Firing in snow and wind

The firing in the "Skælskør Express" went off OK, although after a calm and promising morning the day developed as the weather forcast had forseen - wet snow and wind...it was not a day I would have chosen to fire, with the small roof of the Bourry Box kiln providing inadequate protection from the squally gusts! But we were committed to firing so that the participants in the "Network" project at Guldagergaard who had work in the kiln could participate.
Keeping the wood dry was also a problem, but we laid wood on the roof of the kiln where it quietly pre-heated, and sometimes began to smoke..
I started the fire at 7 - still dark at that time but just enough light to see without a torch.
Started "hobbing" at about 12, and by late afternoon there was positive action from the cones. At 17.00 Nina Hole took over for a few hours and kept the temperature rising.
Nina stoking

Despite the cones having fallen by 20.00 - 8,9,10 and 11 bending, I had dificulty getting the temperature up again in order to close down on a high - and spent quite a long time waiting for the cones at the back of the kiln (7,8,9) to go down.
The weather was so nasty that I took almost no pictures during the firing. But next morning when I woke up (late) I took this picture of the view from my bedroom window at Guldagergaard. The wind of the previous day had dropped.


We will open the kiln on friday.