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Cold wintry Marches 1996, 2001 and 2006


damianslaw

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Posted
  • Location: Windermere 120m asl
  • Location: Windermere 120m asl

As we approach March, my mind turns back to some of the cold wintry ones of yesteryear, proof March can be every bit a winter month!

There three Marches, 5 years apart that brought alot of cold snowy weather from northerlies and easterlies. 1996, 2001 and 2006 all started cold, and all brought mid month easterlies with snow. There were 2 snowfalls carbon copies of each other 10 years apart, 12 March 96 and 06, an Atlantic front moving into cold air, western areas saw alot of snow  I think more so in 2006. I was in the NE and there was a bit but not as much as in Cumbria.

Welcome memories and recollections of these three Marches. Mid March 2018 brought a similar event, giving credence to the adage that spring doesnt truly set in until 21 March, dont mistake a mild start to March, easterlies can attack quick with vengeance.

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Posted
  • Location: Scunthorpe
  • Location: Scunthorpe

Those 3 stick in my mind but there are also others that took place since 2000. Some more brief cold snaps or spells and I have come up with a list below

17th to 21st March 2001

A fairly decent little cold spell with snow for many

9th to 12th March 2004

Although a brief cold snap this one is less memorable and more of a let down than the first example

19th February to 14th March 2005

Although part of an extended colder spell that started in February this one wasn't the best one in the collection I have come up with. Some brief snow showers/snow events in the first half of March, especially in SE England near the colder continent but once the cold goes that is it and spring starts apart from a brief 1 day cold snap in April

28th February to 5th March 2006 and 11th March to 21st March 2006

The first colder spell was dominated by the Arctic and was the snowier of the two in general. Snow showers for a few days with a band of more persistent snow on the 3rd which wasn't even forecast and came as a surprise to me.

Generally in two phases this second colder spell. The first was the long phase between the 11th and 16th with 3 distinct snow events. Band of snow in the west on the 12th, another in NE and E England on the 14th and snow showers in the east on the 16th. The second was a brief cold snap on the 21st.

18th March to 20th March 2007

The only cold spell of the entire 2006/07 winter period for me that delivered any snow. Had snow showers on the 18th in an unstable westerly flow before showers became more focused in the east which delivered the most snow showers of the period for me on the 20th

22nd March to 24th March 2008

The white Easter I will not forget in any hurry. Started with snow showers on the 22nd which then became a band of more persistent snow on the 23rd before more snow showers again on the 24th

March 2013 in general

Although the month did have it's brief milder moments, mostly early in the month it was generally dominated by the colder spells. These came in two distinct phases. The first one was from the 10th to the 14th which contained the extremely cold easterly that gave some date records for cold maximums and that channel low that pasted the channel islands in 40cm of snow. The other main cold spell was really from the 18th onwards when easterlies set in again. Missed out on the 22nd snow event as the easterlies kept the front away from the east of the UK. This cold lasted right into April too.

February 26th to March 3rd 2018 and 17th to 19th March 2018

Two very extremely cold snaps, spells that occurred in March 2018. The first was the BFTE that started in the February but carried on into the start of March. Set some date records for cold too at the start of March as well as the winter storm that hit the SW of the UK and the Republic of Ireland.

The second cold snap was also extreme in its own right as it gave some very low temps again like the first beast did and this one delivered more snow for me than the main beast did

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Posted
  • Location: Irlam
  • Location: Irlam
18 hours ago, damianslaw said:

As we approach March, my mind turns back to some of the cold wintry ones of yesteryear, proof March can be every bit a winter month!

There three Marches, 5 years apart that brought alot of cold snowy weather from northerlies and easterlies. 1996, 2001 and 2006 all started cold, and all brought mid month easterlies with snow. There were 2 snowfalls carbon copies of each other 10 years apart, 12 March 96 and 06, an Atlantic front moving into cold air, western areas saw alot of snow  I think more so in 2006. I was in the NE and there was a bit but not as much as in Cumbria.

