Sub Aqua Scottish Grade 15

We have rain for the time being! A sterling effort yesterday by Andy Ravenhill on North Buttress - Buachaille Etive Mor - Glen Coe with Paul. It was rather damp to say the least with no snow to speak of on the route. For many others the Allt a' Mhuillin at the CIC Hut proved a paddle too far and they high-tailed it back home. Today is a similar story and tomorrow as well. Sunday onwards should show a marked improvement, but the crags are looking black for the time being. no doubt some ice will remain and a good deal will build in the face of the forecast Arctic snap.

Next week is looking very wintry all the way until Friday and maybe beyond. Places at the CIC Hut still available on courses or self-led. See this report from Metcheck below:

Well just when we and all the plants and animals were beginning to think Spring had finally arrived, Winter is about to make an abrupt and significant appearance.

Before then however, temperatures will continue to be above average, continuing the trend of this past week. Friday will be a story of two halves with more Northern parts of the country seeing increasing cloud and rain across Scotland, Northern Ireland and eventually Northern England. Further South, it will be mostly dry with some further good spells of sunshine and once again feeling very mild, if not pleasantly warm in light winds and the sunshine.

Saturday will see the unsettled conditions spread further south with cloud, wind and rain expected across all Northern parts of the country. Some further bright or sunny spells are possible across the South. But even here, cloud will increase later in the day. Once again it will be very mild throughout the majority of the day.

Saturday night is when the change in the weather will begin to take place. An active cold front will move quickly south-wards across all parts of the country bringing a spell of wet and windy weather on Saturday night. Behind this cold front, colder air will begin to filter quickly South, initially, across Scotland during the early hours of Sunday, but then across the rest of the UK into Sunday morning and through into the afternoon.

Frequent and often heavy showers will filter down across many Northern and Western parts of the country during Sunday afternoon, these turning increasingly wintry. There is the potential for blizzard conditions across high ground of Scotland for a time. Snow is expected to accumulate above 250 to 300m initially, but possibly to lower levels later in the day and into the overnight period. It will feel very different indeed on Sunday with a marked wind-chill and temperatures struggling between 5ºC and 8ºC across the country.

So put away the lawn mower, cover up those delicate plants and get ready for a taste of winter that will begin on Sunday and last well into next week.