Starting out from Roswell, New Mexico, it was a quite beautiful, early winter morning. My plan was to head to Santa Fe for a couple of days of photography. I was enjoying the flat, dry landscape all around me as I was driving along the vast, straight stretches of road on the H285. Way in the distance I saw some clouds but thought maybe just a passing storm. As I drove further North the blue sky on my left changed to a menacing looking gray and there didn't look like any clear gaps in the sky. Within a few minutes it was gray all around me and the snow started. Within a few minutes more the visibility was down to just a few cars lengths and the windscreen wipers were on full pelt. I stopped and asked a delivery driver heading South how the weather was up ahead and he said after ten miles or so it was OK. This reassured me for about 20 seconds once I started on the road again! It was awful. Strong snow added to the fact that the road was not busy so there was barely any path to follow on the road and by now I couldn't see anything further than 5 metres from the car. At the junction with the I40 I made the sensible decision of giving Santa Fe a miss as the conditions were getting worse. My manoeuvre to turn right onto the Interstate resulted in my first skid and slide of this coming horrendous day. Heart racing I joined this main road and though the road underneath was a bit better due to all the traffic the conditions got worse and worse. I must have seen about 7 or 8 crashes on the verges separating the East/West lanes, must have skidded 5 or 6 times, once or twice almost hitting the car in front or driving onto the verge. This was New Mexico in November! Not at all what I expected! In England we are just not used to any weather conditions outside of the norm, a couple of days of snow and the country is brought to a standstill. So experience driving in these conditions is limited, i.e. no experience in my case! To cut a long story short, 2 days of driving in terrible conditions, firstly snowstorms, then second day icy roads, left me a nervous wreck! Once back in Arizona, not a snowflake or cloud in sight, relaxing in the hotel pool and getting a bottle of Merlot down me, I was a happy chap! To show how bad the weather was, this storm continued North-Eastwards and by the time I was due to fly home at the end of November my flight from Phoenix to Chicago was cancelled and much to my joy I was put on a direct flight to London! I can laugh now.....