Skiing the Preselis — When a "Pembrokeshire Dangler" Turns Wales White
A rare “Pembrokeshire Dangler” brought skiable snow to the Preseli Hills last week, as cold northerlies swept over the warm Irish Sea and triggered narrow bands of intense snowfall — leaving up to 50 cm on high ground
A rare “Pembrokeshire Dangler” delivered something extraordinary last week — skiable snow in the Preseli Hills.
Cold northerlies swept over the warm Irish Sea, spinning up narrow bands of snow and sleet that repeatedly hit the spine of the Preselis—the result: deep accumulations on the highest ground, with Foel Eryr seeing around 50 cm.
Last week, conditions aligned perfectly to produce a classic "Pembrokeshire Dangler", sending narrow bands of snow and sleet across the county. The heaviest accumulations (up to 50cm) settled over the Preseli Hills and higher eastern ground.
The event on the highest Foel Eryr was captured by opportunistic skiers Mike Richards, Chris Morris and James Carnie and provided the chance to try out a Zoa PL-1 personal ski lift.
Wales sits in a uniquely interesting meteorological zone, where cold northerly air sweeping over the comparatively warm Irish Sea can trigger a form of lake-effect snow, at times behaving much like the Sea of Japan.
Skiing the Preseli Hills, Pembrokeshire (images: Mike Richards)
The event unfolded immediately after the passage of Storm Claudia, shifting rapidly from saturated, mild conditions to freezing air — a combination that amplified the risk of snow, sleet and surface icing.
As usual with Dangler-type events, snowfall was patchy: some communities saw several centimetres while others, only a few miles away, recorded almost none. Looking ahead, the main concerns are overnight refreezing, icy surfaces on untreated routes and locally challenging conditions around the higher terrain of north Pembrokeshire.
