www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Hey!
Who else has been predicted dodgy weather for the weekend? More snow? Heavy Rain, you name it. Not that I will be very fond of it when stuck in London because of the wrong snow on the tracks! It's going to happen to me, lets face it
With the weather like it is, dare I say we could be in for a white Christmas? The first I will remember.

I think the bad weather was pretty widespread in Europe.

Here's a few pictures from near my new house in Huémoz, all taken yesterday (Sun) except the last:


Huémoz church at a quarter to ten


A very cold tree


The winding track to my house


View across the valley


And this is Asha looking at my new house on 15th November, before the latest snow fell.

Guy

So how deep was the snow Guy?
We had a flurry, nothing of particual interest, the snow wasn't deep enough to justify the coldness outside that I would face to go out in it! Neither was there a power cut making it warmer for me to go outside that sit around inside waiting
Em

I think about 2 feet fell at my altitude (now 1000m rather than 1280m) over the weekend but it absolutely tipped with snow today and it came up to my thighs in places when I walked home this evening. At 1000m it will probably melt soon (I'm on a south-facing slope) but higher up the mountain this snow is likely to stay for the whole season. Certainly, Christmas skiing is guaranteed...

Guy

Lovely photos Padfield, keep them coming. The photo of your house in summer can you take a photo from the same spot with the snow. When its Christmas do you have an outside tree with lights? I bet that's beautiful. I can see the sea from an upstairs window and yesterday it was totally white and brown. Lashing rain and hailstones.Ugh! Shirley

Hey Guy
I can't imagine snow that deep! I have never waded through snow. And I get excited over one flake falling
But what I can imagine is me trying to ski on it now there is a laugh!! I have never had the oppertunity to learn to ski, not even on the dry slops. So it is something I plan to learn in the future, one of the things to do! Have you heard of biathlon? Cross country skiing and shooting, it's one of those sports that I have always wanted to try I watch it in the winter sports, this is the only sport I watch because there is no way on earth I can play it! I also wish to try that sport where go down, like a half tunnel, in skateboarding it is more like a half pipe, and you go rocket down it on a board. I was sitting there glued to the TV, sort of like this . The closest I get is my skateboard, but I go down all the steep hills standing up, and for laughs leap off at the end, longest distance is well over 6 metres I think, then of course being nerdy working out momentum and velocity. I found the results rather eye watering, but I can't remember now, then worked out roughly the force required to break my bones and realised that if I didn't land I would be in A&E !!! My best was a dive roll from the steepest hill around. Now I know what is meant by 'flying by the seat of your pants', only did it once, the hard concrete landing put me off a bit if you hadn't guessed, I am into extreme sports I also like watching the gymnastics, and swiming, and the running!
As I can't ski, my best snow sport is sledging down the steepest hill around and break neck speeds, racing others. Making jumps out of snow, and ending up in the ice cold river at the bottom! And then having to walk home, but I used the sledge as a skateboard, so it was cool! By the way, this was a proper wooden one, and I used skate wax to line the runners, hence why I was the only person to end up in the middle of the river! I love it when it snows!
I think I will have to visit Switzerland in the winter sometime, and learn to ski and snowboard
How easy is it to Ski Guy? What does you new house look like? sounds like it is really beautiful!
Em

Shirley Roulston wrote:The photo of your house in summer can you take a photo from the same spot with the snow.

Funny you should say that, Shirley - I took the same picture in the snow for my Mum. In fact, it's mainly for her that I've been taking pictures right, left and centre since I moved!



That was on Sunday morning. We had a big dump on Sunday afternoon and then throughout the night and most of Monday.

And as you seem to like the piccies, here's another from Sunday morning:



I was quite pleased with this one from Saturday, looking out along the Rhône Valley. You'd never guess that way lies butterfly paradise...



Mouse, skiing is like everything - it's quite easy to do it badly and takes a lifetime's training and experience to do it well! I only do cross-country skiing but I train quite seriously and have reached a certain level of competence. I can do a 36km round trip in my local mountains in about 2 hours (providing I don't take the dog with me!). If you try any form of skiing - Alpine, cross-country or snowboarding - you should take a teacher and learn properly. Unfortunately, it makes for an expensive holiday, especially now with the weak pound. France is cheaper...

Guy

Again lovely and the dogs in the same spot, I do hope your Mum can get over and see the place for herself I'm sure she'd love it. Thanks Shirley PS I went on sking holiday to Austria and I wasn't very good all I can remember is bend the knees, but the country was fantastic with all the snow on the mountains, I said then, the holiday of a lifetime, I was 15 years old then and I was right it was the holiday of a lifetime, I have never forgotton it .

Don't worry Guy, I am very good at doing things badly! It is just expected now! I will learn to ski, one day....
I am very jealous of your snow, I am thinking about what my snow angel would look like
Em

There is a dark side to all this white beauty. Yesterday the early and heavy snow claimed its first avalanche victim in my local mountains - a snowboarder boarding off-piste at Les Diablerets.

http://www.lematin.ch/fr/actu/suisse/sn ... e_9-323153

and

http://www.lematin.ch/fr/actu/suisse/av ... n_9-323730

This was almost certainly an avoidable tragedy but a family is in mourning today nonetheless.

Guy

That is really sad
Your articles about it were really testing my French there! Proves what little of it to be honest. But from what I could make out in the part of the head line is that it happened yesterday at 11h30 and that a person is trapped and that the site where it has happened is not accessible at the moment
And in the second one, they went out today at 09h00 and retreived the snowboarder? who went missing in the avalanche using helicopters and dogs to search for him?
That really tested my french there! I haven't learnt French for about three years, and for the 3 years that I did, I was in a wild class, so never learnt anything!
You be careful out there Guy!

I think the snow is on the way, are we ready for it. Get extra bread and milk.
Shirley

I've been too busy recently to join in most UK Butts threads. But here's a few more snow pics - with a dog, you just have to get out for walkies however much time pressure there is.


Trees reflected in water


Evening falls


Dogs don't feel the cold...


... but roe deer do. Many die in the winter for lack of food.


Maybe there's a little grazing here...

Guy

beautiful pictures, Guy. I particularly like the first one.

I've set up a webcam again, this time pointing out of a window across the Rhône Valley. At least, I think it's pointing across the Rhône Valley. It's snowing so hard you can't see beyond the nearest field at the moment.

The cam can be reached via my web site (http://www.guypadfield.com) or directly here:

http://www.guypadfield.com/livecam.html

Guy

Very nice Guy, there's a lot of hard work being put into this we-site, just touching the surface I could see that but I'll have a better look later on, interesting with the cam.
Regards shirley

snow kills the butterflies:(

snow kills the butterflies:(

Not so.
All butterflies have different strategies to survive the winter (and for many species that includes snow).
At this moment many butteflies are alive and well, and surviving under many feet of snow.
However, they will not be the winged imagines but will be eggs, caterpillars or pupae.
HTH
p.s. Last February I saw a Brimstone flying over snow in North Devon.
Roger

Very red sun rise this morning and very cold, I took a photo of a distant farmhouse. I wonder if we'll have any snow.

That's beautiful, Shirley. You live in a lovely part of the country.

Re butterflies and snow: small tortoiseshells regularly fly over snow in the spring. Here's one on a ski piste (I think I've shown this picture before):



I moved it because it really shouldn't have landed on that cold surface, and particularly not exactly there!

Guy