What Is The Snowiest Place In The Different Parts Of The Uk?

[NorthernRab]

Depends whether 'snowiest' means deepest snow or most often - Aberdeen is by some margin the UK city with the most lying snow days, although being at sea level it doesn't do as well as inland parts of Aberdeenshire (which, to put it into context, are the snowiest lowland areas in the entire British isles). In the context of the UK as a whole, Aberdeen is a still a pretty snowy place.

If we go by number of days with snow falling, then I would argue that my home city of Inverness would definitely be in the running.

[Norrance]

If we go by number of days with snow falling, then I would argue that my home city of Inverness would definitely be in the running.

This topic was debated at great length on here[i recall] 2 or 3 years ago though snow lying rather than snow falling was the benchmark. There can be quite a difference though. Here in 1986 there were 30 snow lying days from 30 snow falling days while the slightly milder but more exposed Leuchars had 17 snow lying days from 58 snow falling days.

The outcome was that Aberdeen was by far the snowiest city in the UK having almost double the lying days of Dundee, and Inverness. South of the border there was much debate / argument which was eventually won by Durham I believe from Norwich and Leeds or [sheffield?]. These were from places where there was some sort of official records.

The snowiest place in the country with official records was Braemar but unofficially somewhere like Strathdon would take the honours. Under 1000 feet it was Aviemore or Carrbridge, under 100 mtrs somewhere in Perthshire and at sea level Lerwick.

[Aaron]

Not sure where you get your data from, but from 30+ years living in Edinburgh, it doesn't have "reliable snow". That long period of endless snow at the start of 2010? We had dry clear pavements and sunshine. The lack of snow in early 2011? That would be our six weeks of snow that the Army had to clear...

Edinburgh gets a smattering of snow when the rest of the country gets snow dumps - if it comes from West, South, or North, then we don't get it, as it is cut off by the sea estuary, or the hills.

Only if it comes due East do we get snow in any meaningful amount.

I am told by friends from Aberdeen that the city itself rarely has more than an inch or so of snow - AberdeenSHIRE gets heavy snow, yes, but the city itself seems not to.

p.s. also, Edinburgh is not usually classed as "big city" as it only has fewer than half a million people (and about forty million students...). Just don't want anyone relocating here eagerly expecting heavy snow in the great metropolis!

Uh, maybe you're over estimating how much snow the rest of the country actually gets - not a lot.

This is not up for debate, Edinburgh is snowier then Leeds, which is fairly snow by low-level UK standards and I see snow every winter when a lot of places in the UK get none at all.

BTW, Edinburgh has around 14 days of lying snow every year, but being close to the sea, of course the depth will be lower then say Braemar, but tell me how often snowless winters happen in Edinburgh? I bet they have never occurred. Edinburgh also did very well this winter in January and March.

Oh, and Edinburgh is a big city by UK standards, with almost 500,000 people, I believe it's the 7th largest in the country.

Edited December 6, 2011 by Aaron

[BleakMidwinter]

Uh, maybe you're over estimating how much snow the rest of the country actually gets - not a lot.

This is not up for debate, Edinburgh is snowier then Leeds, which is fairly snow by low-level UK standards and I see snow every winter when a lot of places in the UK get none at all.

BTW, Edinburgh has around 14 days of lying snow every year, but being close to the sea, of course the depth will be lower then say Braemar, but tell me how often snowless winters happen in Edinburgh? I bet they have never occurred. Edinburgh also did very well this winter in January and March.

Oh, and Edinburgh is a big city by UK standards, with almost 500,000 people, I believe it's the 7th largest in the country.

I'm totally amazed to find Edinburgh is so large by UK standards! I honestly thought Manchester was much bigger - my apologies for that!

but we really don't get much snow - the last winter was amazing, thanks to unusual Easterly snow-bearing weather, but the year before was far less than most of the UK; at times we were sitting in a bone-dry sunny Edinburgh watching news reports showing that "the entire country" had snow!

And we not only get snowless winters - we get years on end without any snow at all. The Botanics is the Met station and their records say "December 2010 brought the thickest layer of snow with 22cm at RBGE (though it was a lot higher in other parts of Edinburgh). The previous record had been 8cm on several occasions. Interestingly, the longest snow free period was from March 2006 to February 2009, almost three years."

http://www.rbge.org.uk/science/plants-and-climate-change/edinburgh-weather-station

So we're both right and both wrong :-)

[Norrance]

I'm totally amazed to find Edinburgh is so large by UK standards! I honestly thought Manchester was much bigger - my apologies for that!

but we really don't get much snow - the last winter was amazing, thanks to unusual Easterly snow-bearing weather, but the year before was far less than most of the UK; at times we were sitting in a bone-dry sunny Edinburgh watching news reports showing that "the entire country" had snow!

And we not only get snowless winters - we get years on end without any snow at all. The Botanics is the Met station and their records say "December 2010 brought the thickest layer of snow with 22cm at RBGE (though it was a lot higher in other parts of Edinburgh). The previous record had been 8cm on several occasions. Interestingly, the longest snow free period was from March 2006 to February 2009, almost three years."

http://www.rbge.org....weather-station

So we're both right and both wrong :-)

Yes, Greater Manchester has a population of over 2 million but within the the city itself it is smaller.

