Abort! Abort!

With just the tiniest smattering of snow adorning our lawn this morning, we only gave a cursory thought to changing our plan for the day before setting of for Cannock Chase.

The roads got a bit snowier and quite slippery as we approached the Chase and as I drove into the car park I asked Mick whether he thought this was wise. “No!” was not the reassuring answer for which I was hoping.

We weren’t concerned about the underfoot conditions. Our concern was purely about getting back out of the car park and, if it snowed some more whilst we were out, getting back home in one piece (about 50 yards down the road we could see a car which had just slipped off the road as it negotiated a bend).

However, it wasn’t snowing just then and we’d taken the trouble to drive over there, so we decided that we may as well take a very short stroll before heading back home.

I could be wrong, but this might have been the first time that we’ve ever been out on the Chase and not encountered a single other person. We did see a couple of sets of foot prints.

At the rifle range (that’s where I’m nearly up to my knees in the snap below), we took a little out-and-back detour, unsuccessfully looking for the half-a-surf-board that we’d seen abandoned there last weekend. Had we found it (a white object underneath lots of white snow was never going to be the easiest thing to find!) we would have indulged in a bit of ‘tobogganing’ before carrying it off with us for proper disposal. As it went, we had to make do with a snow-ball fight.

Wishing I’d put my gaiters on, as the snow got into my boots…

Just two miles were walked. Not the nine we were hoping for, but we’ll focus on the fact that walking two miles (moreover two miles in snow) is better than walking no miles at all.