UK Mountain Snow/Weather 2008

[Stoxs]

to anyone who can help !

Do you know of any links for good reasonable priced BnB or accomadation around the ski area please

might be up for a trip up later in the winter if this weather keeps up :o

[skifreak]

Stoxs, take a look on Winterhighland or post the question on our forums at www.winterhighland.info/forum , as I live locally I'm not the best person to advise on B&B's better to come from people who actually make use of the accommodation IMHO. There's accommodation about Strathspey to suit just about every taste and budget though.

On the mountain weather front it appears the WS3600 did survive a full on CairnGorm winter storm, unlike the vodafone mast across the Glen which failed! The weather has eased off and it's allowed our GPRS router to connect to a distant cell, weather data is coming in again, but not sure we'll get webcam images over this link and I fear the cams trying to upload will clog up the very limited bandwidth and stop the weather data getting through again.

We shall see in the morning, and with three much more settled days hopefully the mast will be fixed and we'll have a full connection again.

[Zerouali lives]

Some nice photos here.

Firstly today on Cairgorm http://www.winterhighland.info/2006/pix/di...php?id=5747,400

And the other day at Glenshee http://www.winterhighland.info/2006/pix/di...php?id=5734,399

[Snow Leopard]

New BBC report on the good state of the Scottish Ski centres this year. Here

Quote "best snow for years"

[Norrance]

Some great pics from Glenshee this week/today. You can see Winter Highland for more from around the resorts.

http://www.winterhighland.info/pix/display...=5708,398#start

Edited January 11, 2008 by Norrance

[NL]

"copyright 2008 RSGB, University of Bern and NOAA"

Satellite image taken a few hours ago with great views of the snow

covered scottish mountains..

[johnholmes]

I can't remember the last day on which all the ski areas of Scotland had such first class conditions.

[Stratos Ferric]

I can't remember the last day on which all the ski areas of Scotland had such first class conditions.

Indeed: in any year, in mid January, a combination of extensive snow, clear skies, low wind speeds and clear roads would be rare. I think you're looking back six or seven years at least for such good conditions. Looking at those pictures it's almost tempting to go skiing there - though the wise counsel I once received was always to wait until April! Good advice twenty years ago, I'm sure...

[johnholmes]

if you live relatively close then a day like today is superb. To go and ski for several days, even if you can go at the last minute when conditions look good, is still more expensive than a few days in the Alps.

[Zerouali lives]

I was driving across the A939 Ballatar to Strathdon road this morning and took a few photos at the summit around 540m. Could only stay out of the car for a few minutes though as the intensity of the cold was breathtaking. There's a good couple of feet of snow at the side of the road where it had been ploughed - need those snow poles at the side of the road!

Edited January 12, 2008 by Zerouali lives

[abruzzi spur]

Here's a sight to behold - a short video from the Scottish Avalanche Information Service website (Southern Cairngorms blog page) showing conditions on Friday 11th Jan.

Enjoy!

[disco-barry]

Awesome video Abruzzi

The winter highland pics almost make me want to get up there!

Edited January 12, 2008 by disco-barry

[Snow Leopard]

Here's a sight to behold - a short video from the Scottish Avalanche Information Service website (Southern Cairngorms blog page) showing conditions on Friday 11th Jan.

Enjoy!

Simply stunning!

Temps dropping away now nicely. The highlands are going to get a pasting again tonight.

[frozen_north]

Simply stunning!

Temps dropping away now nicely. The highlands are going to get a pasting again tonight.

ALthough there is going to a thaw tommorow but it shouldnt be too bad with more cold weather and snow for next week.

[Zerouali lives]

Well it appears Sunday's mildness has had little effect on the runs - still a good cover of snow across all centres with more to come this week - especially tomorrow afternoon and Wednesday.

