Mountain weather

Southwest Highlands

Southwest Highlands Mountain weather forecast table

Confidence

High confidence for an unsettled couple of days with high pressure building once again to bring dry and settled conditions from Tuesday onwards.

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 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.

Mountain weather forecast

Mostly cloudy with outbreaks of light rain in the afternoon.

Time 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
Weather
(at 800m)
Cloudy Sunny intervals Light shower (day) Light rain Light rain Fog
Chance of precipitation
(at 800m)
20% 20% 30% 40% 40% 30%

Wind direction and speed (mph)
Altitude above mean sea level
Time 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1300m SE
13
S
16
SW
17
SW
17
SW
15
SW
15
900m S
10
S
10
SW
12
SW
14
SW
11
W
9
600m SE
6
NE
9
SW
15
SW
17
SW
13
SW
9
300m SE
8
SE
5
SW
11
SW
10
SW
7
S
5
Glen S
2
E
2
SW
10
SW
10
SW
7
SW
2
Wind gust (mph)
Altitude above mean sea level
Time 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1300m 16 18 21 22 19 18
900m 12 13 16 18 15 12
600m 7 12 19 22 17 12
300m 16 7 14 16 10 7
Glen 6 3 16 17 12 5

Altitude above mean sea level
Time 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1300m
900m
600m
300m
10°
11°
10°
10°
Glen
12°
14°
12°
12°
11°
Freezing Level
1,600m
1,700m
1,800m
1,800m
1,700m
1,600m

Altitude above mean sea level
Time 06:00 09:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
1300m
-1°
-2°
-1°
-2°
-2°
-2°
900m
600m
300m
Glen
12°
12°
10°
10°
10°

Additional weather information

Met Office Aberdeen meteorologist's view

Poor visibility in afternoon low cloud will make for tricky navigation. Feeling cold on higher routes and summits.

Weather

Clear spells at first but turning cloudy through the morning with outbreaks of showery rain spreading eastwards. Long dry spells in the evening.

Chance of cloud-free hill tops

40%.

Low cloud and visibility

Occasional low cloud bases of around 800m developing into the afternoon with these becoming more widespread and lowering to 400-600m in the evening. Visibility poor in cloud and showers, otherwise good.

Sunrise:
Sunset:

Mountain weather information

Weather

A mostly cloudy day with some bright or sunny spells breaking through at times. Scattered showers for much of the day before turning dry by late afternoon. Light to moderate northwesterly winds.

Chance of cloud-free hill tops

40%.

Maximum wind speed expected

Northwest 15-20mph.

Temperature

  • At 800m Plus 4C rising to 8C.
  • Glen Plus 8C rising to 15C in the afternoon.
  • Freezing level Above summits.

Low cloud and visibility

Occasional low cloud bases of 800-1000m throughout the day, these lower in the morning falling to 400-600m. Visibility poor in cloud and showers, otherwise good.

Mountain weather information

Tue 28 Apr

Sunrise:
Sunset:

Dry with sunny spells and light winds. Cold on summits early morning.

Wed 29 Apr

Sunrise:
Sunset:

Dry with long spells of sunshine and light winds.

Thu 30 Apr

Sunrise:
Sunset:

Dry with plenty of sunshine light winds.

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