Winter in the Yorkshire Dales

Winter has hit the dales in a way it hasnt for decades. The riverscapes are surrounded in white that glistens in the low winter sun. Sheep huddle together behind walls waiting for deliveries of food that arrives by tractor which, despite their traction, also slip across the surface. The rivers are running low as all the precipitation is stored in snow and ice, the freezing nights keeping water locked up.

Cars have deep coverings of snow and roads look like gorges as the ploughs scrape them free of snow leaving steep edges on either side. The forecast suggests we have at least two more weeks of this and with drifts already reaching above head height the next days promise impresive sights.



The thaw is held up by the sub zero temperatures dipping to -8 in the dales and colder still the further north one travels. When this huge store of water eventually flows the rivers are set to rise substantially. The worst case scenario for those living in towns downstream of here is a rapid temperature rise coupled with rain. Such conditions will undoubtedly lead to flooding, and misery, for many.

Research into land management suggests that compacted soils and extensive drainage exacerbates flooding by shifting water rapidly from land to river resulting in sharp spikes in the hydrograph. The key to the next few years, as we move towards the prescriptions of the EU Water Framework Directive, is to understand how land management effects water and more importantly identify methods for improving conditions whilst making sure upland farmers do not lose income. This is an exciting time for freshwater ecology as local scale perspectives are stretched to the catchment scale which provides many of the controlling factors on river ecology and quality.

The incredible thing is that the whole country is white, smothered in deep drifts and layers of weeks of snow. Satelite photos from NASA display this strange image of the UK. It looks like not only Yorkshire rivers are at risk. In the meantime the landscape looks fantastic and we all hope the thaw occurs in a slow, steady manner.