From my experience in working in Aberdeen the city often has more than a couple of inches of snow, particularly away from the harbour and immediate city centre. It would be a rare year eg 1989 where it does not get deeper snow than that.

[thebigyin]

Not sure where you get your data from, but from 30+ years living in Edinburgh, it doesn't have "reliable snow". That long period of endless snow at the start of 2010? We had dry clear pavements and sunshine. The lack of snow in early 2011? That would be our six weeks of snow that the Army had to clear...

Edinburgh gets a smattering of snow when the rest of the country gets snow dumps - if it comes from West, South, or North, then we don't get it, as it is cut off by the sea estuary, or the hills.

Only if it comes due East do we get snow in any meaningful amount.

I am told by friends from Aberdeen that the city itself rarely has more than an inch or so of snow - AberdeenSHIRE gets heavy snow, yes, but the city itself seems not to.

p.s. also, Edinburgh is not usually classed as "big city" as it only has fewer than half a million people (and about forty million students...). Just don't want anyone relocating here eagerly expecting heavy snow in the great metropolis!

All depends. Having lived in Aberdeen for 10 years odd, and being a snow lover, I have been pleasantly surprised with snowfall here. It's best snowfalls tend to be the ones where no-one else is getting anything I find! I am originally from central-southern highlands Aberfeldy area which does okay too, so I have a high benchmark. This year we have had little other than very minor flurries so far. I know Inverness well and spend good times there - it certainly in the running in my experiences runnign between the two cities there is probably/arguably been more times Aberdeen has snow while Inverness does not than vice versa. I'd say Inverness enjoys lower temps though as a city than here in the cold but dry scenarios.

Ah, just noticed Norrance's post. ah well, I have typed this now!

[NorthernRab]

This topic was debated at great length on here[i recall] 2 or 3 years ago though snow lying rather than snow falling was the benchmark. There can be quite a difference though. Here in 1986 there were 30 snow lying days from 30 snow falling days while the slightly milder but more exposed Leuchars had 17 snow lying days from 58 snow falling days.

The outcome was that Aberdeen was by far the snowiest city in the UK having almost double the lying days of Dundee, and Inverness. South of the border there was much debate / argument which was eventually won by Durham I believe from Norwich and Leeds or [sheffield?]. These were from places where there was some sort of official records.

The snowiest place in the country with official records was Braemar but unofficially somewhere like Strathdon would take the honours. Under 1000 feet it was Aviemore or Carrbridge, under 100 mtrs somewhere in Perthshire and at sea level Lerwick.

In terms of number of days with snow lying at 0900 I would probably say Aberdeen, but Inverness is certainly not half as snowy as Aberdeen nor is it as snowless as Dundee. Mapped averages of snowfall through the winter shows this

[Thundery wintry showers]

In Edinburgh it varies considerably depending on what part of the city you live in. The central parts by the banks of the Firth of Forth get surprisingly little snow, due to being sheltered to the north, at sea level and heavily urban, and experience some largely snowless winters, but the southern suburbs do get reliable snow. It's a similar story as you head east into FIfe, e.g. Leuchars on average gets slightly less snow than most coastal parts of north-east England.

On average Aberdeen is the snowiest of the UK's major cities. It might appear to some to get relatively little snow, due to being one of the most snowless locations in Aberdeenshire, but the stats overwhelmingly suggest that this is more down to Aberdeenshire being an unusually snowy region by UK standards than anything else.

I remember the discussion a couple of years ago and I'm fairly confident that Durham is indeed, on average, the snowiest city in England. This temporarily ceased to be the case between 1998 and 2008, when a lot of the North East's snowfalls were coastal and Sunderland ended up with similar snow amounts to Durham as a result, but during 2009-2011 Durham has returned to being there or thereabouts at the top of the list.

[Alex95]

Also, I suppose it depends on what you class as reliable snow. 8 miles inland, I get at least one snowfall of over 5cm in most winters, and I doubt there has ever been a winter with no lying snow at all here, so in that sense I have reliable snow, as does most of Northern England and Scotland. However, a 12 inch fall (30cm) is considerably rarer; before the last 2 winters I believe you have to go back a couple of decades as the 90s and 00s failed to deliver this benchmark figure; although I don't know how much fell in February 1991, I suspect it was closer to 8 inches.

Looking at those maps I reckon I need to move to Aviemore or Alston! Commuting from Alston would get hairy at times though, I know someone who moved there a few years back and works as a lawyer in Newcastle and they regularly seem to be snowed in completely! Just out of curiosity, does anyone know how often Alston is totally cut off? I know the A686 is often closed or impassable between Melmerby and Alston, but what about the other routes? Alston is 300m asl to begin with, although the road to Brampton never gets any higher than this.

