General Situation // Scottish Ski & Winter Activity Report // Winterhighland

As we approach Easter weekend both CairnGorm Mountain and Glencoe are open daily for snowsports - weather permitting. That two words are going to be doing some heavy lifting over the weekend, with an advance Yellow Warning for wind from the Met Office, one which the impact matrix implies will be upgraded if confidence increases and the direction of model output does not change!

This evening an approaching ridge of high pressure which will give a fine morning on Thursday has already seen the weather markedly improve at Glencoe with clearing skies and wind falling light, while in the East heavy snow was still falling on CairnGorm.

Wednesday turned out, frankly as bad as possible for Glencoe from the weather situation, a kink in the front pivoted in even milder air at a time it was anticipated yesterday that snow would be falling. After big windblown gains earlier in the week, Meall a Bhuiridh took a hammering on Wednesday with low cloud, persistent heavy rain and high winds, the temperature did not drop until the precipitation had all but passed.

Though CairnGorm caught some heavy rain this morning, it got the colder air digging in before the heaviest precipitation and by the time the showers clear out this evening on top of what has already fallen there looks like there should be in the region of 10 to 15cm (6 to 8inches) of fresh snow for Thursday morning. The Top Basin (various green), White Lady (red) and the Cas runs from the Traverse (green / blue) should be giving fantastic riding on the fresh snow on a still robust base. All the top tows, plus M1 Poma and Cas Tow scheduled to run and not anticipating wind issues in the morning.

Back to Glencoe, there are areas which have even after today made decent gains due to the heavy drifting, but where things had been filling in mid mountain and on the plateau only the areas of deepest drifting have come through the pressure washer to consolidate in this evenings cooler temperatures. No meaningful new snow has fallen, so the snowpack will likely be glacial in the morning off any grooming in the Main Basin, which is now the only complete run. Happy Valley is broken, including below the Haggis Trap bypass, so a trip through the trap may be obligatory unless some serious snow pushing is viable. Virtually no new snow stuck in Happy Valley earlier in the week at all due to a combination of wind strength and direction.

The Spring Run has made a gain overall, but is likely to be bullet proof. The Wall would be the best snow cover route down mid mountain for advanced riders if surface conditions allow. Mugs Alley and Old Mugs Alley are a mixture of patches of old snow, pockets of deep recent drifts and scoured clear / melted out areas, so the Cliffhanger and mid mountain is very much only for access. A walk across the Plateau will be required to the Cliffhanger Chair.

Glenshee and the Lecht are currently closed for snowsports, though runs at the Lecht are starting to fill in again.

Indeed it is likely Glenshee is now closed for the season, it is much less likely to come back as we approach and move into April, whereas the Lecht can still come back from nothing to open even into May! That said there is still scope for touring excursions around Glenshee with still areas of very deep snow on Meall Odhar, Glas Maol and the surrounding Munros.

At update the A939 Lecht Pass and the A93 Cairnwell Pass were open.

:: Glencoe Sledge Park

The Sledge Park is full length and there are piles of machine made snow to push out in the morning to freshen it up now the temperature has dropped and wind eased! There are over 150 sledges to grab at the Plateau Cafe!

It is advisable to arrive before 2.30pm at the latest for sledging to get a decent amount of time on the hill. First chair up at 9am, the sledge park is always quietest before lunch time. Last chair down scheduled for 4.30pm. The Plateau Cafe is open daily when the Access Chair is running.

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:: England Club Fields

All the club fields are waiting for new snow to be able to reopen.

For both Weardale and Allenheads, you need to join the club with a season pass, these are still available for both at this time.

Please check club access rules / availability if not a club member / pass holder.

Weardale: https: //skiweardale.com/ .
Allenheads: http://ski-allenheads.co.uk/ .
Yad Moss: https: //yadmoss.co.uk/ .
Raise: https: //www.ldscsnowski.co.uk/ .

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:: Mountain Weather

At 6pm in the West at the Glencoe SSC hut (850m) the temperature was -1.0°c, no wind data is available. At the Top of the Access (671m) it was +0.2°c. At Base level (366m) it was +2.8°c with the wind at 20 gusting 27mph.

The SAIS summit AWS on Aonach Mor was reporting -4.0°c. The Met Office station was reporting a NE wind at 27 gusting 38mph. At the CIC Hut (680m) it was +1.4°c. At Tulloch Station (237m) the temperature was +3.4°c.

In the East the summit weather stations on CairnGorm reported -4.8°c, with a Northerly at a mean of 29 gusting 35mph. At Aviemore the temperature at 6pm was +1.7°c.

