Mountain weather

Mountain weather

South Grampian and Southeast Highlands

Confidence

High confidence in the main themes for the rest of this week. While Sunday will be the best day of the weekend, some uncertainty remains regarding the timing of the rain clearing south on Saturday night.

Mountain hazards

Mountain weather hazards

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

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.
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.

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.
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

Mainly cloudy with outbreaks of rain. Drier, brighter in east. Gales on tops.

Time
Time
06:00
09:00
12:00
15:00
18:00
21:00
Weather
(at 800m)
Weather symbols Cloudy Heavy rain showers Heavy rain showers Heavy rain showers Cloudy Cloudy
Chance of
precipitation
(at 800m)
Chance of precipitation
30%
40%
40%
40%
30%
20%

Wind direction and speed

Altitude above mean sea level
Time
Time
06:00
09:00
12:00
15:00
18:00
21:00
1100m
1100m SW 35mph knots
SW
35mph
SW 35mph knots
SW
35mph
SW 34mph knots
SW
34mph
SW 36mph knots
SW
36mph
SW 34mph knots
SW
34mph
SW 34mph knots
SW
34mph
900m
900m SW 23mph knots
SW
23mph
SW 26mph knots
SW
26mph
SW 25mph knots
SW
25mph
SW 27mph knots
SW
27mph
SW 23mph knots
SW
23mph
SW 22mph knots
SW
22mph
600m
600m SW 17mph knots
SW
17mph
SW 19mph knots
SW
19mph
SW 19mph knots
SW
19mph
SW 20mph knots
SW
20mph
SW 17mph knots
SW
17mph
SW 17mph knots
SW
17mph
300m
300m W 6mph knots
W
6mph
SW 12mph knots
SW
12mph
SW 15mph knots
SW
15mph
SW 15mph knots
SW
15mph
SW 13mph knots
SW
13mph
SW 13mph knots
SW
13mph
Glen
Glen SW 4mph knots
SW
4mph
SW 11mph knots
SW
11mph
SW 15mph knots
SW
15mph
SW 14mph knots
SW
14mph
SW 12mph knots
SW
12mph
SW 10mph knots
SW
10mph

Wind gust

Altitude above mean sea level
Time
Time
06:00
09:00
12:00
15:00
18:00
21:00
1100m
1100m 41mph 43mph 42mph 45mph 42mph 42mph
900m
900m 29mph 34mph 33mph 35mph 32mph 31mph
600m
600m 30mph 33mph 32mph 34mph 30mph 31mph
300m
300m 18mph 26mph 30mph 30mph 28mph 28mph
Glen
Glen 13mph 23mph 29mph 27mph 24mph 22mph

Altitude above mean sea level
Time
Time
06:00
09:00
12:00
15:00
18:00
21:00
1100m
1100m -1 degrees Celsius -1 degrees Celsius 1 degrees Celsius 0 degrees Celsius 0 degrees Celsius -1 degrees Celsius
900m
900m 2 degrees Celsius 3 degrees Celsius 5 degrees Celsius 4 degrees Celsius 4 degrees Celsius 3 degrees Celsius
600m
600m 6 degrees Celsius 8 degrees Celsius 9 degrees Celsius 8 degrees Celsius 8 degrees Celsius 7 degrees Celsius
300m
300m 11 degrees Celsius 12 degrees Celsius 13 degrees Celsius 12 degrees Celsius 12 degrees Celsius 10 degrees Celsius
Glen
Glen 12 degrees Celsius 13 degrees Celsius 14 degrees Celsius 14 degrees Celsius 13 degrees Celsius 12 degrees Celsius
Freezing Level Freezing Level
2100m
2200m
2300m
2300m
2400m
2500m

Additional weather information

Meteorologist's view

Gusts above 50mph on tops will give very difficult walking conditions with a significant risk of being blown over, especially during the afternoon and evening as winds strengthen. Also note the sub-zero wind-chill on tops.

Weather

A mainly cloudy, windy day with showery outbreaks of rain, the rain most frequent for the Perthshire hills, but patchier across Aberdeenshire and Angus where some brighter spells are expected. Gales on tops, strengthening further later.

Chance of cloud-free hill tops

40% rising to 60%, best chances in the east.

Low cloud and visibility

Occasional cloud bases down to 900m during the morning and in outbreaks of rain, but generally lifting to 1100m or above outside of rain in the afternoon, especially in the east. Visibility will be generally good below cloud bases, briefly deteriorating in outbreaks of rain.

Ground conditions

No recent ground conditions report available.

Summit specific forecast