But its also been pretty wet at times. The freezing level has been going up and down like a yo-yo! So we've had rain, sleet and wet snow combined with tonnes of slushy water on lower paths to trudge through. What a brilliant week for testing products!
And the dampness has also managed to permeate my camera despite hiding inside a dry bag - hence the lack of photos!
So what have we been up to? Well we've had people having their first taste of winter climbing - having great days out on Dorsal Arete in Stob Coire Nan Lochain and North Buttress on Buachaille Etive Mor. We've had mountaineering teams out in the White Corries, and Carn Mor Dearg and then hillwalking teams learning essential winter skills around Glencoe, rounded off with a successful summit day on Buachaille Etive Mor yesterday!
And some of our groups were fortunate (?) to witness one of the largest avalanches many of us have ever seen in Scotland - which teared down the slopes of Beinn Fhada into the Lost Valley. We watched in astonishment from the far side of the valley as the slab released, followed by a large portion of the slope beneath. It was the perfect follow-up to the previous evenings avalanche lecture. Just remember to keep checking the SAIS forecasts and exercise careful route choice out there.
Its all about to kick off again and winter looks like its returning. The freezing level is forecast to drop considerably over the next few days with snow forecast for Wednesday and Thursday.
Avalanche on Beinn Fhada from Richard Talbot on Vimeo.
