Post by cal125 on Feb 11, 2009 17:05:42 GMT
Well I reached another landmark in my life; last weekend after an extended trip I had my first ever experience of being stranded in Inverness by the weather shutting the line (and the A9 too so they couldn't even put on replacement buses)! I was due to travel back on Saturday; they were announcing on board the Highland Chieftain that they were awaiting updates on the condition of the line from the overnight sleeper on its way up from Euston before we could leave. After about 40 minutes the announcement came that the train was officially cancelled and there would be no alternative road transport possible.
Somehow I coped
;D ;D ;D ;D
Especially as I got a lovely big room in the Royal Highland (station hotel) for £45 B&B; the usual price if not booked in advance would be around £80. They were aware that people were genuinely stranded and were as helpful as they could possibly be.
On Sunday the journey down was absolutely stunning. The snow was the purest white I've ever seen it and by this time the sky was blue; the trees were so laden with snow they looked like ice sculptures and everything was so still it was like a photograph. As the Chieftain is the first southbound train on a Sunday, we were ploughing through fresh snow and at times it was flying past the windows in clouds of fine powder. I arrived back in Edinburgh passing Murrayfield as the crowds were gathering for the rugby; after the frozen tableau up North with not a soul about, the colourful mass of people was a stunning contrast.
On another journey south during my time away, I saw a sunrise over Culloden Moor which was the deepest red I'd seen in years. I got a genuine shiver down my spine seeing it there as it really did evoke the image of the blood of the battlefield and the apparitions which have reportedly been seen in the skies over the moor at various times over the intervening years. Inverness Castle has red floodlighting at the moment so when the first hint of colour had appeared in the sky I hadn't been sure whether it was the start of a sunrise or the reflection of the lights as the cloud was still quite thick at that point. By the time I got to the station, the light in the sky had turned to a dark red, as if filtered through garnets. That was the real start of the show.
Proper snow is fabulous! Though it is slightly annoying being pelted with snowballs by young kids at 11PM when returning from visiting my friend down the road!!! Oh how times have changed...
Somehow I coped
;D ;D ;D ;D Especially as I got a lovely big room in the Royal Highland (station hotel) for £45 B&B; the usual price if not booked in advance would be around £80. They were aware that people were genuinely stranded and were as helpful as they could possibly be.
On Sunday the journey down was absolutely stunning. The snow was the purest white I've ever seen it and by this time the sky was blue; the trees were so laden with snow they looked like ice sculptures and everything was so still it was like a photograph. As the Chieftain is the first southbound train on a Sunday, we were ploughing through fresh snow and at times it was flying past the windows in clouds of fine powder. I arrived back in Edinburgh passing Murrayfield as the crowds were gathering for the rugby; after the frozen tableau up North with not a soul about, the colourful mass of people was a stunning contrast.
On another journey south during my time away, I saw a sunrise over Culloden Moor which was the deepest red I'd seen in years. I got a genuine shiver down my spine seeing it there as it really did evoke the image of the blood of the battlefield and the apparitions which have reportedly been seen in the skies over the moor at various times over the intervening years. Inverness Castle has red floodlighting at the moment so when the first hint of colour had appeared in the sky I hadn't been sure whether it was the start of a sunrise or the reflection of the lights as the cloud was still quite thick at that point. By the time I got to the station, the light in the sky had turned to a dark red, as if filtered through garnets. That was the real start of the show.
Proper snow is fabulous! Though it is slightly annoying being pelted with snowballs by young kids at 11PM when returning from visiting my friend down the road!!! Oh how times have changed...
