snow envy, what snow envy

'the plan' has been severely tweaked to take into account of the 'extreme weather event'.

yesterday's 'run' along mam tor ridge turned into a crawl and a fight for warmth. but this was just a prelude to the main adventure. a snow bivvy.

meeting my partner in goose down at a pub with a roaring fire, we ate and drank and put off heading into the night. amy had pedaled, pushed and traveled by rail from home. she was still thawing out. i on the other hand, had a complete change of clothes and dry shoes in the car. despite this, i was in no hurry to leave the comfort of the ladybower inn.

after faffage of massive proportions we were ready to head out. amy on her bike and me in my fell shoes. we've been on this path before, conditions were less cold and white then. but it's well trod and easy to follow....an hour later, after scaling dry stone walls and wading through thigh deep snow, we had no idea where we were. it's now snowing and the wind is picking up. why it took us so long to get the compass out i don't know.

heading due north, dragging amy's bike by the front wheel, we battled on through what seemed like endless arctic tundra. both chatting but both very cold and a little unnerved. best not to say anything. head down and keep on. we're laughing a little less now. i'm glad i didn't bring my bike.

then suddenly, out of the cold snow, something flies up, it's wings flap against my chilled bottom. i scream. amy screams. we drop the bike. we both laugh. we pick the bike up and carry on. eventually we reach familiar ground. still confused about how we went so wrong so quickly. nearly there. the moon is so bright and now we can see our objective on the horizon, 'the wheel stones'.

for some reason we both had this nagging sense that there might already be some one camped there. there wasn't. out of the wind but the snow was still falling. my only thoughts were to get my frozen shoes off and get into my down cocoon. it was like a comedy slow race. both anxious to get warm, both too cold to move quickly.

i'd been given permission from jane that spooning was allowed, in "life and limb threatening situations". fortunately this was not needed. it was cold, the stars shone brightly and my breath hung in the air. but hunkered down i fell asleep. only waking for that dreaded need for a wee. bladder emptied and the sky appreciated some more, i drifted off once again.

we woke to the slow sun rising. it was so peaceful. so white. so serene. so lucky. a breakfast of bacon and (garlic and coriander) nann bread-not a combination i'll repeat but it was all my corner shop had. everything takes some much longer in the winter. but it means you have longer to take in the beauty of your chosen spot.

our walk/run, push/pedal down, was a lot quicker than the previous nights ascent. time for one last hot chocolate before heading our separate ways.

a snow bivvy, why? because we can.