Welcome memories and recollections of these three Marches. Mid March 2018 brought a similar event, giving credence to the adage that spring doesnt truly set in until 21 March, dont mistake a mild start to March, easterlies can attack quick with vengeance.

March 1995 was much snowier than March 1996, infact March 1996 had little falling snow apart from around 12th. 

The one thing that sticks out for me about March 1996 was generally cloudy and cool.

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Posted
  • Location: Windermere 120m asl
  • Location: Windermere 120m asl
1 hour ago, Weather-history said:

March 1995 was much snowier than March 1996, infact March 1996 had little falling snow apart from around 12th. 

The one thing that sticks out for me about March 1996 was generally cloudy and cool.

I picked March 96 as it delivered the frontal snow event on 12th which was pushed back by an easterly.

Yes first 8 days March 95 most wintry spell of the season fir many, though some did very well late Jan from snowfall. It was dominated by NW airstream, we had a number of snowfalls 1-3 inches on each occasion, it was very wet snow and it thawed during the day then topped up again in the evening.

Mention of Easter 08, a snowier but slightly milder 13 version. The snow on the morning of Easter Day was a lovely surprise, it hung around all day above 200m but melted here, a good many inches on high ground.

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Posted
  • Location: Lincoln, Lincolnshire
  • Weather Preferences: Sunshine, convective precipitation, snow, thunderstorms, "episodic" months.
  • Location: Lincoln, Lincolnshire

I don't have very fond memories of March '96 in Tyneside, yes there was some snow on the 11th/12th which stuck around for a few days and some wintry showers in the last week, but my main memory is how dull it was, with 15 consecutive sunless days from the 11th-25th in some places, and just 30 hours of sunshine at Durham.   It particularly stuck out for cloudiness by contrast with the sunny Marches of 1994, 1995 and 1997 which had around 150 hours.  And indeed, unlike many other such "easterly" months, March 1996 was even dull over much of north-west England, though not to as much of an extreme.

I remember Tyneside avoided any substantial snow cover during March 1995 due to being sheltered from the dominant west to north-westerly flow, but there were many days with snow and hail showers, some accumulations during the showers (particularly from the northerly on the 27th) and thaws in the sunshine in between.  As well as the snowfalls in the first week, the northerly on the 27th was followed by a frontal snowfall in many places on the 28th with around 3 inches at Lancaster for example.

Early March 1998 had a couple of surprise snowfalls in Tyneside - overnight into the 1st from showers in a westerly flow, and early on the 6th from fronts.  Inland parts of the region also had lying snow early on the 4th, with a very slight dusting also at Cleadon Village.

Early March 2001 was snowy with 8cm accumulating at Cleadon on the 2nd and then a minimum of around -10C the following night, and snow showers fell, and accumulated away from the coast, on the 18th.

I was in Leeds in March 2006 where there were two snowfalls of note, from showers that formed along a trough line on the 3rd, and frontal snow on the 12th.  I remember that high ground temperatures initially restricted accumulations on the 12th but when the snow turned heavier it did settle on all surfaces.

Easter 2008 (21-24 March) was snowy for some and I remember an impressive snow squall late on the 24th in Cleadon, though it only produced slight accumulations.

March 2013 was exceptionally cold, living in the Vale of York area I didn't see any particularly big snowfalls but there were some impressive squally snow showers from an easterly on the 11th in particular.

My parents reported lying snow early on 3 March 2015 in the Vale of York area from a showery west to south-westerly flow, similar to the snowfall they had on 14 January 2015.  In Exeter I saw some wintry showers but nothing lay.

In March 2018 I was in Exeter and for once this served me well as the first easterly delivered 17cm of lying snow and drifts of about a metre, followed by an ice storm which coated the deep powdery snow in a thin layer of ice, and the second easterly gave 10cm.  The second snowfall again saw accumulations initially restricted due to high ground temperatures but when it got heavier it settled everywhere.

