Not only was the oul weather rough on dry terra firma but it was equally rough out at sea..reports said a force 10 was blustering up the channel at one point, and i could well believe it as it looked very rough indeed. The ferries here managed to keep going by and large. But an Irish ferry, called Oscar Wilde I believe, made the news because it was caught in the thick of the gales. Having crossed from Ireland, presumably from Cobh or similar, with a party of French school children, it failed to dock at Cherbourg despite four attempts..last I heard it was still out there with everyone sick onboard. Doesnt sound too appetising but hopefully all will end happily.
Just below we have the arrival of the Hope Bay here in Dover, it too was held up and was sheltering off Deal for a good chunk of the day. First picture shows the Dauntless tugboat preparing to do the necessary while harassed by a large army of gulls, with a wintry France on show in the background...and a rough sea.
Below we have the Hope Bay, she finally manages to get into harbour late in the day around 4pm..weather being too rough earlier. Out came the sun late afternoon and all went okay from then. You can see tugboat Doughty giving her a gentle shove.
Zoomed in close up of the ship below...no doubt the crew were relieved to have made harbour. In the background a wintry rough sea and a wintry France to match. Weather was fierce the other side too. Belgium and France saw horrendous snow with the resultant dire traffic problems almost everywhere. Its not just England that suffers when the snow falls. Nowhere can cope it seems.This led to big traffic tailbacks here as we know.