The Met Office said the icy conditions set in just before Christmas 1962 following weeks of changeable and stormy weather. On 22 December a high pressure system moved to the north-east of the British Isles, dragging bitterly cold winds across the country. The situation was to last much of the winter.

While Scotland has endured several harsh winters, the "Big Freeze" most commonly refers to the Winter of 1962–1963, which remains one of the coldest on record in British history. During this period, temperatures plummeted and remained below freezing for months, with the cold snap lasting from December until early March. The sea froze in some parts of the coast, and the Great Glen was choked with ice. Another significant event often discussed in Scottish history is the "Big Freeze of 1947," which saw massive snowdrifts that cut off entire villages for weeks, requiring the military to drop supplies via aircraft. In more recent memory, the "Beast from the East" in 2018 caused a modern-day freeze that brought the country to a standstill, but the 62/63 event holds the record for sheer duration and intensity. These winters are etched into the national psyche because they exposed the vulnerability of the nation's infrastructure, leading to massive improvements in how the Scottish government and transport networks manage extreme sub-zero conditions and heavy snowfall in the Highlands and Lowlands alike.