Edited December 7, 2011 by alza

[paul tall]

The snowiest large town in the North East has to be Consett. For small towns of around 2,000 population Tow Law takes some beating. Down to villages with at least a couple hundred people living there, I can't think of anywhere snowier than Woodland, which is nearly 1,200ft above sea level. There are other smaller settlements just as high if not higher, but they don't count.

[Derbyshire_snow]

Sheffield has to be up there with the snowiest citys, as for towns Buxton would be most definately near the top if not the top for Snow it seems to have it's own little micro climate Buxton has already had 10cm of lying snow already that lasted from sunday night until last night.

[Norrance]

In terms of number of days with snow lying at 0900 I would probably say Aberdeen, but Inverness is certainly not half as snowy as Aberdeen nor is it as snowless as Dundee. Mapped averages of snowfall through the winter shows this

My figures were taken from the official MET O records for Dalcross low altitude [inverness], Craibstone [Aberdeen] a little altitude and snowier than Dyce, and the SCRI at Invergowrie for Dundee [down near the river]. 1961-1980 and 1971 - 1990 so maybe somewhat out of date. Last two winters we had 51 and 32 days snow lying so less than inland but not too bad. My home area in Perthshire had 65 days snow lying at 0900 hrs for both the last two Winters. Edited December 8, 2011 by Norrance

[osmposm]

Within London proper & its UHI, fairly small differences in height habitually make a dramatic difference. I have often - far too often - had sleet down here, while a mile up the road (and just 40m higher) snow is settling.

But the side of the city is also important. With a cold wind blowing from the NE - less common, it must be said, in recent years - the showers that come charging across from East Anglia seldom make it to the centre, let alone the south-west where I am: they are intercepted by the high ground of Hampstead, Highgate & Muswell Hill, and can dump there significantly while we are dry. The extra height (130m+) also helps in marginal temp situations. Ironically, though, with the wind at exactly the right angle from just north of east, the centre and west can cop it worse than Hampstead - the famous "Thames Streamer", as in Feb 2009.

But overall I suspect Hampstead Heath is (or was) the snowiest place in Inner London. Shooter's Hill (SE of the city, and much the same height) might well rival it, especially with the wind more in the east; but its borough, Greenwich, is not always accepted as being part of Inner London - certainly Shooter's Hill is a lot further from the centre than Hampstead, 8.5 miles vs less than 5, as the crow flies.

P.S. Re the North Downs league table, in the Surrey section Reigate Hill (230m+) is renowned for snowfall - but that may be in part because a fairly main road winds steeply down it from the M25, and people often get in trouble when it's dumping.

[NorthernRab]

My figures were taken from the official MET O records for Dalcross low altitude [inverness], Craibstone [Aberdeen] a little altitude and snowier than Dyce, and the SCRI at Invergowrie for Dundee [down near the river]. 1961-1980 and 1971 - 1990 so maybe somewhat out of date. Last two winters we had 51 and 32 days snow lying so less than inland but not too bad. My home area in Perthshire had 65 days snow lying at 0900 hrs for both the last two Winters.

See this is where the problem lies with weather stations, Dalcross isn't really a great weather station to represent Inverness. Most of Inverness (that is, the parts where all the people live) are a lot further West (therefor in a place where influence of the sea is diminished) and a lot higher up in many cases. Anyone who has seen Inverness will notice that it lies in a glen, the Glenmore / Great Glen. It really is a pity that Dalcross is supposed to give everyone a statistically accurate account of the weather for Inverness / Culloden / Balvonie etc, but it's the best we have I guess. There is of course nothing that can be done about this, we have to use what's there and no station can ever be completely indicative of true weather conditions - I just feel that Dalcross is a particularly strange station to use, I just hope that one day there'll be an Inverness Slacbuie station!

[Terminal Moraine]

See this is where the problem lies with weather stations, Dalcross isn't really a great weather station to represent Inverness. Most of Inverness (that is, the parts where all the people live) are a lot further West (therefor in a place where influence of the sea is diminished) and a lot higher up in many cases. Anyone who has seen Inverness will notice that it lies in a glen, the Glenmore / Great Glen. It really is a pity that Dalcross is supposed to give everyone a statistically accurate account of the weather for Inverness / Culloden / Balvonie etc, but it's the best we have I guess. There is of course nothing that can be done about this, we have to use what's there and no station can ever be completely indicative of true weather conditions - I just feel that Dalcross is a particularly strange station to use, I just hope that one day there'll be an Inverness Slacbuie station!

Very true, NR. Your post makes the case for enthusiastic amateurs with enough interest to keep records to as high a standard as possible; cough.. mentioning no names.. cough.

The number of official stations has become increasingly thin over recent years, and also increasingly automated. While automatic stations are excellent for providing data during the hours most people are in bed, or at work etc they are no substitute for an observer on site for parametes such as mornings with snow lying, occurrence of sleet or snow, thunder etc, all of which contribute to the fabric of the climate of a particular locality.

Once you get into the hills, let alone the mountains, the climate of one locality can be so different to one a few miles away that to have one station representing hundreds of square miles is meaningless.