NOW that the trend is towards warmer, wetter winters, where snowfall in southern England is the exception rather than the rule, I look back 40 years to the sever winter of 1962-63.

It was the coldest winter of the 20th century and the most severe since 1740, lasting 16 weeks from November, 1962 until early March 1963.

November, 1962: It all began with some frosty weather and a moderate snowfall on the 18th. There was some freezing fog in the second half of the month.

December, 1962: A very cold four days at the start of the month with severe frost but then it turned milder for a spell before freezing conditions set in on December 22. Freezing fog created a hazard for those getting away for the Christmas break.

Boxing Day was very cold with the temperature just above freezing at 1C (34F) and in the late afternoon it began snowing steadily throughout Gloucestershire. By mid evening the roads were very icy indeed as it continued snowing. The Bristol to Dursley bus became firmly stuck on New Road between Charfield and Wotton. Coombe Hill (Wotton) and Crawley Hill in Uley were bad. Whiteway was a nightmare. My sister and brother-in-law lost control of their car whilst coming down the hill that evening and ended up facing back up the hill. The snow stopped at 5am on the 27th with a carpet eight inches deep. It then turned much colder and the freeze really began.

On Saturday, 29th, the maximum temperature was -4C (25F) and the easterly wind got up. The snow arrived during the evening, turning into a full scale blizzard that raged all night. By Sunday morning the level of snow depth was two feet but the drifts were enormous. The daily average for the month was 2.7C (37F). Ozleworth was cut off and Dursley was impassable for a while. The wind continued, a biting easterly grip and the snow continued drifting. The road from London Road to Waterley Bottom saw drifts of 25 feet deep, 400 sheep were buried at Waterley Bottom and it was to get a lot worse yet.

January, 1963: As soon as roads were cleared then fresh snowfalls occurred. On Thursday, January 3 yet another blizzard hit Gloucestershire, adding to the already chaotic conditions, by now the worst since 1947.

The worst of the snow had now passed, but with clearing skies the temperature dropped. The cold just intensified and everything froze. I well remember starting back later after the Christmas holiday at Dursley County School because of burst heating pipes.

The Sharpness to Gloucester Canal froze over and the steam tugs Iris and the Mayflower acted as pilot boats and ice breakers to keep vessels moving. Sharpness docks froze and ice flows became a problem on the Severn. Ice became a major problem at Berkeley power station, affecting the turbines. Amazingly, three men walked across the Severn from Arlingham to Newnham on solid ice!

Further snow falls throughout January and freezing fog again. The average daily temperature for that month was a numbing -2.9C (27F). It was the coldest since 1740. R A Lister workers walked to work on top of the frozen drifts at Rockstowes and tree branches snapped under the weight of snow and ice. Between January 16 and January 26 the temperature remained below freezing both day and night.

The whole of the country was now in the grip of this winter. January 23 was the coldest day recorded with a maximum of -8C (18F). By now it was as low as -14C (7F), notably on the nights of 21st/22nd and 23rd/24th.

The overnight Newcastle to Bristol train was halted at Coaley Junction with the water pipes frozen solid between the tender and locomotive. A fire was lit under the pipes to thaw them and eventually the train got on the move. An amazing 5,000,000 cubic yards of snow were cleared from the county roads by the end of January.

February, 1963: After a brief thaw during the last weekend of January, it turned colder once more and the Arctic grip continued. Some days were better with above freezing daytime values, but on other days it remained below freezing. The average daily temperature was no better than the previous month at -0.7C (31F). Further snow occurred throughout.

March 1963: At last a thaw was in sight and the night of March 5/6 was the first frost free night in the whole of Britain since December 22 1962. Some of the deeper drifts remained well into May 1963.

Other winters: The only other winter that compares to 1962-63 was 1946-47. That winter had more snow but only lasted eight weeks from January 20 until March 11 1947.

The 1981-82 was cold and was the last time that Gloucestershire had widespread deep snowfall coupled with the lowest recorded temperature of the 20th century on January 14 1982, a bone chilling -18C (-1.5F) at Dursley.

Pictured: Snowdrifts at Bagpath, January, 1963 Picture by David Ireland