Big Ben Range

I was not surprised to see snow well down on the mountains this morning as it has been so cold. I had an early appointment in Darfield, which is well out on the Canterbury Plains. As I drove home the wide view of the Southern Alps was magnificent. Most of the mountains were in shade, but the Big Ben Range stood out in its own pool of sunlight. This range, with rounded contours is so different from the craggy mountains around it.

Out east were huge dark grey storm clouds dragging ragged curtains across the landscape. I thought it was a waste of time doing my washing, but when I arrived home I was surprised that the storm was giving us a miss. The wind was strong and cold, but apart from a brief snow flurry it remained dry.

Tonight will be cold. At 7.30 pm the temperature has dipped below 0.0C. As a precaution I picked the rest of the dwarf beans from the greenhouse, and the little yellow tomatoes, a handful of each. The plants are unlikely to survive the frost, even though they are well covered.

One year ago: a moonset