Heavy drifting at higher altitudes

Deep drifts, and cornices developing at lower altitudes

Wind blown snow at 500m

Drifts covering the ski road.

Much calmer in the tree line

Blizzard conditions

Deep snowdrifts are rapidly developing due to the strong winds and snowfall, this was only at 780 metres, more intense at higher altitudes... spindrift covered everything in seconds including Stanley the dog.  

Poor visibility above 700 metres.

Another day of spindrift

Looking up towards Coire an Lochain, weakly bonded windslab has been rapidly building on W to N aspects.

The Northern Corries disappear under a plume of billowing spindrift.

Drifting at all levels.

Strong winds eased.

Strong winds eased, but temperatures are still bitterly cold in the Cairngorms.

Blizzard conditions

Poorly bonded windslab accumulations, continuing snowfall, very cold temperatures and strong winds - A perfect cocktail for avalanches!

Cold, Windy

Coire an t Sneachda

Poorly bonded windslab is present high up in the corries and tops of gullies etc where the wind has been drifting the snow.
Elsewhere the old snow is bullet hard and the consequences of a trip doesn,t bear thinking about,  its so hard I don't even think that self arresting with an ice axe would work !! just don't trip.

Descending iron - hard  snow ice to the Corrie floor 

Clearly cracking underfoot indicates a weak layer  is present in the snowpack - this clip was taken was on a North-West aspect at 1100 metres altitude.

Bitterly cold

Cornices developing on N aspects

Buttresses looking very wintry

Yesterdays soft snow has drifted and now firm windslab is overlying a very soft layer beneath affecting lee slopes, this combined with cold temperatures has led to a weakly bonded snowpack.

A very cold day with lows of minus 10 C

Cold, Clear and Sunny

Afternoon Light - Cairngorm from Loch Morlich

 What a difference a day makes - The hills certainly look good - however only a thin cover of snow lies on rocks and boulders, so for ski touring - could be very expensive !!

Nick ascending Cairngorm - Spey Valley below

The Sgorans and beyond

A party ascending Cairngorm - Plateau and Macdui beyond

The Lhairig Ghru for Aviemore Railway station Bridge

fractures on North aspect in localised accumulation - ' a good weakness indicator'

Cold and Windy with little snow

Early Morning Northern Corries and Loch Morlich

The old snow pack remains bullet hard snow-ice with serious runouts for anyone that trips !! - We seem to have missed out on the recent snowfall which fell in other areas.

Coire an t Sneachda with Party below Trident Gullies

Climber ascending Jacobs Ladder - photo from Coire Rim

Snow showers

Snow showers, drifting and cold temperatures - accumulations of weakly bonded windslab have developed

Snow cover still sparse but further snow expected tonight and tomorrow

Lochain today

The Couloir

Very thin rime ice on the Lochain buttresses

Ice forming on small buttress features

The Vent

Cold clear and calm

Coire an t-Sneachda

Some of the main gully lines complete with firm neve

A few parties in Jacobs Ladder

A glazing of ice on upper buttresses

Cold, Sunny - solid snowpack

Looking across the Cairngorm Plateau toward Ben Macdui

Patchy conditions but more wintry conditions expected

Only the 'Ribs' left

Northern Corries from Glenmore

The thaw has officially ceased and will now get brick hard in the cooler conditions - all we need now is snow!

Another mild windy day

Heading up the twin burns with the Lochain behind

Rivers flowing beneath snowfields

The Lairig Ghru

Glide cracks developing

Coire an Lochain

Still windy over the tops

Looking across to Beinn Mheadhoin

Another breezy mild day but with less humidity in the air the snowpack seemed to be firmer.  

Mild and thawing at all levels

Looking South across the plateau

Coire and Sneachda today

Mist cleared by the afternoon

Large patches of snow remain on the plateau

A drying wind

 Looking up towards the Northern Corries.

 Ridges below 800 metres are mostly bare; however although very firm ski touring potential is still good above this altitude

The snowpack has dramatically firmed up since yesterday - views into Sneachter

Warm and Windy

Looking toward Coire an Lochain 

Snowpack is mopist but because it is so dense it is holding up well - still very good cover generally.

Ist day of 2013 - crisp and cold

Descending into Sneachda below Mess of Potage crag - very hard neve

Snow- ice pretty much coats the hills at present - making for some great looking conditions although buttresses are verglassed.