The Northwest Highlands Forecast
Areas north from Knoydart in the west, and the Great Glen towards the east (NB. Does not include Mull and areas west of Loch Linnhe, these are found in the West Highlands forecast.)
Viewing Weather Forecast for Wednesday 23rd January 2019
Forecast last updated on Tuesday 22nd January 2019 at 2:20pm
Click here to access the PDF version of the forecast.
Click here to view low graphics format of the forecast.Summary for all mountain areas
A cold but generally dry and sunny day for many areas. Terrain widely frozen from valleys upward following some very low night temperatures. Local snow showers or flurries, focused around western coastal hills. Fragments of cloud on some higher slopes. The air very clear.
Headline for The Northwest Highlands
Coastal snow flurries. Terrain frozen. Wind fairly light.
How windy? (On the Munros)
Westerly, 15 to 20mph, occasionally 25mph coastal hills near showers.
Effect of wind on you?
Fairly small.
How Wet? (Precipitation and its impact)
Snow showers or flurries mostly near west coast
Snow and hail showers, most frequent hills nearest the west coast, locally may rarely cease over an hour or more - risk of whiteout. Progressively briefer and fewer showers inland and toward east. Snow lying into the glens.
Cloud on the hills?
Often capping higher western areas, breaks inland
Cloud base varied: Toward the west coast patches of cloud frequently shrouding areas above 750m and briefly below 500m near showers. Well inland, rarely below 800m, with frequent breaks, often substantial to higher tops.
Chance of cloud free Munros?
30% west; 60% inland.
Sunshine?
Air clarity (below cloud)
Bursts of sunshine, most frequent well inland. The air extremely clear, although abruptly very poor visibility in snow.
How Cold? (at 900m)
-4C. Where exposed to wind, feeling close to -15C.
Freezing Level
Almost all terrain frozen from glens up. Partial thawing lowest coastal areas and elsewhere on some lower sunlit slopes.
Planning Outlook
All mountain areas of Britain from Thursday 24th January 2019
Cold conditions are expected to prevail across the mountains over the next week or fortnight - perhaps longer. Mountain temperatures will frequently be sub-freezing, often to lower slopes in Scotland. Wind speeds very varied day-to-day, at times up to gale force with severe chill factor. Over the next 5 days or so, winds will be mostly from the west or northwest, allowing briefly less cold air to affect England & Wales in particular. Whilst there is some uncertainty, indications into next week favour a cyclonic situation, with areas of precipitation circling around a broad area of low pressure, with scope for locally substantial snowfalls on the mountains. A northeasterly flow may well emerge for a few days.