Edited by Thundery wintry showers
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Posted
  • Location: Lincoln, Lincolnshire
  • Weather Preferences: Sunshine, convective precipitation, snow, thunderstorms, "episodic" months.
  • Location: Lincoln, Lincolnshire

Leeds, early on 4 March 2006:

IMG_0130.thumb.JPG.06d73de32d64494a330e4091fdfa165f.JPG

Leeds, 12 March 2006:

IMG_0077.thumb.JPG.af5204b18e85a5ff0104cb98553503a8.JPG

Cleadon, approaching snow squall 24 March 2008:

IMG_7982.thumb.JPG.1bf4e23515049916f9f2720fe2a819ca.JPG

And the big one on 1 March 2018 in Exeter:

IMG_4210.thumb.JPG.24ec69e06f5f352139a1608e268e274b.JPG

and Exeter Cathedral, an unusual sight on 18 March 2018:

IMG_4675.thumb.JPG.943afc5c9f5fe419b3aefe9d6eccb3ed.JPG

 

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Posted
  • Location: Windermere 120m asl
  • Location: Windermere 120m asl

March 17 2018 was an ice day here. Snow showers early on then persistent snow from late evening which continued into the early hours, not especially heavy, but gave about 3 inches which stuck around the next day.

March 11 2013 another ice day.

 

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Posted
  • Location: Dundee
  • Weather Preferences: Snow, thunderstorms, gales. All extremes except humidity.
  • Location: Dundee

Late March 1975 was great in the Highlands and went on well into April. I had an Easter job delivering from Highland Perthshire to Speyside and saw plenty snow. Persistent often strong Northerly winds brought frequent snow showers and lots of cloud meant little thawing of lying snow. Areas sheltered from the North did not fare so well. 
March 1969 was also very good for the area I lived in then in Highland Perthshire. In this case cloudy Easterlies brought lots of snow and graupel which drifted in the winds giving large drifts on Western facing lee slopes which lasted for weeks. Remember struggling to open our garden gate as the snow had drifted up against it so much and the extremely dangerous but fun slides in the school playground. TheCET that year for March was 3.3C so cold not restricted to one area.

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Posted
  • Location: Cheshire
  • Location: Cheshire
8 minutes ago, Norrance said:

Late March 1975 was great in the Highlands and went on well into April. I had an Easter job delivering from Highland Perthshire to Speyside and saw plenty snow. Persistent often strong Northerly winds brought frequent snow showers and lots of cloud meant little thawing of lying snow. Areas sheltered from the North did not fare so well. 
March 1969 was also very good for the area I lived in then in Highland Perthshire. In this case cloudy Easterlies brought lots of snow and graupel which drifted in the winds giving large drifts on Western facing lee slopes which lasted for weeks. Remember struggling to open our garden gate as the snow had drifted up against it so much and the extremely dangerous but fun slides in the school playground. TheCET that year for March was 3.3C so cold not restricted to one area.

Yes, Easter 1975 (Easter Sunday 30th March) was, with Easter 2008 (22nd March), the coldest and snowiest Easters I've known. 1975 was in South London / Surrey and 2008 in South and North Yorkshire.

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Posted
  • Location: Beccles, Suffolk.
  • Weather Preferences: Thunder, snow, heat, sunshine...
  • Location: Beccles, Suffolk.

Woke up to 5" of levelish snow, on Good Friday 1975 (well, actually spent the entire night watching it fall!). All gone by 2pm though!

