This week, we have a selection of photographs showcasing some Christmas scenes across the Harrogate district taken in the December snow.
Photo of the Week will take centre stage from January 2 in our new-look nightly email newsletter. The newsletter drops into your inbox every evening at 6pm with all the day’s stories and more.
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Erica Johnson
Heather Middleton
Jeannette Wilson
Photo of the Week celebrates the Harrogate district. It could be anything from family life to capturing the district’s beauty. We are interested in amateur and professional photographs, in a landscape format.
Send your photographs to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk for a chance to be featured next week, we reserve the right to adjust and crop images to fit into our format.
Snow transforms Ripon into a winter wonderlandResidents woke up yesterday morning to find Ripon wrapped in a white blanket, as the first significant snowfall of the winter covered the city.
The Stray Ferret was on hand to capture images from the Millfield play area at Bondgate Green, as parents and children played, to Spa Gardens, where Mick Burns’ striking Alice in Wonderland sculpture was transformed into Alice in Winterland.
Families braved the winter weather for some weekend fun at the Millfiled play area
Spa Gardens will become a focus of Christmas celebration from December15 to 17, when an array of illuminated decorations will light up the parkland area.
The free family-focused festive event, open from 2pm until 8pm on each of the three days, will offer entertainment and visual delights, with a number of displays, alongside Santa and his sleigh.
The wonderland sculpture which features Alice and other characters from her adventures, is a lasting reminder of the city’s link to the world-famous books of Lewis Carroll (AKA Charles Lutwidge Dodgson) whose father was a canon at Ripon Cathedral and the author was a chorister.
The artwork, unveiled in 2013 and extended by Burns in 2014, was caught in the winter chill yesterday, but will be bathed in light for the wonderland event.
A wintry Ripon Cathedral, viewed from Minster Gardens
In Market Square, the city’s Christmas tree and reindeer decoration, provided a fitting festive setting for Ripon Town Hall.
The stylish Georgian building (pictured) was built in 1799 as a townhouse for Mrs Elizabeth Allanson and assigned to the corporation in 1897 by her heir the first Marquess of Ripon, who served as the city’s mayor for two consecutive terms from 1895.
The life and work of George Frederick Samuel Robinson, Ripon’s most high profile politician, who also served as Viceroy and Governor-General of India from 1880 to 1884, is celebrated with a statue in his honour in Spa Gardens (pictured below)
Yesterday, his towering figure could be seen in the Narnia-like setting of the gardens, surrounded by evergreen trees coated in snow.
Read more:
Photo of the Week: Out in the snow
This week’s photograph was taken by Barry Carter, capturing his 13-year-old westie Lulu enjoying the snow in Ripley last weekend.
Photo of the Week celebrates the Harrogate district. It could be anything from family life to capturing the district’s beauty. We are interested in amateur and professional photographs, in a landscape format.
Send your photographs to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk for a chance to be featured next week, we reserve the right to adjust and crop images to fit into our format.
Snowmen and school closures as snow covers Harrogate district
The Harrogate district has woken to its worst snow of the winter. Amber and yellow weather warnings remain in place all morning and roads are treacherous.
Please send news of how the weather is affecting your school, roads and neighbourhood so we can add it to the blog. Email contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.
12.39pm: Ice warning for tonight
A @metoffice warning for ice is in place across #NorthYorkshire until 10am tomorrow. A warning for #snow and #ice is also in place from 3pm tomorrow until 6am on Sunday.
Please take care when out and about.
Find out more at https://t.co/hUMWZu9ntv pic.twitter.com/6zjLqfCNjJ
— North Yorkshire Council (@northyorksc) March 10, 2023
12.08pm: Council says it ‘stood down’ today’s bin collections
Due to the weather conditions overnight, and the sub-zero temperatures predicted tonight and into tomorrow, we have made the decision to stand down today’s (10 March) household waste and recycling collections…
Find out more at: https://t.co/F9iIHqV6GD
— Harrogate Borough Council (@Harrogatebc) March 10, 2023
11.42am: Minus nine degrees tonight?
The BBC weather forecast is currently forecasting a minimum temperature of minus nine degrees tonight. The Met Office, however, is predicting no lower than minus four degrees.
Either way, it is going to be cold and with standing snow conditions could be treacherous.
11.31am – Commercial Street in Harrogate ‘passable’
Commercial Street is “open for business” and “passable”, say businesses.
❄️Commercial Street is quite passable & OPEN for business❄️
☕️Don’t forget we’ve got 2 fab indie businesses to keep you warm with delish hot drinks – Bean & Bud and Lilly’s Cafe! ☕️
Find out more on our website https://t.co/UoImSxseXl#shoplocal #indie #Harrogate #snow pic.twitter.com/HWcapDPjsV
— Commercial Street (@Commercial_St) March 10, 2023
11.20am – More Harrogate pictures
More pictures of Harrogate covered in snow this morning on Montpellier and the Stray.