The Met Office Cairnwell AWS reported -2.7°c with a North wind at a mean of 46 gusting 57mph.

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:: Mountain Forecast Discussion

At update heavy snow was falling on CairnGorm, but skies were clearing at Glencoe as a transient ridge approaches and will move through overnight, to give a fine start to Thursday for the Highland mountains, with sunny spells under partly cloudy skies with light ot moderate SW backing South wind. Cloud cover will begin to build in the afternoon with snow showers moving into Western mountains with a freshening Southerly wind. CairnGorm should have a dry day through lift operating hours, but be prepared for a change in the weather through the evening. Minus 3°c at Munro Level, later rising -1°c from the West.

Easter weekend is going to be a weather roller coaster as fast moving very transient ridges pass through between deep(ening) areas of low pressure either passing close to or through Northern Scotland. Timing of these will be key to the usability of daytime on the mountains over the weekend, at this stage Saturday morning, perhaps most of lift operating hours on Saturday looks OK, but very severe conditions will develop into the evening and overnight. At this stage Sunday morning looks like a write off for lift served snowsports, but subject to potential storm recovery work there might be some hope for Easter afternoon, as the more progressive model runs bring a deeper storm through quicker with things moderating late morning on Easter Day.

With Good Friday starting the holiday weekend, it should be an improving picture in the morning with overnight mountain snow easing to showers from the West, with some brighter spells developing, but some showers could pep up in the April sunshine - classic April showers, but of snow on the mountains! Best chance of brighter conditions to the East, but even here in the afternoon convective showers could cluster together for some longer periods of mountain snow. Gale Force Southerly winds overnight will back West or WNW and moderate through the dawn period, though likely more blustery around showers. Around 0°c at Munro Level at dawn, lowering -2°c or possibly -3°c by mid to late afternoon.

A Met Office Yellow warning is in place covering the whole of Scotland on Saturday and Sunday, the warning period currently starts Sat evening and lasts till Sun lunchtime. Though yellow, the impact matrix, shows that if forecast detail does not change and thus confidence increases, the warning will be upgraded for at least some areas. There is a risk of Storm Force winds to low levels in parts of Western and Northern Scotland late Saturday and overnight into Sunday AM, so be prepared for a fairly rapid deterioration from benign to severe mountain conditions!

Dawn on Saturday will actually start under the declining influence of a quick moving ridge of high pressure, but to the West of Ireland an Atlantic depression will be undergoing rapid cyclogenesis. When the wind does start to strengthen behind the departing ridge the direction will initially be South Easterly, so at present, it looks like Glencoe should get the full planned lift operating day out of Saturday, but the early bright skies will be replaced by the afternoon with increasing cloud cover and persistent hill or mountain snow is expected to set in at some point.

It will take a bit longer for the precipitation to set into the Northern Cairngorms, but because of the South East direction behind the departing ridge, wind may actually freshen quicker on CairnGorm than Glencoe, but at this stage most of the planned lift operating hours look OK for most of the available uplift, but an early close to higher tows is possible. Extreme mountain conditions will develop on the Plateau and surrounding areas into the night.

Some doubt about freezing level depending on how quickly the low develops and its exact track, but expecting Munro Level temperature to be between -2 and -4°c, snow level may drop as precipitation intensifies and as it does so the wind will progressively pick up. Into the evening wind may abruptly become 60 gusting 80 to 90mph as the direction begins to veer in cyclonically variable wind flow, potentially strengthening further into the night with a risk of 70 to 80mph gusting to or in excess of 110 to 120mph in prone locations and risk of gusts of 80 to 90mph to low levels in parts of Western and Northern Scotland.

Blizzard conditions for the mountains is expected to persist into Sunday morning with Storm Force Westerly winds. Mid morning speeds may moderate quite significantly and precipitation will gradually become more showery. Currently expecting -3 to -5°c at Munro Level for much of Easter Day, so snow could be falling to fairly low levels by dawn on Easter.

A ridge behind the Easter storm may give a fine start to the holiday Monday, but detail and timing uncertain. Moderate winds likely to back SE then strength considerably as another deep low approaches, but much of the Holiday Monday may just escape dry.

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:: Webcams and Weather Stations

Lowther Hill: Leadhills webcam is online (24/7).

GLENCOE: All mountain webcams online and the first updated images are shortly before 6.30am (BST). Sledge Park camera streams overnight. The mid mountain weather station wind direction is not working, other data valid.

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