When sixty revelers went for a night in the UK’s highest pub, snow drifts and a downed power line ensured they got more time at the bar than they bargained for.
Yet between an Oasis cover band, tabletop games, trivia, and sing-along Christmas carols, three whole days in which no-one who entered could leave passed in holiday cheer—and the guests loved every minute of it.
“They’re all in good spirits, they’re all eating and drinking well,” said co-owner of the Tan Hill Pub Andrew Hields, to CNN. Tan Hill can be found in Swaledale in the beautiful Yorkshire Dales in northeast England, 1,732 feet above sea level—making it the highest sitting pub in the UK.
Three roads lead up to Tan Hill, two of which were covered in snow drifts by Storm Arwen, and the last road out was by blocked with a downed powerline. Some guests arrived Friday night with the intention of camping, but the storm destroyed their tents and campsite, so the staff made beds for them in the pub.
Tan Hill described it as a “life-changing experience,” calling the employees and the guests who came together under challenging circumstances, “amazing people.”
“You guys have been amazing! You’ve worked never ending shifts to keep us well fed and watered,” wrote another of the revelers Becky Longthorp on Facebook.
“We will never forget this extr[a]ordinary experience.”
In some places Arwen brought winds of 90 miles per hour (144 kilometers per hour) and brought civilization to a brief standstill.
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Tan Hill has faced such squalls before, and the owners said that as soon as the Met office put out the storm warnings they stocked up on food and water.
Completely off the grid, the downing of power lines didn’t affect their electricity needs, and the shut ins were able to shut out the weary world for a weekend.
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