Mountain weather

South Grampian and Southeast Highlands

South Grampian and Southeast Highlands Mountain weather forecast table

Confidence

High for Tuesday. Low for Wednesday with large uncertainty in northern and western extent of any snow. High for strong winds on Thursday, but low for timing of rain clearing. High confidence for a change to colder showery conditions Friday and Saturday, but low for details.

Sunrise:
Sunset:
Mountain hazards

Mountain weather hazards

Hazards apply at or above 300m, reflecting the more severe conditions which can occur at altitude.

hazard Severe Chill Effect
Wind significantly lowers the ‘feels-like’ temperature relative to the actual temperature, with even moderate winds significantly adding to the chilling effect. Strong winds can result in a severe and debilitating wind chill many degrees below the actual temperature. This effect will be enhanced in rain or wet snow. Without protection, prolonged exposure could result in frost nip or frostbite on exposed parts of the body and/or hypothermia.
hazard Poor Visibility
Poor visibility presents challenging route finding conditions. Visibility could be significantly less than 50 metres in all directions with few or no visual references, especially on featureless moors or plateaux. Distances become hard to judge and cliff or cornice edges can be difficult to recognise. These conditions require good navigational skills. There is a risk of white-out conditions when mist or fog is combined with extensive snow cover.

hazard Gales
Gale force winds (gusts over 50mph) make walking difficult and strenuous with a potential to be blown over by gusts. There is often a marked increase in winds through cols or on exposed ridges and summits. Distances can take longer to cover and compass bearings become harder to follow accurately.

Mountain weather forecast

Rain and low cloud to start. Turning drier and brighter. Cold and windy.

06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
Weather
(at 800m)
Light rain Light rain Cloudy Sunny intervals Sunny intervals Cloudy
Chance of precipitation
(at 800m)
60% 60% 10% <05% <05% <05%

Wind direction and speed (mph)
Altitude above mean sea level
06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1100m W
45
W
33
W
26
NW
16
W
7
NE
7
900m W
33
W
25
W
22
NW
14
W
5
NE
7
600m W
26
W
17
W
15
NW
11
NW
4
E
4
300m W
15
W
11
W
12
NW
10
NW
3
NE
3
Glen SW
13
W
11
W
12
W
10
NW
4
NE
4
Wind gust (mph)
Altitude above mean sea level
06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1100m 53 42 33 22 10 9
900m 42 33 29 19 8 9
600m 42 30 25 18 7 7
300m 32 22 23 19 8 7
Glen 28 22 23 18 10 8

Altitude above mean sea level
06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1100m
-2°
900m
600m
300m
Glen
10°
10°
10°
Freezing Level
1,400m
1,300m
1,100m
900m
800m
800m

Altitude above mean sea level
06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1100m
-7°
-7°
-7°
-6°
-4°
-6°
900m
-4°
-3°
-3°
-2°
-1°
-3°
600m
300m
Glen

Additional weather information

Met Office Aberdeen meteorologist's view

Note the lowering freezing levels with remaining snow patches likely to become hard and icy.

Weather

Rain and southerly summit gales in the early hours. Winds easing slightly through the morning while rain becomes increasingly patchy, turning to snow above munro level. Largely dry by midday with some sunny spells in the afternoon. Cloud thickens in the evening, with a chance of snow spreading north overnight.

Chance of cloud-free hill tops

20-30% in the morning, 80% in the afternoon.

Low cloud and visibility

Very poor visibility in rain and cloud above 600m early hours and to start the day. Cloud bases gradually rising through the morning, with just a few patches on the higher summits in the afternoon.

Sunrise:
Sunset:

Mountain weather information

Weather

Low cloud with snow, rain below 700-900m is likely to spread north in the early hours. This may persist well into the afternoon before clearing to the east. Turning dry but still overcast in the evening, winds increasing overnight.

Chance of cloud-free hill tops

10%.

Maximum wind speed expected

Northerly becoming Westerly 5 to 10 mph. Becoming southwest 20 gusting 35 mph late evening.

Temperature

  • At 800m Plus 1 Celsius, rising to plus 3 Celsius, falling to zero Celsius in the evening.
  • Glen Plus 2 Celsius, rising to 8 Celsius.
  • Freezing level Around 800-900m, perhaps rising to 1100m in the afternoon.

Low cloud and visibility

Most likely very poor visibility in snow, rain at lower levels and persistent cloud above 400-500m. Cloud then lifting to around 700-800m late afternoon.

Mountain weather information

Thu 21 Mar

Sunrise:
Sunset:

Cloudy with southwesterly severe gales and outbreaks of rain, clearing later in the day. Freezing level 1000m, quickly rising well above the summits. Falling to 1000m again evening.

Fri 22 Mar

Sunrise:
Sunset:

West or northwest gales with sunny spells and scattered showers, falling as snow to increasingly lower levels, perhaps a risk of thunder. Freezing level 800m falling to 400m.

Sat 23 Mar

Sunrise:
Sunset:

Cold, with strong north or northwest winds, a chance of wintry showers, most likely turning drier with winds easing later.

Updated at:

Summit specific forecast

Mountain summit forecast map

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For snow and avalanche hazard forecasts please visit Scottish Avalanche Information Service