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A glorious day today and lots of new snow overnight down to 400 metres. The forecast for the week ahead is good and cold, plus high pressure by the weekend. The high pressure looks like a warm high pressure system, but none the less it might produce low overnight temperatures. All in all it would be worth a visit this week.
Poor day today with mild weather, but this should change tomorrow with colder weather and maybe a good freeze of the wet snowpack. Avalanches spotted coming out of No 2 Gully today.
People staying with us at Calluna who tried for the top of Ben Nevis today reported chest deep snow and slow going! They never made it to the top. Saturday will be milder but cold weather back again on Sunday. It's looking very good just now, but don't count your chickens too soon. You may however wish to put a little WD40 on the ice axes and sharpen your crampons some.
Plenty of beefy wintry SW to NW showers still pumping into the west coast hills and snow down to 600 metres. The week ahead looks similar, so expect a lot of fairly unconsolidated and possibly avalanche prone slopes on certain aspects. The ridges will be in 'full-on' winter nick, but maybe time-consuming due to the quality of the snow.
 Plenty of new snow on the west coast hills. Much more than further east. Snow is currently well below 600m and more is forecast in the next week. All snow will be new and unconsolidated. Today the weather is superb with little wind and wonderful views all around.
Exceptionally mild weather has reduced the small amount of snow remaining. Currently the weather is very good for hill walking and rock climbing, but forget anything remotely wintry! Watch this space.
New snow down to around 900m on the back of a vigorous frontal system which passed through last night. Continuing unsettled today with heavy showers probably falling as snow on the high mountains.
Very cold in the west but not much snow. Dry and sunny all week, with heavy frosts. It was snowing in Inverness today and the A9 was closed for a time due to heavy snow. Probably some climbing to be had in the Cairngorm and possibly the turfy routes on Aonach Mor. Due to the very dry summer, ice lines may take a while to form even if it is very cold. We'll wait and see
False alarm folks. All the snow is away for the time being and it's back to rock climbing. Watch this space!
 Some fairly wild weather over the last 24hours including blizzards on the high tops has deposited snow above 600m. The wintry west to north-west airflow is set to continue, accompanied by strong to gale force winds. At the moment the snow is probably fairly unconsolidated, but still the hills are under snow. The photo shows The Saddle (Forcan Ridge) above Glen Shiel.
We also had a good dump of snow about ten days
ago, so the winter has started well. I was on the Skye Ridge
(Black Cuillin) today and only minor deposits are visible
out west. Ben Nevis has a good dusting, but not substantial.
The ridges on Nevis will be quite difficult in these conditions.
Aonach Mor may repay a visit if the temperatures drop along
with the wind and start to freeze the turf.
Here you will find an archive of other years
winter climbing conditions.
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