Snow in Rock, Cornwall

Looking down the beach with the sea to the left and snow on the sand to the right

It’s very unusual for it to snow in Rock, Cornwall but it does happen. The usual lack of snow is due to the proximity to the sea and the relatively warm Gulf Stream currents that originate in the Caribbean Sea.

In St Minver we had around 3-4 inches of snow in about an hour on 31 January. It was chaos on the roads around Rock and St Minver for a time. Lots of people were abandoning their cars and heading home on foot. A couple of hours later the cars had all moved on and I was able to drive to Spar in Rock to pick up something for dinner, the advantage of winter tyres.

Looking from Rock beach up the Camel estuary with the yellow ferry coming towards the shore, in the foreground snow on the beach
Snow on the beach in Rock with the Rock to Padstow ferry in the background

The next day I was very surprised to see snow on Rock beach, you might think it would be too salty. Fair play to the ferrymen, the Rock to Padstow ferry was operating as normal despite the cold and wind. My trip across to Padstow was very chilly. At least half the Padstow shops and restaurants were closed due to the weather. I did get some cards in Whistlefish and enjoyed a fish finger sandwich at The London Inn.

Looking out to sea from the top of Polzeath beach with a sprinkling of snow on the right hand side
Some snow left on Polzeath beach

There was also a little snow left on the beach at Polzeath. The sea was very rough, and the wind was blowing huge plumes of spray off the top of the waves. Needless to say, the Polzeath car parks were empty, shops and restaurants closed and nobody was surfing.

Huge waves at Polzeath beach with plumes of spray being blown into the air
Plumes of spray being blown off the waves at Polzeath

It was great to experience the raw side of Cornwall in winter. I wonder if I’ll get to see snow in Rock again.