Mountain weather
Yellow warning

Yellow weather warnings in force for North Grampian

North Grampian Mountain weather forecast table

Confidence

High confidence in cold northerly airflow bringing snow showers until Saturday. Low confidence thereafter but a chance the cold northerly flow will persist.

Sunrise:
Sunset:
Mountain hazards

Mountain weather hazards

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

hazard Blizzards
Blizzards and whiteouts present challenging and serious conditions due to a combination of falling or blowing snow, strong winds and cold temperatures. They can be highly disorientating, often resulting in near-zero visibility with limited or no visual references and no distinction between ground and sky. Cliff edges and cornices may not be apparent, even close up. These conditions require very good navigational skills.
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.
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 Heavy Persistent Snow
Heavy snow can lead to rapid changes in underfoot conditions and paths may become treacherous or hidden. It also brings very poor visibility and often makes navigation much more challenging. When deep snow accumulates progress is often time consuming and strenuous, significantly affecting the distance one can travel on foot. Deep drifts can develop if snow is combined with strong winds. A heightened avalanche risk is possible and avalanche reports should be consulted where available.

Mountain weather forecast

Very cold with strong to gale force winds and frequent heavy snow showers bringing blizzard conditions.

Time 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
Weather
(at 800m)
Heavy snow shower (night) Heavy snow shower (day) Heavy snow shower (day) Heavy snow shower (day) Heavy snow shower (night) Heavy snow shower (night)
Chance of precipitation
(at 800m)
90% 90% 80% 80% 80% 80%

Wind direction and speed (mph)
Altitude above mean sea level
Time 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1300m NW
45
NW
46
NW
46
NW
47
NW
41
NW
37
900m NW
34
NW
35
NW
35
NW
36
NW
30
NW
28
600m NW
20
NW
21
NW
23
NW
23
NW
19
NW
17
300m NW
10
NW
11
NW
14
NW
13
NW
11
NW
9
Glen NW
5
NW
5
NW
6
NW
5
NW
5
NW
5
Wind gust (mph)
Altitude above mean sea level
Time 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1300m 56 58 60 63 55 50
900m 40 42 45 47 40 37
600m 25 27 33 33 28 26
300m 24 26 32 31 25 23
Glen 28 28 29 29 26 24

Altitude above mean sea level
Time 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1300m
-7°
-8°
-9°
-10°
-10°
-10°
900m
-4°
-5°
-5°
-6°
-7°
-7°
600m
-2°
-2°
-3°
-4°
-4°
-5°
300m
-1°
-2°
-2°
-3°
Glen
-1°
-1°
-2°
-3°
Freezing Level
200m
200m
100m
0m
0m
0m

Altitude above mean sea level
Time 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1300m
-20°
-20°
-22°
-23°
-23°
-23°
900m
-14°
-15°
-16°
-17°
-17°
-17°
600m
-9°
-10°
-11°
-12°
-12°
-12°
300m
-4°
-5°
-6°
-7°
-7°
-8°
Glen
-5°
-5°
-5°
-5°
-7°
-8°

Additional weather information

Met Office Aberdeen meteorologist's view

Walking conditions will be very challenging, with bitterly cold temperatures and frequent snow showers reducing visibility. Snow will accumulate throughout the day, and strong winds will create blizzard conditions with drifting snow. These factors can easily disorient walkers on the hills, making navigation hazardous.

Weather

Cloudy with frequent snow showers feeding in from the northwest, showers will be heavy at times with snow falling to all levels later in the day. Strong northwesterly winds with gales on highest routes. Very cold with an extreme wind chill.

Chance of cloud-free hill tops

10%.

Low cloud and visibility

Visibility generally good outside cloud, but quickly dropping to poor or very poor in snow showers. Cloud bases mostly 700-900?m, occasionally lower in showers, with very brief clear breaks possible between them.

Sunrise:
Sunset:

Mountain weather information

Weather

Cloudy with frequent, and at times heavy, snow showers. Snow falling and accumulating to all levels. Strong northwesterly winds with blizzards possible. Bitterly cold with risk of severe wind chill.

Chance of cloud-free hill tops

10%.

Maximum wind speed expected

Northwesterly 30-35mph gusting 40-45mph.

Temperature

  • At 800m Minus 6 Celsius.
  • Glen Minus 1, rising to plus 1 Celsius in daylight hours.
  • Freezing level At the surface.

Low cloud and visibility

Visibility generally good outside of cloud, but quickly dropping to poor or very poor in snow showers. Cloud bases mostly 700-900?m, occasionally lower in showers, with very brief clear breaks possible between them.

Mountain weather information

Sat 3 Jan

Sunrise:
Sunset:

Cloudy and very cold with snow showers to all levels. Strong northwesterly winds.

Sun 4 Jan

Sunrise:
Sunset:

Another very cold day with snow showers to all levels, some drier and brighter spells possible compared to recent days. Fresh northwesterly winds.

Mon 5 Jan

Sunrise:
Sunset:

Snow showers at first drier spells possible later. Fresh northwesterly winds. Cold.

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