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Posted
  • Location: Lincoln, Lincolnshire
  • Weather Preferences: Sunshine, convective precipitation, snow, thunderstorms, "episodic" months.
  • Location: Lincoln, Lincolnshire

Some others from the archives for your collection:

4 March 1970, a frontal system pushed against Arctic air, and in the areas that saw deep snow from it, the snow stuck around for several days despite plentiful sunshine after the front cleared:

image.thumb.png.ccc733428752d8f92ac2bfaad375b77f.png

Mid-March 1979: although not an outstandingly cold easterly, cold enough to bring days of persistent snow and accumulations to a large part of northern England, and in the Newcastle area this was the deepest snowfall of the winter (and considering how snowy the winter of 1978/79 was, that's saying a lot):

image.thumb.png.7fe4fe861fd5369209415f7c534f25f6.png

"Frontal battleground with continental air" type snow for many, early March 1987:

image.thumb.png.68998a93a0b9d123686891c6899a3265.png

Even March 1988, following a mild winter, started with snow for some:

image.thumb.png.aba977f5a219d5f8a290948c4019c0f1.png

I've seen March 1964 mentioned, this may have been the culprit:

image.thumb.png.8a9765b807e6f58278a2792af0387f59.png

Edited by Thundery wintry showers
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Posted
  • Location: Windermere 120m asl
  • Location: Windermere 120m asl

March 75, 08 mentioned came on the back of very mild winters, cold in April 89 and 98 also on the back of very mild winters. Never never never discount chance of cold snowy weather until May I say.. northerly outbreaks can and do happen regardless how mild it may have been.

Edited by damianslaw
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Posted
  • Location: East Ham, London
  • Location: East Ham, London

Some cold March spells I can recall - starting with late March 1975 - I remember going out with my mother on Maundy Thursday and while I don't remember any snow, the temperature was around freezing all day:

image.thumb.png.c7cd75ea2c6963fe0e475efcb5005fa6.png

Then came mid March 1978 - Cheltenham Gold Cup day was lost and I remember 3-4" of snow in south London.

image.thumb.png.3af983913270e865945c466fd726f298.png

This was Easter Sunday 2008 and a good 2" of snow even in lowland East London:

image.thumb.png.582d63204f70a066fe7d6a26a9c82eaa.png

On to March 2013 and a remarkable Monday 11th - an ice day in east London but no snow though it snowed on the Kent coast and as others have said a huge snowfall for the Channel Islands:

image.thumb.png.bdebf8dabd54323e3ed6ce66fc50a7e8.png

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Posted
  • Location: Windermere 120m asl
  • Location: Windermere 120m asl
1 hour ago, stodge said:

Some cold March spells I can recall - starting with late March 1975 - I remember going out with my mother on Maundy Thursday and while I don't remember any snow, the temperature was around freezing all day:

image.thumb.png.c7cd75ea2c6963fe0e475efcb5005fa6.png

Then came mid March 1978 - Cheltenham Gold Cup day was lost and I remember 3-4" of snow in south London.

image.thumb.png.3af983913270e865945c466fd726f298.png

This was Easter Sunday 2008 and a good 2" of snow even in lowland East London:

image.thumb.png.582d63204f70a066fe7d6a26a9c82eaa.png

On to March 2013 and a remarkable Monday 11th - an ice day in east London but no snow though it snowed on the Kent coast and as others have said a huge snowfall for the Channel Islands:

image.thumb.png.bdebf8dabd54323e3ed6ce66fc50a7e8.png

What a month March 2013 was, I say more exceptional than Dec 2010 in many respects. The reverse polar flow end of the month extreme! Was it down to the early Jan SSW, very late effects...

Edited by damianslaw
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Posted
  • Location: chellaston, derby
  • Weather Preferences: The Actual Weather ..... not fantasy.
  • Location: chellaston, derby

interesting.....

out of 13 marches here that saw lying snow, even briefly, since 1969, 9 winters had an ssw . thats a far higher ratio than dec/jan/feb cold spells . it seems that ssws are responsible for late cold more than winter cold..

Edited by mushymanrob
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Posted
  • Location: North Leeds
  • Location: North Leeds

Apart from the depth of the snow on the 22nd-24th my abiding memory of March 2013 was how bare the trees were going well into spring and the lack of any signs of spring for weeks. The beast from the east  2018 was extremely intense but shorter in length compared to 2013. 

