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

As we start the Easter holiday weekend both CairnGorm Mountain and Glencoe are open daily for snowsports - weather permitting, but the weather situation is going to be rather complicated and details are still to be completely nailed down.

The Met Office at update have Yellow Warnings for wind and snow for Saturday afternoon through into Easter Day, having named Storm Frank, there is an expectation that some locations will see the warning upgraded to Amber. However, with it looking like the worst of the weather will be overnight and Saturday starting under the influence of a transient ridge of high pressure, we may yet see 3 out of 4 days of the holiday weekend seeing lift served riding.

Sunday is the day that currently has the biggest question mark hanging over it. Whether wind drops enough during the morning will not be the only factor affecting potential uplift on Easter Day, the degree of potential storm recovery work required depending on just how wild the night is will also be a factor.

CairnGorm caught between 6 and 10cm of new snow after the cold air moved in before the precipitation cleared out on Wednesday, but no such luck at Glencoe where the temperature only fell after the rain cleared! It looks like it should be Glencoes night for loading up some freshies for Good Friday on Thursday night into Friday morning, but while only flurries are expected on CairnGorm overnight, a stiff Southerly breeze should blow some fresh snow into the ski area and offer up some windblown fresh for the morning.

On Thursday it was a spectacular start under blue skies, with a good layer of fresh under-skis on CairnGorm. At Glencoe the Main Basin was great on the groomed line, but it was not really a morning for exploring as away from that groomed line everything had set up solid!

Wednesday turned out, frankly as bad as possible for Glencoe from the weather situation, taking a hammering with low cloud, persistent heavy rain and high winds. The temperature did not drop until the precipitation had all but passed. Hopefully Thursday night into Friday morning will bring a better meteorological outcome, potentially up to 10cm of fresh snow expected overnight.

A substantial amount of snow shoving in Happy Valley, means the bypass of the Haggis Trap is complete. Despite the thaw on Wednesday, the Main Basin and Spring Run have made a gain overall vs end of last week. Where deeper drifts existed mid mountain there is now areas of deep consolidated snow, so hopefully tonight will plug some of the gaps and take the edge of the base of the Wall. Surface conditions permitting, the Wall is the best route for advanced riders to return down mid mountain. However it should be noted that as things stand, mid mountain is just for access and thus the riding on offer is only suitable for stronger intermediates and comfortable with the more challenging end of the blue terrain spectrum.

CairnGorm is definitely the location if you are seeking easier terrain or wish to ride with a mixed ability group. With the fresh snow from Wednesday, the Top Basin terrain (various green trails), White Lady (red) and the Cas runs from the Traverse (green / blue) were all giving fantastic riding on Thursday. The M1 RaceTrack (red) is also doable, by exiting to the 105. The White Lady has a wide and deep base under the new snow and is in superb shape thanks to the persistent SE storms in January!

If you are prepared to do the leg work the Ciste Gully is complete to below the level of the former boardwalks, but this has rarely been open this winter and the West Wall Poma has not run since mid February. The SE winds which loaded both the Lady and the Ciste Gully having left virtually nothing on the West Wall and not much on the long since expired Poma uptrack.

Glenshee and the Lecht are currently closed for snowsports. It is likely Glenshee is now closed for the season, whereas the Lecht can and has come back from nothing to open even in 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 refreshed after the weather let up enough to push out piles of fresh machine made snow. Snowmaking continues round the clock. There are over 150 sledges to grab at the Plateau Cafe, sledging is complimentary!

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.

For Saturday of Easter Weekend an early visit is recommended to get the best weather and there is a small risk of an earlier close being required due to the approach of Storm Dave.

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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 -0.5°c, no wind data is available. At the Top of the Access (671m) it was +1.9°c. At Base level (366m) it was +4.7°c with the wind at 10 gusting 20mph.

The SAIS summit AWS on Aonach Mor was reporting -2.5°c. The Met Office station was reporting a South wind at 30 gusting 43mph. At the CIC Hut (680m) it was +1.9°c. At Tulloch Station (237m) the temperature was +5.8°c.

In the East the summit weather stations on CairnGorm reported -3.7°c, with a Southerly at a mean of 39 gusting 48mph. At Aviemore the temperature at 6pm was +6.7°c.

The Met Office Cairnwell AWS reported -0.3°c with a South wind at a mean of 37 gusting 45mph.

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:: Mountain Forecast Discussion

Storm Dave has been named by the Met Office for later Saturday into Easter Day, but the exact track, depth and speed of development still has quite a range of scenarios. Some models actually take the storm through Scotland before it has fully deepened, while the latest Met Office run blows it up into a sub 970mb beast before it reaches the NW corner of Ireland.

Thus Easter weekend is going to be a weather roller coaster as fast moving very transient ridges pass through between the deep(ening) areas of low pressure either passing close to or through Scotland. For the weekend itself, an early start on Saturday morning will get the best of the weather, still under the influence of a departing ridge and perhaps most of lift operating hours on Saturday could be OK, but severe mountain conditions will develop into the evening and overnight.

Just how severe and where sees the worst is not yet certain, however if you are planning to camp / stay in a van at Glencoe over the weekend, be aware that Storm Force winds are possible overnight Saturday into Sunday on Rannoch Moor, not just on the mountain. Be prepared!

For Good Friday and the start of the holiday weekend, it should be an improving picture post dawn and into the morning with overnight mountain snow in the West easing to showers, with some brighter spells developing. But later, some showers could pep up in the April sunshine - classic April showers, but of snow on the mountains and a small risk of thunderstorms!

Best chance of brighter and drier conditions to the East, but even here in the afternoon convective showers could bubble up. Gale Force Southerly winds overnight will back West or WNW and moderate through the dawn period. In the west wind could almost lull completely for a spell, before picking up again in the afternoon and then also likely to be more blustery around heftier showers. Around 0°c at Munro Level at dawn, lowering -2°c or possibly -3°c during the morning.

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 any early brightness will soon be replaced by thickening cloud and snow showers will gradually pick up in frequency and intensity ahead of heavy frontal hill snow moving in during the afternoon. FL will drop to below the lower slopes on Saturday afternoon, so snow will increasingly fall down into the glens. The Met Office warning is for 5 to 10cm above 200m, but some locations in the West could see 10 to 20cm, thus as the wind picks up, blizzard conditions will develop where snowfall is heavier and more persistent.

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 is likely to start to be problematic sooner than at Glencoe, so at least higher tows may see an early close. Very severe mountain conditions likely to develop into Saturday evening.

Some doubt about freezing level depending on how quickly the low develops and its exact track, but expect Munro Level temperature to be between -2 and -4°c, with the snow level dropping further as precipitation intensifies. Into the evening wind may abruptly become 60 gusting 80 to 90mph as the direction begins to veer in cyclonically variable wind flow. Risk of gusts of 80 to 90mph to low levels in parts of Western and Northern Scotland can not be ruled out, gusts towards 100 to 120mph would then be likely in prone mountain locations.

Blizzard conditions for the mountains into Sunday morning with Storm Force Westerly winds overnight. Some model output moderates the wind quite significantly through mid morning on Easter Day as precipitation will gradually become more showery. Currently expecting -3 to -5°c at Munro Level for much of Easter Day, so snow showers could be falling to fairly low levels by dawn on Easter.

A ridge behind the Easter storm now looks quite likely to give a relatively benign holiday Monday, indeed it may be dry for the most part with wind continuing to moderate.

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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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