Mountain weather

Mountain weather

Northwest Highlands

Confidence

High for the general weather story but lower for detail on heavier bursts of rain in the west on Wednesday and Thursday and for the timing of the transition to cooler weather on Friday.

Mountain hazards

Mountain weather hazards

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

Strong Sunlight
Harmful UV levels from sunlight increase with altitude giving a greater risk of sunburn and eye damage, even on some overcast days. On breezy days, the cooling effect of wind on exposed skin may disguise any feeling of sunburn until it is too late. If there is snow cover, glare increases the effect of UV rays especially on the eyes. It is advisable to wear sun block, protective clothing such as a long-sleeved top and hat and have good quality eye protection.

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.
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

Occasional rain in west, dry and bright in east. Windy.

Time
Time
06:00
09:00
12:00
15:00
18:00
21:00
Weather
(at 800m)
Weather symbols Light rain showers Cloudy Sunny intervals Sunny intervals Cloudy Cloudy
Chance of
precipitation
(at 800m)
Chance of precipitation
60%
40%
40%
30%
40%
50%

Wind direction and speed

Altitude above mean sea level
Time
Time
06:00
09:00
12:00
15:00
18:00
21:00
1000m
1000m S 36mph knots
S
36mph
S 29mph knots
S
29mph
SW 28mph knots
SW
28mph
SW 28mph knots
SW
28mph
S 28mph knots
S
28mph
S 26mph knots
S
26mph
900m
900m S 31mph knots
S
31mph
S 25mph knots
S
25mph
SW 26mph knots
SW
26mph
SW 25mph knots
SW
25mph
S 26mph knots
S
26mph
S 24mph knots
S
24mph
600m
600m S 19mph knots
S
19mph
S 16mph knots
S
16mph
SW 20mph knots
SW
20mph
SW 19mph knots
SW
19mph
S 16mph knots
S
16mph
S 15mph knots
S
15mph
300m
300m S 0mph knots
S
0mph
S 1mph knots
S
1mph
SW 5mph knots
SW
5mph
SW 4mph knots
SW
4mph
SW 3mph knots
SW
3mph
S 2mph knots
S
2mph
Glen
Glen E 1mph knots
E
1mph
W 2mph knots
W
2mph
SW 11mph knots
SW
11mph
SW 9mph knots
SW
9mph
S 6mph knots
S
6mph
S 3mph knots
S
3mph

Wind gust

Altitude above mean sea level
Time
Time
06:00
09:00
12:00
15:00
18:00
21:00
1000m
1000m 40mph 34mph 35mph 34mph 34mph 31mph
900m
900m 36mph 30mph 33mph 32mph 31mph 29mph
600m
600m 25mph 21mph 27mph 25mph 22mph 20mph
300m
300m 18mph 14mph 24mph 21mph 20mph 16mph
Glen
Glen 7mph 9mph 23mph 20mph 16mph 13mph

Altitude above mean sea level
Time
Time
06:00
09:00
12:00
15:00
18:00
21:00
1000m
1000m 7 degrees Celsius 8 degrees Celsius 9 degrees Celsius 9 degrees Celsius 8 degrees Celsius 9 degrees Celsius
900m
900m 8 degrees Celsius 9 degrees Celsius 10 degrees Celsius 10 degrees Celsius 9 degrees Celsius 10 degrees Celsius
600m
600m 12 degrees Celsius 13 degrees Celsius 13 degrees Celsius 13 degrees Celsius 13 degrees Celsius 13 degrees Celsius
300m
300m 17 degrees Celsius 19 degrees Celsius 19 degrees Celsius 19 degrees Celsius 19 degrees Celsius 18 degrees Celsius
Glen
Glen 19 degrees Celsius 21 degrees Celsius 20 degrees Celsius 20 degrees Celsius 21 degrees Celsius 20 degrees Celsius
Freezing Level Freezing Level
3500m
3400m
3100m
3100m
3100m
3100m

Additional weather information

Meteorologist's view

Strong southerly winds will affect progress at times. Risk of being blown over on exposed ridges and summits near the west coast with gusts of 45mph. Feeling warm and humid in the glens.

Weather

Mostly cloudy with showery rain but this becoming largely confined to west coast ranges by the afternoon, briefly heavy at times, edging back east in the evening. Elsewhere it will become mainly dry and warm with some bright spells in the north and east.

Chance of cloud-free hill tops

70%, but 30% along the west coast.

Low cloud and visibility

Occasional cloud above 800m, mainly in the west and falling to lower slopes at times along the west coast. Cloud staying above the summits in the east. Visibility mainly good away from low cloud but often down to a few km in rain near the west coast.

Ground conditions

No recent ground conditions report available.

Summit specific forecast