[Snow Leopard]

Article in the Scotsman about the Ski conditions here

Was also reading in todays Metro about the traffic jams at the ski centres this past weekend but I cannot find an online copy. Good for the local economy at least. :lol:

[damianslaw]

Just a quick message-

have to say how nice it was to see the ski tow on raise in the lake district getting some use on saturday, hopefully many more days like saturday to come

[Jack Wales]

Plenty of cold zonality forecast for Scotland on the 18z tonight, should be a good year not just for coverage but depth also. It will be interesting to see if more snow patches survive the summer too.

[Spike Town]

The ski centres have had a great cover of snow so far, does anybody have any thoughts on how the heavy to moderate rain will affect the cover tomorrow and into the weekend?

I was once told that a good spell of rain after snowfall is useful for compacting the runs and making them last longer.

Thanks

ST

[shuggee]

There was a lot of rain and a thaw at the start of the week on not-so-high mountains. And it looks like after a topping-up of snow today, the milder weather is set to return tomorrow. As always it's on a knife-edge with the exact track of the systems and the potency of the mild sectors determining what ppn falls, even at 500m+. But I'd call tomorrow rain for most centres.

[jimben]

The ski centres have had a great cover of snow so far, does anybody have any thoughts on how the heavy to moderate rain will affect the cover tomorrow and into the weekend?

I was once told that a good spell of rain after snowfall is useful for compacting the runs and making them last longer.

Thanks

ST

Freeze, thaw cycles bring the best conditions for both skiing and winter climbing

[Norrance]

The ski centres have had a great cover of snow so far, does anybody have any thoughts on how the heavy to moderate rain will affect the cover tomorrow and into the weekend?

I was once told that a good spell of rain after snowfall is useful for compacting the runs and making them last longer.

Thanks

ST

The mountain forecast for the Grampians after today's heavy snow indicates snow again tomorrow on the higher slopes turning to rain later. Temperatures will temporarily rise to 4/5C but by Saturday it will be colder again with snow showers. This indicates only a slight thaw on the higher slopes and has been said above a freeze thaw cycle helps here by giving a good long lasting base.

The main danger comes later as there are indications of a much longer lasting mild spell with thawing at all levels from next Tuesday.

[Thundery wintry showers]

Yes, I agree, we are potentially heading into pseudo-Bartlett territory looking at around T+144, which would be disastrous for the ski resorts if such a setup persisted for a while (February 1998 was a particularly extreme case).

However, it's worth noting that on the GFS 12Z, the persistently mild air doesn't establish until well into FI, and the ECM is similar, so while I could place confidence on little or no snow at low levels, at ski resort level it may be a different story, with more of a freeze-thaw process which may not be a bad thing.

[Timmytour]

I must admit that I have never really contemplated going skiing in Britain.

In fact I've not been anywhere for a good few years now, but my kids are at the age where I would like them to start learning.

Is it practical to contemplate a holiday in somewhere like Aviemore with the family? Not just this year but in general? I don't think I'd like to do so if there's more than a very slim chance that there wouldn't be any snow.

[Norrance]

I must admit that I have never really contemplated going skiing in Britain.

In fact I've not been anywhere for a good few years now, but my kids are at the age where I would like them to start learning.

Is it practical to contemplate a holiday in somewhere like Aviemore with the family? Not just this year but in general? I don't think I'd like to do so if there's more than a very slim chance that there wouldn't be any snow.

Much as I would like to promote the joys of Scottish skiing I think if I lived where you are and wanted to maximise the chances of good skiing conditions I would head to Alps. I have had some brilliant days skiing up here on fresh snow over a wide area, with good weather and little in the way of queing but to get a combination of these factors recently has been rare. Consequently booking in advance would be a risk but great if it worked out. I can pick my days from here as I am just an hours drive from Glenshee and two from Cairngorm so this recent spell is great, particularly in midweek when the slopes are quiet. If you ever do decide to try Scotland later in the season is usually best for both snow and weather, and if away from holiday times and weekends quieter also.