Fresh snow
15th January 2026
Lots of fresh snow overnight and through the day. Due to drifting and poor visibility hard to give a more exact description than “a lot”. However, to try and be a bit more accurate than this, we can use data from the SEPA rainfall station in Glen Nevis and extrapolate. In the 24 hours up to 3pm this afternoon this station received about 40mm of rain. Precipitation usually increases with altitude, so there was probably more than 40mm equivalent fell on the summit. The temperature remained below freezing on the tops throughout, and so all of this precipitation would have fallen as snow. For cold dry snow in light winds the ratio of snow depth to rainfall equivalent is about 10 to 1. That would have given more than 40cm of fresh snow on the summits. However, the snow that fell was quite damp which tends to increase the density, and it fell in a wind which which was strong enough to cause drifting, but not strong enough to blow much of the snow off the mountain as tends to happen when the wind is very strong.
Much of this fresh snow has accumulated as poorly bonded windslab in the usual places such as the tops of the gullies. Visibility was poor, so was only able to see one spot in the top of Coire an Lochan (Easy Gully), and that did have evidence of a recent avalanche in it. I doubt that is the only location that avalanched today.
Calming down tomorrow so hope to get some views. Although the snowpack will be slowly consolidating there is likely to be plenty of unstable snow remaining at higher levels.
Rainfall from the SEPA measuring station in Glen Nevis. Over the past 24 hours up to 15.00 there had been about 40mm of rain.
Chucking it down with sleet at about 450 metres altitude.
At the top station (around 650 metres) it turned to snow. At this point I switched from travelling on foot to on ski. I suspect travel on foot above this point would have been pretty hard going.
Looking up to the race hut on the Goose. At this level the snowpack was deep, soft and damp. It was hard enough going in skis, walking would have been desperate. Higher up the hill where the snow was drier and wind a bit stronger windward slopes and ridges were generally blown clear, and walking would have been a bit easier.
Cornices at the top of Easy Gully. Not apparent in this photo but there was a crown wall visible from a recent avalanche.
Looking back over the top of Right Twin to the Summit hut and Mobile Tower. A large cornice often forms at the top of Right Twin, but visibility was too poor to make anything out today.
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