Mountain weather

Northwest Highlands

Northwest Highlands Mountain weather forecast table

Confidence

High for very windy conditions on Thursday then lighter winds Friday. High confidence for change to much colder weather in the hills over the weekend and into next week.

Sunrise:
Sunset:

This evening forecast

Scattered showers, mainly in west this evening. Dry in east of area with clear periods. Southwest winds increasing to gale force.

Sunrise:
Sunset:
Mountain hazards

Mountain weather hazards

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

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 Storm Force Winds
Storm force winds (gusts over 70mph) make walking very strenuous with any mobility virtually impossible over exposed ground. Where these conditions occur there is a high risk of being blown over and even standing may be impossible at times with a risk of being blown off one’s feet. Basic tasks such as using a map, eating, putting on extra clothing or communication become extremely difficult away from any shelter.
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.

Mountain weather forecast

Blustery showers, mostly in west. Sunny spells. Very windy. Strong winds decreasing by evening. Feeling cold.

Time 00:00 03:00 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
Weather
(at 800m)
Partly cloudy (night) Light shower (night) Light shower (night) Light shower (day) Light shower (day) Light shower (day) Sunny intervals Partly cloudy (night)
Chance of precipitation
(at 800m)
20% 40% 40% 40% 30% 30% 20% 20%

Wind direction and speed (mph)
Altitude above mean sea level
Time 00:00 03:00 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1000m SW
54
SW
57
SW
56
SW
54
SW
46
SW
40
W
25
SW
14
900m SW
51
SW
53
SW
54
SW
52
SW
44
SW
38
W
25
SW
13
600m SW
34
SW
36
SW
37
SW
36
SW
32
SW
28
W
17
SW
9
300m SW
11
SW
11
SW
13
SW
14
SW
14
SW
14
W
8
SW
3
Glen SW
21
SW
23
SW
23
SW
23
SW
20
SW
17
SW
10
W
3
Wind gust (mph)
Altitude above mean sea level
Time 00:00 03:00 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1000m 67 70 70 68 60 52 33 18
900m 64 66 67 66 58 51 32 17
600m 48 50 52 51 45 40 25 13
300m 46 47 49 48 43 39 23 11
Glen 43 47 46 44 38 31 20 8

Altitude above mean sea level
Time 00:00 03:00 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1000m
900m
600m
300m
11°
10°
10°
11°
12°
12°
11°
10°
Glen
13°
13°
13°
14°
14°
15°
14°
12°
Freezing Level
1,900m
1,900m
2,000m
2,000m
2,000m
2,000m
2,000m
2,100m

Altitude above mean sea level
Time 00:00 03:00 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1000m
-3°
-3°
-3°
-2°
-1°
-1°
900m
-2°
-2°
-1°
-1°
600m
300m
10°
10°
Glen
10°
11°
12°
12°
12°

Additional weather information

Met Office Aberdeen meteorologist's view

Strong winds will make walking very difficult, even on lower slopes, and combined with single figure temperatures, it will feel bitterly cold, especially over higher ridges/summits.

Weather

Very strong winds will be the main weather feature. Otherwise rather cloudy with blustery showers, these most frequent over mountains in the west such as Knoydart, Skye and Torridon. Fewer showers over Caithness and hills towards Great Glen.

Chance of cloud-free hill tops

70%, best chances in east.

Low cloud and visibility

Generally good visibility with occasional cloud cover above about 700 to 800m. Briefly poorer visibility near to showers in west with more extensive clouds lower down the hills.

Sunrise:
Sunset:

Mountain weather information

Weather

Rather cloudy start with a band of showers moving eastwards across all parts. Drier, brighter weather will follow later in morning with some afternoon sunshine.

Chance of cloud-free hill tops

40% improving 80% during morning.

Maximum wind speed expected

Southwest winds with average speeds 20mph with gusts 35 to 40mph on the tops.

Temperature

  • At 800m 9 Celsius.
  • Glen 8 Celsius rising to 17 Celsius.
  • Freezing level Above the summits.

Low cloud and visibility

Mostly good visibility with clouds fairly extensive at first above around 700 to 800m, lifting and breaking up during morning.

Mountain weather information

Sat 20 Sep

Sunrise:
Sunset:

Rather cloudy with scattered showers. Becoming colder with showers turning wintry over highest tops. Northeast winds becoming strong with gales developing on the summits.

Sun 21 Sep

Sunrise:
Sunset:

A cold, windy day with sunshine and blustery showers, most frequent over north Highlands, wintry on highest peaks. Strong northerly winds with gales in the morning.

Mon 22 Sep

Sunrise:
Sunset:

A quieter day in the hills. All ranges will be dry with some sunshine and lighter winds.

Updated at:

Summit specific forecast

Mountain summit forecast map

Loading map…

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