11.10am – Household waste recycling centres reopen
North Yorkshire County Council has announced its household waste recycling centres in Harrogate have reopened.
All of our household waste recycling centres have now reopened, except for #Leyburn. pic.twitter.com/A8Ldz5u5t2
— North Yorkshire Council (@northyorksc) March 10, 2023
11.05am – Ripon covered in snow
A nice aerial shot of Ripon market square and the cathedral sent into us by Paul Smith.
10.55am – Picturesque Knaresborough
Knaresboroughphotography has shared this picture with us on Instagram. Perfect for a postcard.
10.45am – Stray pictured in the snow
Ian Wilkie has sent some beautiful pictures of the Harrogate Stray pictured in the snow, along with a snowman.
10.35am – RHS Harlow Carr to reopen at midday
RHS Harlow Carr is set to reopen at midday today. However, play areas will be closed.
⚠️ Garden reopening at 12pm – 10 March ⚠️
We'll be reopening at noon today with a limited route around the garden – play areas will be closed. It will be half price tickets for payers.
Grab the camera and snow boots to enjoy a winter wonderland ❄ pic.twitter.com/S6Yr3HPku5
— RHS Harlow Carr (@RHSHarlowCarr) March 10, 2023
10.24am – West Harrogate recycling centre closed.
The West Harrogate recycling centre at Pennypot Lane is also closed this morning due to snow.
Thornton-le-Dale and West #Harrogate household waste recycling centres are also currently closed due to the #snow. pic.twitter.com/6038uUcNPK
— North Yorkshire Council (@northyorksc) March 10, 2023
10.15am – Belmont Grosvenor headmaster gives snowman advice
With pupils learning from home, Nathan Sadler, headmaster at Belmont Grosvenor School, has issued the following advice to parents:
In terms of learning from home, if you get the opportunity with your children, please can you:
- make snow balls
- roll in the snow – make snow angels!
- build a snowman
- sledge
- drink hot chocolate
- HAVE FUN!
Here he is pictured with his family and their snowman.
10.05am – Harrogate recycling centre is closed
North Yorkshire County Council has announced the household waste recycling centre on Wetherby Road is currently closed due to the snow.
The following household waste recycling centres are currently closed due to the #snow:
– #Harrogate Stonefall
– #Leyburn
– #Settle
– #Skipton pic.twitter.com/EfrQRGm9yS— North Yorkshire Council (@northyorksc) March 10, 2023
10am – The view from Pateley Bridge
Joyce Liggins has sent this picture in of Pateley Bridge covered in snow this morning.
9.25am – No waste and recycling collections this morning
Harrogate Borough Council has announced that its waste and recycling teams currently are not collecting this morning.
Due to this morning's conditions, our waste and recycling crews aren't currently collecting.
We are keeping a close eye on the weather and road conditions and will provide an update later in the day. pic.twitter.com/o4pc5wNSGF
— Harrogate Borough Council (@Harrogatebc) March 10, 2023
9.15am – Snow pictures from across Harrogate
9am – Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal closed
Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal has announced it will be closed today.
Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal is closed this morning due to the snow. Please don’t travel here as the car parks are closed and the paths are not safe. Take care on the roads and keep an eye on the website for all live updates. https://t.co/tyiQ88giPV pic.twitter.com/x0cdXUG7eS
— Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal, National Trust (@fountainsabbey) March 10, 2023
8.30am – Full list of school closures
Here is the full list of school closures in the Harrogate district.
6.39am: Bus service cancellations
The Harrogate Bus Company is warning of problems and providing a link to more information.
⚠️ Due to the current weather conditions we have a number of diversions and cancellations in place.
ℹ️ Please see the link for further details: https://t.co/0dCzYc3pFH
We apologise for any inconvenience@MetroTravelNews pic.twitter.com/7VEpbzFYdP
— The Harrogate Bus Company (@harrogatebus) March 10, 2023
6.34am: Pannal school closes
6.30am: Two schools announce closures
Admiral Long Primary School, Burnt Yates and Belmont Grosvenor School in Birstwith have emailed to tell us they have closed today.
Has your school closed? Email us at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk and we will include it in this blog.
Heavy snow forecast across Harrogate district later todayThe Harrogate district is bracing itself for heavy snow later today, with an amber weather warning in place.
The Met Office has warned that the most severe weather is expected from around 3pm, lasting until noon tomorrow.
The warning, which covers large parts of North Yorkshire, said:
“Heavy snow is likely to cause significant disruption on Thursday afternoon and Friday morning.
“[Expect] travel delays on roads, stranding some vehicles and passengers. Some delays and cancellations to rail and air travel are likely.
“There is a good chance that some rural communities could become cut off. Power cuts are likely and other services, such as mobile phone coverage, may be affected.”
There is still a high degree of uncertainty, however, with the Harrogate district being on the edge of the amber warning area and the BBC forecast showing only light snow and sleet for the rest of the day.
