The Gully in Snow

Crimson Rosella in snow, a native to The Gully

(Platycercus elegans)

(Photo by Editor, 20121012, free in public domain, click image to enlarge)

It rarely snows in Katoomba in the Blue Mountains these days. In the old days it used to snow every winter, but these days we are lucky to get a brief flurry in August that doesn’t even settle.

So this morning was exceptional. The forecast today (Friday) was for a storm further south, but at 6am in Katoomba it started snowing. And in the middle of October (spring)!

Today’s weather, 20121012

http://www.bluemountainsweather.com/

Then it kept snowing and kept snowing ‘ till after 1pm. A few big tree branches crashed under the weight of snow. The streets and roads steadily became blanketed in snow, making them slippery and dangerous to most vehicles. The Great Western Highway remains closed. The trains are snowbound up at Mount Vic. It’s like we’re in the Alps where snow there is normal, but here no-one was ready for it. Snow has regrettably become a freak event in the Blue Mountains.

We must have received about half a foot of snow by lunchtime. Everything became soft white in a black and white landscape.

So it became quite a special morning and well worth a walk around The Gully in the snow.