It has been very cold here recently- like most of the UK, it has been colder than most people can remember over the last weeks.
Dunoon is usually insulated from the deep cold that other parts of Scotland experience, because of our closeness to the sea. But last night, it was minus 7 degrees C outside our house, and the temperature has not been above freezing for weeks.
Along the shore, the rock pools have frozen over, and between the tides, the seaweed collects white frost.
We have not had the heavy snowfalls here that have been common elsewhere. Glasgow and Paisley (but a few miles away) are deep white, but we have the remains of snow, turned to ice for the most part.
Apart from in the hills that is.
So I decided to go look for some.
I wanted to find virgin snow- the high up powdery stuff that does not ball under your crampons. It has been a while since I kicked my way into this stuff.
I set off into the familiar hills above Bishops Glen- the forestry tracks giving way to fire breaks in the plantations, then out onto the open hillside.
And I found snow.
this fragile tent 