This morning, snow has been falling steadily in Harrogate and Knaresborough, leaving a covering on fields and gardens. However, roads are largely unaffected and remain clear.
To the north and west of Harrogate, conditions are clearer, with only light, sleety snowfall so far.
However, the forecast is for the weather to deteriorate later in the day, leading some traders to stay away from today’s market in Ripon, even though there was no snow early this morning.
Ripon market early today
Brian Murphy
Fruit and vegetable trader Brian Murphy was on site as usual this morning. He told the Stray Ferret:
“We will be keeping a close eye on the weather.
“Other traders who come from further away have decided not to come today because of fears that heavy snow could see them stuck here and unable to get home.”
Meanwhile, RHS Harlow Carr in Harrogate is closed today, as is Bettys’ on-site cafe – though its shop remains open.
Harewood House has also said it will close tomorrow.
Harrogate College has issued a notice that it plans to close its doors at 1pm to ensure students and staff can get home safely.
⚠️ Important weather announcement ⚠️
Due to the heavy snow predicted this afternoon, Harrogate College will be closing at 1pm today allowing time for staff and students to safely travel home.
Online learning will take place, please contact your tutor if you have any questions.
— Harrogate College (@HarrogateColl) March 9, 2023
There are no school closures so far today. Some nurseries in the area have asked parents to collect children as early as possible this afternoon before conditions worsen.
The Stray Ferret will continue to cover the weather conditions as they change today, tonight and into tomorrow. Keep checking our site and our Facebook and Twitter feeds for the latest news, including school closures, transport updates and more.
Got something to report? Email the news team with the details.
Weather warning for Harrogate district as cold snap loomsThe Met Office has issued a weather warning for snow and ice across parts of the Harrogate district next week.
The yellow warning, lasting throughout Monday and Tuesday, comes as temperatures are predicted to drop below freezing over night.
Issuing the warning, the Met Office said:
“Snow showers are likely to cause some disruption to travel with a small chance of more widespread disruption for some.
“There is a small chance of travel delays on roads with some stranded vehicles and passengers, along with delayed or cancelled rail and air travel. There is a slight chance that some rural communities could become cut off [and] a small chance of injuries from slips and falls on icy surfaces.
“There is a small chance that power cuts will occur and other services, such as mobile phone coverage, may be affected.”
Rural areas in the north and east of the Harrogate district could see temperatures down to -4C at night, while daytime temperatures are likely to be below 6C.
https://twitter.com/metoffice/status/1631604769587437568
Meanwhile, Yorkshire Water has advised residents to lag pipes that might become frozen if exposed to low temperatures, using foam insulation.
Emily Brady from Yorkshire Water said:
“Check for pipes, taps, cisterns, tanks and water meters in unheated areas that might be exposed to the cold. When you’ve found them, cut a piece of lagging to size and clip it on. If you’ve got some cable ties handy, pop a couple on to keep it secure.
“This will also help insulate your hot water system and could save you money on bills. You can also protect your outdoor taps with a tap cover to stop them freezing.
“If you turn your tap on to find no water, you might have a frozen pipe. First, check all exposed pipes for any leaks or bursts, if you can’t see anything then turn the tap on at your kitchen sink and heat the pipe with a hairdryer. Never ever use a naked flame to defrost a pipe.
“If a pipe has burst then turn your water off at the stop tap to minimise damage and water loss.”
Anyone who would be particularly vulnerable during water supply problems can join Yorkshire Water’s priority services register.
The Stray Ferret will have all the news of road conditions, school closures and more if the weather impacts on local services. Keep checking our website and social media channels for the latest updates.
Read more:
- In pictures: The day Storm Otto battered the Harrogate district
- Storm Otto leaves Ripon building owners counting the cost
Stunning crocus displays in Harrogate thanks to planting by volunteers
There may be snow in the forecast, but Harrogate’s Stray is proving that spring is certainly on the way.
A sea of white, shades of purple, and splashes of yellow is carpeting the edges of the Stray as the district braces for a predicted cold snap next week.
Harrogate is well-known for its impressive display of thousands of crocuses each spring – many of them planted in recent years by local volunteers.
Bilton Conservation Group was one of several organisations to help plant the bulbs almost three years ago, along with Horticap and Open Country, in a project organised by Harrogate Borough Council.
Bilton Conservation Group chairman Keith Wilkinson said:
“It’s great news that they’re doing so well this year. It was a good turn-out on the day of the planting.
“The mixture we put in was the Harrogate mix — the pale, white with the vertical purple stripe. It was a special commission from Holland.”
The displays have improved in the years since the bulbs were planted in autumn 2020, and are likely to increase further in future as they self-divide.
Visitors have been enjoying the scene this week as the crocuses get into full bloom.
Young Emma, who turns two on Sunday (pictured above), was staying in Harrogate for a few days with her parents and took the opportunity to explore the flowers – and pose for photos.
Read more:
- Plans for more Stray protection ‘not needed’ says defence group
- Wildflower planting programme launched at Ripon nature reserve