak, but what I saw was impressive.
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