Great vis, soft slab and collapsing cornices.
5th January 2026
We have ‘incoming’ on Tuesday. Quite a significant pulse of heavy snowfall is forecast for our area commencing in the early afternoon. The potential for the redistribution of existing snow on high plateau areas will be enhanced as winds pick up, which in addition to heavy snowfall means poorer stability on most lee slopes.
Today the excellent overhead conditions gave great views and an opportunity to assess the amount of snow we have currently in the Creag Meagaidh area. See below.
(Above) Sron a Ghoire at 550m. Knee deep pretty much everywhere here and very hard going. Skis or snow shoes would reduce the toil but still be a tiring work out for the legs.
(Above) A peek into Coire Ardair with The Window prominent right of centre.
(Above) The Big Picture as viewed from near Laggan: L to R – Puist Coire Ardair, the Post Face of Coire Ardair and the incised Carn Liath plateau with Coire nan Gall and Coire Dubh prominent.
(Above) Coire Dubh. Evidence of recent cornice collapse here but nothing triggered on the steep SE-facing slope below.
(Above) Coire nan Gall. Bits and pieces of cornice debris present here too.
(Above) Beinn a Chaorainn at the far western end of our forecast area. The S and SE-facing flanks of this mountain’s ridges have picked up a fair amount of new snow over the past few days.
(Above) Inset. Beinn a Chaorainn’s East Ridge in profile.
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