Snowball fights and snowman building was how some Dunedin families who braved the cold opted to spend their Labour Day yesterday.
The Leith Saddle was among areas in Otago blanketed with snow yesterday, the MetService recording a temperature of 0.2°C there between 1pm and 2pm.
"That cold air and that wet weather — perfect conditions for that snow to form and to come through," MetService meteorologist John Law said.
Courtney Johnston, of Dunedin, said she and her family were cooped up at home when they saw it was starting to snow on the Kilmog.
They had been in their dressing gowns and pyjamas at home all day and "needed to get out of the house".
"So we thought, we’ll just go for a drive and get these bloody kids out of the house.
"We thought, we’ll go out and then we can come home to a nice warm roast and chill out for the night."
After losing a fence in Thursday’s weather, she much preferred the snow to the wind, Ms Johnston said.
She did not let herself get excited about the prospect of snow any more, Ms Johnston said.
It was "a rare thing these days".
"We’re always promised it and then we never get it.
"It used to be real good snow back in the day, used to get big dumpings, but you don’t see it much any more."
The rain had meant their Labour Day had got off to a boring start.
"But then we find snow, so it’s turned [from] boring to exciting.
"It’s a wonderful day."
It was also his son, Matthew’s, first time seeing snow, and his first reaction was to try to taste it, Mr Zhang said.
Matthew also built a snowman.
Their family had moved to Dunedin from Auckland, where it "never" snowed, in July, Mr Zhang said.
"It’s really exciting to see the snow here."
