Mountain weather
South Grampian and Southeast Highlands Mountain weather forecast table
Confidence
High for Tuesday and Wednesday. High for a change to unsettled and less cold weather later in the week but low confidence for daily detail.
Mountain weather hazards
Hazards apply at or above 300m, reflecting the more severe conditions which can occur at altitude.
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.
Mountain weather forecast
Dry, bright and cold
| 06:00 | 09:00 | 12:00 | 15:00 | 18:00 | 21:00 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Weather (at 800m) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Chance of precipitation (at 800m) |
10% | 00% | 00% | 00% | 00% | 00% |
Wind direction and speed (mph)
Altitude above mean sea level
| 06:00 | 09:00 | 12:00 | 15:00 | 18:00 | 21:00 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1100m |
NE
16
|
NE
11
|
N
6
|
S
3
|
SW
5
|
SW
7
|
| 900m |
NE
8
|
NE
6
|
N
3
|
S
2
|
SW
5
|
SW
6
|
| 600m |
N
3
|
W
2
|
W
2
|
SW
2
|
SW
3
|
SW
4
|
| 300m |
N
4
|
NW
2
|
W
2
|
NW
2
|
W
3
|
W
3
|
| Glen |
W
2
|
SW
2
|
W
3
|
W
3
|
W
3
|
W
3
|
Wind gust (mph)
Altitude above mean sea level
| 06:00 | 09:00 | 12:00 | 15:00 | 18:00 | 21:00 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1100m | 18 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 7 | 9 |
| 900m | 10 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 8 |
| 600m | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 5 |
| 300m | 9 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| Glen | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 |
Altitude above mean sea level
| 06:00 | 09:00 | 12:00 | 15:00 | 18:00 | 21:00 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1100m |
-4°
|
-4°
|
-5°
|
-4°
|
-5°
|
-5°
|
| 900m |
-2°
|
-3°
|
-3°
|
-3°
|
-4°
|
-4°
|
| 600m |
-1°
|
-2°
|
-1°
|
-4°
|
-6°
|
-6°
|
| 300m |
0°
|
0°
|
2°
|
0°
|
-3°
|
-3°
|
| Glen |
1°
|
0°
|
2°
|
0°
|
-2°
|
-3°
|
| Freezing Level |
400m
|
300m
|
400m
|
400m
|
100m
|
0m
|
Altitude above mean sea level
| 06:00 | 09:00 | 12:00 | 15:00 | 18:00 | 21:00 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1100m |
-11°
|
-10°
|
-9°
|
-7°
|
-8°
|
-10°
|
| 900m |
-7°
|
-6°
|
-5°
|
-5°
|
-7°
|
-8°
|
| 600m |
-3°
|
-3°
|
-3°
|
-6°
|
-9°
|
-9°
|
| 300m |
-2°
|
-2°
|
0°
|
-2°
|
-5°
|
-5°
|
| Glen |
-1°
|
-2°
|
1°
|
-2°
|
-4°
|
-5°
|
Additional weather information
Met Office Aberdeen meteorologist's view
Nothing to add
Weather
A dry bright day. Mostly cloudy to start, but cloud breaking up by the afternoon. Clear skies after dark with temperatures falling away quickly, some fog forming in the glens.
Chance of cloud-free hill tops
20% at first, soon becoming 90%
Low cloud and visibility
Some thin cloud below 300 metres possible across the north of the area at first. Otherwise very good visibility with many ridges and summits seeing very little cloud.
Mountain weather information
Weather
Dry, bright and very cold but some high cloud spilling north in the afternoon making for flat light conditions. Strengthening southeasterly winds will bring heavy snow from mid-evening onwards, gales developing on the summits. Snow will be drifting around in the wind too.
Chance of cloud-free hill tops
90% during daylight
Maximum wind speed expected
Southeasterly 20 mph with gusts to 30 mph, increasing to 40 mph gust 55 mph after dark. Winds reaching nearer 70 mph across the higher peaks of the southern Cairngorms by late evening
Temperature
- At 800m Minus 2 Celsius
- Glen Minus 10 rising to 0 Celsius
- Freezing level 400 metres or less
Low cloud and visibility
Good visibility with little in the way of cloud on the summits for much of the day. Cloud lowering to 700 metres from the south during the evening and coupled with snow will lead to very poor visibility.
Mountain weather information
Thu 7 Dec
Sunrise:
Sunset:
A cloudy and very windy day with summit southeasterly gales or severe gales. Widespread snow at first will soon clear away before further spells of rain extend northeast during the day. Freezing level 400 metres rising well above summits, this leading to a thaw of some lying snow.
Fri 8 Dec
Sunrise:
Sunset:
Cloudy with spells of rain or highest summit snow, some drier weather too. Freezing level 1500 metres.
Sat 9 Dec
Sunrise:
Sunset:
A dry start but further rain, briefly preceded by highest summit snow, is likely to spread east for a time. Freezing level above summits.
Updated at:
Summit specific forecast
Mountain summit forecast map
Loading map…
Key
Mountain summits
Other points of interest
Cluster of multiple stations
Including South and East Cairngorms National Park, Aberdeenshire and Angus Hills, Ben Vrackie, Ben Lawers, Loch Tay and Ochils
This weather forecast area covers much of the southern and eastern Cairngorm National Park, the Aberdeenshire hills and Angus hills and includes the Balmoral Estate, Scottish home of the Royal Family since 1852. Lochnagar, with its magnificent northern corrie, is very popular among walkers and climbers and Mount Keen is the most easterly of all Munros (Scottish mountains over 3000 feet).
The Perthshire hills offer a rich variety of heather-clad hills and mighty pine forests. The River Tay flows 120 miles from its source to the North Sea and is the longest and largest river in Scotland. Loch Tay is a freshwater loch and at around 150 metres deep it is one of the deepest in Scotland. At 1,214 metres Ben Lawers is the highest point along the ridge near the north shore of the loch that includes seven Munros.
The Ochil Hills are a long range of steep-sided, round topped hills, stretching 25 miles from the Firth of Tay to Stirling. There are many peaks over 600 metres offering splendid views across central Scotland and to the north, with Ben Cleuch the highest at 721 metres.
For snow and avalanche hazard forecasts please visit Scottish Avalanche Information Service