•Glencoe Sledge Park

•England Club Fields

•Mountain Weather

•Mountain Forecast Discussion

•Webcams and Weather Stations

CairnGorm Mountain and Glencoe are offering top and some mid mountain spring riding, but both closed early on Monday due to rapidly rising wind speeds. Bouts of Severe Gales continuing mid-week. Possible ridge of high pressure on Thursday.

Been out on the slopes - please send us your photos to the email address at the foot of this page.

Both CairnGorm and Glencoe had an early end to play on Monday as wind ramped up, Severe Gales widespread across the hills tonight with some places hitting Storm Force. The high winds will continue into Tuesday, before slowly moderating from the West as the morning goes on. Wind speeds by mid to late afternoon look OK now, the question is whether speeds will ease enough, early enough, for any uplift to open.

If the wind does allow play there is top to mid station riding via a mix of green, blue and red terrain, plus the Top Basin green runs and Ptarmigan Terrain Park on offer on CairnGorm, while Glencoe is offering the upper mountain runs from the Main Basin T-bar and Rannoch Button (if required), with the Cliffhanger Chair mainly for access.

Glencoe is only suitable for stronger intermediates and above at present, the Cliffhanger and mid mountain is primarily for access and when it softens up, the Wall (red). The links down Old Mugs Alley are now broken from the Rannoch Chair, so it is a 6-8 min walk across the Plateau to the Cliffhanger Chair for access. The Plateau Cafe and sledge park are open daily if the chairlift is open.

For mixed ability groups and those looking for green to easier intermediate terrain then CairnGorm is the better option as it offers top station to mid station riding from the Funicular and has selection of green terrain at the top of the mountain.

An unsettled week and changeable week coming up with spells of rain, spells of hill snow, bouts of strong winds and a yo-yoing temperature, with snow falling to below the lower slopes of the snowsports areas during mid-week and possibly again at the end of the week. Early indications are for a ridge of high pressure to roughly be in time with lift operating hours on Thursday, so that looks worth keeping an eye on for a possible mid-week slide, particularly with the forecast snowfall on Tuesday and Wednesday.

On the open terrain then Glencoe has more to offer more advanced riders, particularly if the snow loosens up to spring snow or fresh snow tops things up this week. The Main Basin and Happy Valley are being pisted daily.

On CairnGorm the White Lady remains wide and deep and has been superb when loosening up into spring snow or freshly groomed. The Traverse is in good shape, as is the Gunbarrel and the top legs of the Zig Zags, but the Coire Cas is very narrow in places, a typical symptom of the prevalence of SE winds early in the season, regularly stripping out the Upper Cas and dumping the snow in the Gunbarrel! Thus the Cas Tow is closed at present to provide more space for coming down!

Glenshee and the Lecht are currently closed for snowsports. Indeed it is likely Glenshee is now closed for the season, whereas the Lecht can come back from nothing due to convective snowfall on spring Northerlies even into May!

Nevis Range is closed for snowsports.

:: Glencoe Sledge Park

The Sledge Park is full length and in good shape thanks to snow making from the snow factory. 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.

:: 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/ .

:: Mountain Weather

At 6pm in the West at the Glencoe SSC hut (850m) the temperature was +3.7°c, with wind at 24 gusting 65mph. At the Top of the Access (671m) it was +5.6°c. At Base level (366m) it was +7.8°c.

The SAIS summit AWS on Aonach Mor was reporting +1.1°c. The Met Office station was reporting a SW wind at 50 gusting 88mph. At the CIC Hut (680m) it was +4.4°c. At Tulloch Station (237m) the temperature was +6.7°c.

In the East the summit weather stations on CairnGorm reported -0.2°c, with a South Westerly at a mean of 48 gusting 81mph. At Aviemore the temperature at 6pm was +7.4°c.

The Met Office Cairnwell AWS reported +1.1°c with a SW at a mean of 43 gusting 52mph.

:: Mountain Forecast Discussion

Tuesday now looks set to see the freezing level fall back onto the Munros by dawn and progressively continue to lower through the day, with -3°c possible by dusk. Snow will be falling at least on upper slopes by dawn, after which the showers will begin to merge together into longer spells of precipitation once again in the West, with the snow level gradually lowering to or below the lower slopes of the ski areas. Winds will touch Storm Force overnight, with Severe Gales continuing into Tuesday morning. Widely 40 to 45 gusting 60mph, but 50 gusting 70 to 80mph likely Northern Cairngorms and through the Nevis Range mountains during the morning. Wind speeds will slowly begin to moderate through the morning, but a significant reduction in wind speed may not materialise until into the afternoon. Uplift at opening time on Tuesday morning is very unlikely for CairnGorm or Glencoe.

Wednesday will see further hill snow, with freezing level lowering below the lower slopes of the snowsports areas. Precipitation heavier and more frequent towards the West Highlands, where clusters of convective showers may merge together into some longer spells of mountain snowfall on a W to NW airstream with a risk of thunderstorms. Wind speeds will be strong to Gale Force, but likely Gale Force on and around the Cairngorm Plateau. If direction is more towards NW speeds are likely to be very gusty around Glencoe, particularly in the vicinity off larger convective shower cells. Generally 30 gusting 40mph, but gusts 55 to 60mph in and around showers.

Early indications are that a transient ridge of high pressure will cross Highland Scotland during daytime Thursday, current expectations are that the high winds will moderate from the West during the dawn period with snow showers fading from the West. A largely dry and fine Thursday is expected during lift operating hours with light to moderate variable winds, starting NW or WNW, backing SW as the ridge passes overhead.

Further bands of frontal hill snow look likely to move in through Friday with strong to Gale Force winds, there will be considerable drifting. Around 0 to -1°c at Munro Level.

Deep areas of low pressure passing over or close to Highland Scotland and very transient ridges in between to follow, timing of whether we see ridges during daylight hours or night time will have a big impact on usability of next weekend.

At this stage overnight Friday into Saturday looks severe for Scottish mountains with blizzard conditions, but high winds persisting into Saturday morning before a very transient ridge crosses, whether it arrives quick enough for an afternoon slide is uncertain.

For now it looks like the start of British Summer Time on Sunday will be decidedly autumnal !

:: 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 6am. Sledge Park camera streams overnight. The mid mountain weather station wind direction is not working, other data valid.