Snow in St Katherine - March 1, 2009
It often snows a little bit in the mountains around St Katherine in the winter, but on March 1, 2009, the whole town was also covered in a thick blanket of snow. It came after several years of drought, so it was very much welcomed by locals. People, animals, and the mountain gardens rely on precipitation, and snow is the best source as it doesn't run off the surfacce like rain water does, but soaks into the soil. In 2009, not many people had a camera in St Katherine (and anyway, now that many do, they just make selfies), so these images of the snowy landscapes in town and the mountains are quite unique. There were a few more good winters in following years, but none of them as good as on this early spring day.
Snow started falling just before dawn by the time the sun came up whole St Katherine was buried.
Everybody was happy and wanted their photos taken.
Before the snow could melt too much, Andy and I went to see the high mountain wadis via Naqb Umm Serdi. Descending into Wadi Mathar, with the view of Mt Katharina in the background, we met a local man, Salem Faraj. We also visited el-Ehded and Wadi Zawatin, before returning to town.