I remember snow on Easter 2008 and also we had a really wintry spell with snow showers in March 2007. 

2006 was cold throughout (almost like a 2013 lite) and also I remember snow in the first week of March 2005.

Edited by Summer18
Grammar
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Posted
  • Location: Lincoln, Lincolnshire
  • Weather Preferences: Sunshine, convective precipitation, snow, thunderstorms, "episodic" months.
  • Location: Lincoln, Lincolnshire

Yes, there was a wintry spell in March 2007 during an otherwise warm month.  In Tyneside I had a couple of days with lying snow from this northerly on the 20th and 21st, although it was only a centimetre or two.  Showers of hail, sleet and snow were most widespread on the 19th and accompanied locally by thunder, then on the 20th they were mainly confined to eastern areas plus Wales and the south-west.

image.thumb.png.324c1dbcb636b905505defed2563c5bd.png

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Posted
  • Location: Irlam
  • Location: Irlam

Loved to have experienced March 1965, what a month that was. Late winter season severe cold, early season summer warmth, blizzards, deep snow, very sunny and very dull periods.

The charts from the start of the month are amazing with a very cold airmass pulled across the British Isles then a developing low pulls down from the north 

NOAA_1_1965030118_2.png

NOAA_1_1965030218_2.png

NOAA_1_1965030318_2.png

NOAA_1_1965030418_2.png

Then the month ends on a very warm note.

NOAA_1_1965032918_2.png

Edited by Weather-history
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Posted
  • Location: Beccles, Suffolk.
  • Weather Preferences: Thunder, snow, heat, sunshine...
  • Location: Beccles, Suffolk.

I remember that Mr. Data: day after day of driving snow, that never quite managed to settle, to any meaningful extent. I was only eight!

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Posted
  • Location: halifax 125m
  • Weather Preferences: extremes the unusual and interesting facts
  • Location: halifax 125m
1 hour ago, Weather-history said:

Loved to have experienced March 1965, what a month that was. Late winter season severe cold, early season summer warmth, blizzards, deep snow, very sunny and very dull periods.

The charts from the start of the month are amazing with a very cold airmass pulled across the British Isles then a developing low pulls down from the north 

NOAA_1_1965030118_2.png

NOAA_1_1965030218_2.png

NOAA_1_1965030318_2.png

NOAA_1_1965030418_2.png

Then the month ends on a very warm note.

NOAA_1_1965032918_2.png

Yes an epic month.I believe in Whitby the March Maximum of 25 deg was recorded and was incredibly the hottest day of the entire year there,truely incredible.However with that in mind some places could have possibly recorded their hottest and coldest temps or very close anyway in the same month!

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Posted
  • Location: chellaston, derby
  • Weather Preferences: The Actual Weather ..... not fantasy.
  • Location: chellaston, derby
2 hours ago, Weather-history said:

Loved to have experienced March 1965, what a month that was. Late winter season severe cold, early season summer warmth, blizzards, deep snow, very sunny and very dull periods.

The charts from the start of the month are amazing with a very cold airmass pulled across the British Isles then a developing low pulls down from the north 

NOAA_1_1965030118_2.png

NOAA_1_1965030218_2.png

NOAA_1_1965030318_2.png

NOAA_1_1965030418_2.png

Then the month ends on a very warm note.

NOAA_1_1965032918_2.png

i was around in 65, but cant remember the weather, i was only 7 lol.

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Posted
  • Location: Coniston, Cumbria 90m ASL
  • Weather Preferences: wintry
  • Location: Coniston, Cumbria 90m ASL

20-22nd March 2013 gave us 24 level inches at valley level, much more on the fells....

I remember it well for a number of reasons including an epic rescue involving standing in the downdraft of an RAF Sea King helicopter with between -15 & - 20C windchill for best part of an hour...

Oh and my son got to meet the Duchess of Cambridge at a scout camp...

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