We were supposed to be recording our Any Questions podcast on Friday night, but a most unseasonable storm hit us. Storm Amy, a name that makes it sound rather tame, arrived like a battering ram. As we were preparing for the podcast with Jon Gibbs and Mark Littlejohn, one gust ripped past the house so violently that it made my ears pop. Elon’s satellite dish was gyrating like a Sufi dancer, and we decided to postpone. It was a wise choice: fifteen minutes later the power went out, and stayed out for more than 24 hours.

Not only did we lose power, but our mobile service failed too, a worrying development as that’s also our connection to emergency services in the UK, and there’s no alternative unless you own a satellite phone. We hunkered down and played board games with friends in front of a roaring log fire. Two days later, the power returned, and we ventured out to take in the aftermath. Fortunately, there weren’t too many trees down, and no one was hurt.
The Met Office reported that the winds were the strongest ever recorded at this time of year, ranking among the top few winter storms. This seems to be part of an ongoing pattern, with more and more energy building in our weather systems.

One thing that’s been noted locally is the number of trees with brown leaves. Speaking to a few residents, I learned this was caused by salt spray from the storm we had in August. Saltwater can travel miles inland, even reaching a few hundred metres up the mountains.

Aspen Gallery

Following on from my article about aspen (Populus tremuloides) in Issue 335, we’ve received a wide range of responses. The images explore the species from different perspectives, from detailed studies of bark and leaf to wider views showing aspen in its landscape.

I’m keen to see whether my local aspen trees have survived the storm. You can see the ones I mean at the bottom of our article on aspens in this issue. Hopefully, the storm came early enough not to strip away the autumn colour, and we still have a vibrant season ahead.

Click here to download issue 337 (high quality, 218Mb)

Click here to download issue 337 (smaller download, 117Mb)