THESE photographs of families playing in a winter wonderland show the joy the weather can bring.
A blanket of snow brought children out in their hundreds to sledge on Beverley Westwood this weekend.
Photographer Tom Irvin, 21, who took some of the pictures, said he loved the way the countryside changed underneath its white carpet.
"The snow has such a good effect on Beverley," he said.
"There are so many types of buildings.
"In a photograph I took of the minster, you can just see the tops of the trees."
When he set out to get the pictures, Tom said followed his instinct.
It led him to the countryside surrounding Beverley.
"The main place where everyone goes is Beverley Westwood, so I took a trip there," he said.
"There were some guys there snowboarding with big parachutes.
"There were thousands of people. It was brilliant.
"I was out on the Westwood for about three and a half hours, just pottering around."
Tom enjoyed capturing the variety of it all.
"When I was out and about I saw all different walks of life," he said.
"I saw old people out enjoying a stroll and young families out with their kids. It brings out the best in everyone."
Lindsey Brittain and her family joined the throng making the most of a white weekend.
She went sledging with her husband Paul, 43, and children Francesca, 15, Antonia, 13, Gabriella, 11, and Leonora, nine.
"They had a fantastic time in the snow," she said.
"They were sledging and we also met up with a friend of Leonora's who had a snowboard.
"They were having a go at snowboarding – it went better than I expected."
The family spent most of the morning outdoors.
After a few wobbles with the snowboard, the children were cruising across the common.
"It was bit tricky to start off with," said Lindsey, 47.
"They had a few spills but they got the hang of it.
"We had a snowball fight. I think mum and dad came off worst."
The Westwood is a five-minute walk from the family's home.
Although main roads through the county had been treated by East Riding Council's 17 gritters, Lindsey said walking to the common was much better than getting in a car.
"We would have had to drive to get to any other hills," she said.
"It's possibly not the best idea in snow. By the time we left it was getting really busy on the Westwood."
Children may have been enjoying themselves but the cold snap caused trouble for others.
In Bridlington harbour, a disaster was only just avoided when the Yorkshire Belle pleasure boat broke free from its moorings in high winds at about 8.30pm on Friday.
Lifeboat crews and fishermen raced to the dock to prevent any damage.
Frank Ridley's fishing vessel the Heidi J was tied up close to the Yorkshire Belle.
He spent an anxious few hours fending off the tourist boat, which can carry up to 206 passengers.
"The moorings of the Yorkshire Belle started to drag through the mud and the boat came adrift," Frank said.
"It moors in the middle of the harbour but because of the wind and the wet it dragged the mooring away.
"All the lifeboatmen and the coastguard and some fishermen rallied together to try to resolve the situation."
Working in total darkness was itself dangerous, with an icy breeze whipping up spray around the struggling men.
"When you're working in total darkness and snow and ice, it's easy for someone to fall into the harbour and get killed," Frank said.
"I was just trying to fender my boat with tyres.
"I had to make sure it wasn't damaged by the Yorkshire Belle, which is ten times heavier."
Although the boat was stabilised and there was no major damage, Frank is in no doubt it could have been much worse.
In 35 years of fishing, this is only the second time he has seen a boat come loose.
"There could have been a major disaster," he said.
"There could have been a pile of smashed boats."
Since the snow first started coming down last week, it has caused traffic chaos.
But as Lindsey said, the weather can also bring people together.
"There's a fantastic side to the snow," she said.
"It's really good for the children, and good for us to do something all together as a family."
A man suffered an electric shock after tripping over a power cable in the snow. Firefighters and Northern Power went to the scene in Staithes Road, Preston, just after 2am on Saturday. The man was taken to hospital for a check-up. He tripped over a 110 volt cable.
