We have all probably had a time in our lives when the weather has forced us to change our plans. Perhaps an unexpected rain storm forced last minute changes to a party that was originally supposed to happen outside. Perhaps wind made it difficult to drive or even walk outside. Perhaps the threat of a storm made you decide to stay home instead of traveling somewhere and possibly getting stranded.

Not everyone likes to play it safe, and once in awhile that turns out okay. Some people choose to ignore the threat of bad weather and choose to have a good time instead of wondering what might happen later. This is one of those stories.

The Tan Hill Inn is located in Yorkshire Dales National Park. At 1,732 above sea level, it holds the honor of being the pub at the highest elevation in all of Britain. This isn’t always a good thing.

There is often snow at the Tan Hill Inn, and sometimes there is so much snow that it is difficult or even impossible to leave safely. The previous owner was actually stranded at work multiple times. We’re not just talking one or two times either. While owning the pub for 12 years, she was stranded approximately 50 times. That’s roughly 4 times every year.

The new owner took over in 2017, and now she has also experienced what it’s like to be stranded at work; although, she wasn’t the only one stranded. Owner Nicola Townsend along with about 60 employees and patrons ended up spending 3 nights at the Tan Hill Inn.

It all started on Friday night. The Oasis cover band Noasis was set to perform, and the Tan Hill Inn had sold over 100 tickets to the show. Due to weather, only 61 people showed up. The show went on as scheduled, and everything started out normal. Then the snow started.

And the snow didn’t stop.

Patrons looked out the windows and doors and realized it was not safe to drive home. Besides the fact that they had all been drinking, the weather was much too severe for a drive down the mountain.

A few patrons drove to the Tan Hill Inn in campervans, so they were able to safely sleep inside their vehicles; however, most of the patrons and employees had not intended to spend the night, let alone three nights. They slept anywhere they could. The pub provided some meals for free and sold other food and alcohol at half price. Patrons even chipped in money to give to the employees who had an unexpectedly long 3-day shift.

Everyone was certainly ready to go home when the snow plow finally made it up the mountain to clear the roads, but there was still something to savor about the experience that some equated to an unexpected slumber party.

The Tan Hill Inn shared a picture of the group on Facebook, writing, “We will ALWAYS remember this group of amazing people who came together, and hopefully, in challenging circumstances, enjoyed what we all think was a life – changing experience.”

Have you ever been snowed in somewhere?