I got successfully of the peninsular - FFS there were only a few inches of snow, albeit a number of onanists in Mercedes coupes and BMWs were totally stuck on very slight hills (tyres too wide, too much power and not enough brains) and one artic cab (no load on) embarrassed himself by overlooking that with two axles at the rear and only one of them driven, bite to get away from standstill was going to be iffy. I had some entertainment due to having taken the 2 litre turbo so there were some tasty drift moments to be had by opening the throttle too wide - a couple of about 20 foot runs on opposite lock coming out of roundabouts and once I had the feel, up to about 30 degrees of opposite lock too..

Top of Four Elms Hill - big queue going DOWN as everyone being very chary of perhaps not stopping at the roundabout at the bottom and the queue going so slowly that I had to do the unthinkable and go out of gear and let her roll very very slowly on the brakes. At least the brakes work on four wheels whereas low gear only retards two - and to stay in gear I would probably have got the front wheels sliding and have been constantly accelerating and decelerating.

Up the Frindsbury bypass towards Strood - a Mercedes stuck in the slow lane - but at least he was tight into the kerb. Still room for two lanes past but do the twonks make two lanes? - No they crawl past in one and then a twat in a four wheel drive stops at the outside as I am easing past the one lane in soft snow. Don't people realise there's more grip in soft snow than on polished ice?

And so into Frindsbury. Get to the top of Frindsbury Hill and it's gridlock. Radio Medway telling me that contractors are pushing cars up Star Hill, Corporation Street is totally at a standstill - and obviously if that is so then the bridge over the river is blocked (since the only ways off the bridge are down Corporation Street or right down the Esplanade. Flash of brilliance! Use Commercial Road to bypass Frindsbury Hill down (foregoing the amusement of people failing to make it out of the petrol station up Frinsdbury Hill).

Ah. Get to top of hill down to Commercial Road and that is blocked going down because people can't get out onto Station Road at the bottom. Decide to make U-turn round traffic island and go home. That nearly WAS my undoing. Getting back up the hill and past the island and missing a fool parked so close to the island that one had to slow right down and turn quite sharply to miss his car, I failed once, got to 90 degrees of direction of travel, had to reverse over lots of footpath to take a second run, and the second run was mostly at 45 degrees to direction of travel, but at the last second she found traction and I got through the gap missing the parked car.

Back up part of Frindsbury Hill to the top - lots of people making a big issue of it but the Volvo doesn't put a foot wrong, and crawl down to the roundabout to join the A289. Ah. Standing traffic on A289, apparently leading to the A228 no doubt because no-one can get up Four Elms Hill. Now that's tricky because if idiots are blocking that then the only other way onto the peninsular is over backroads from Higham and I've already had a chat with one travelling boy with a Disco in which he told me that those roads are impassable due to 4-wheel-drives in the ditch.

Another flash of genius! If I go towards the Medway tunnel I can bang a left off to Upnor and go through the country roads over the hill to come over the military flyover at Upchat Road and through the housing estate by the barracks to come out at the top of Four Elms Hill.

Works a treat. Soft snow with loads of traction. Get to flyover. Very foolish fellow in four wheel drive stops on the flyover to watch the mayhem on Four Elms Hill. Ah well, he has classically Nigerian features so he probably is not all that used to snow.   I stop to pick up a bloke trying to walk back from Strood with his shopping – his car is blocked in Frindsbury thanks to an idiot across each end of a side street. And just as I get rolling again another kibitzer stops on the flyover. Where? Exactly opposite the Nigerian's 4*4 so between them they TOTALLY block the road.    I keep rolling gently towards them all light on.

The Nigerian wakes intelligently up to the situation, shepherds his family back into the 4*4 and pulls off, leaving the other kibitzer apparently astounded that anyone should do that!.

Admire Four Elms Hill as I toodle over it. Not pretty. At least one front wheel drive shopping basket totally sideways across both lanes going up – and an HGV with L plates ditto 20 yards back.

Potter gently round the houses by the old barracks, drop off bloke with shopping – and as I go to rejoin Four Elms Hill three front wheel drives scrabble to a halt right across the exit from my side road.    Eventually burly passers by push them into motion – but now there is a steady single line that has managed to clear the obstructions scrabbling up the hill at 1 mph all determined not to let me out, until a HUGE modern Range Rover comes up on the soft snow and partly on the soft shoulder up their inside, so they pretty well have to make room and I slip out after him.

Just past the petrol station there's a bloke walking (mostly in the road) and people driving round him.   So I stop to give him a lift. He's apparently walked from Sittingbourne to get to the Isle of Grain (!!! Must be love) and says that the old A2 is stationary all the way through Rainham.

Now we are rolling again and it's easy driving back to Lower Coke and entrepid pedestrian starts walking again.

Over to local pub for one of Shep's Xmas Ale, then into house light fire and snooze.

Well, what a fine way to waste an afternoon!