Stranded and with snow way out
Now this is what you call real snow – and it isn't even winter.
This springtime photo was taken by David Thorp of Wellington 60 years ago.
"I took it in April 1961 at Hilltop Garage, where I was forced to spend the night. I was on my way home to Little Dawley when I got stuck," he says.
"Hilltop Garage is on Dawley Road, Wellington, about four hundred yards on the left from the A5 traffic lights at the Cock Inn.
"In those days it was a repair garage. I believe they sell cars there now. I cannot for the life of me remember the name of the chap who ran the garage, but he was a good friend at the time."
David worked in Birmingham and was driving an Austin 1100.
"I managed to get up the hill as far as the garage, and pulled into his yard. I had snow chains on the car as it was front wheel drive – useless in snow. Rear wheel drive is better because you can put a load of weight in the boot and then with front-to-rear weight transfer you have traction.
"The best car in snow used to be the rear-engined Beetle.
"I spent some time in the workshop but eventually when (Dave?) went to his bed I retired to the car where I kept the engine running on and off most of the night to keep the heater going after covering the radiator with a sack.
"Strangely enough history repeated itself in France when my wife and I were returning home to Spain. We lived there from 2000 until 2017. We got caught in a freak snowstorm in Perpignan. We were shuffled off the AP7 at 11pm one night on the motorway into Perpignan as the border was closed.
"Perpignan was stuffed. Some people had abandoned their cars outside hotels that they had managed to get a room in and left the doors open and the engine running!
"We could not get in anywhere, so I drove into the middle of a football field – our Discovery was loaded to the roof with stuff. The snow on the field was two feet deep, but fortunately the Disco would go anywhere if you put the diff lock (differential lock) on.
"We parked up for the night, engine running, heater going flat out, and we set off towards the border three miles away at about 6.30 next day."
