Many people associate the risk from avalanches only with larger mountain ranges such as the Alps. However, they are a menace in the Scottish Highlands too, and the danger can be underestimated.
Last winter 205 avalanches were recorded in the Highlands, with 46 of these triggered by people walking, climbing, skiing or snowboarding on unstable slabs of snow, which can break off, slide and roll into a full-blown avalanche. That resulted in 109 people being involved in avalanches, with five of them killed when they were engulfed by snow. In February two climbers were caught in an avalanche and died as they were about to begin a climb of the north face of Ben Nevis.
In its report on last winter, the Scottish Avalanche Information Service (SAIS) described how the conditions in the Scottish mountains were often atrocious. Severe storms from the Atlantic brought winds that reached 140mph on mountain tops, including 100mph speeds that persisted for long periods.
The fatalities at Ben Nevis came during a ten-day period in February, during the mid-term holiday, and “coincided with stormy conditions, poor visibility, snowpack instability and when considerable to high levels of avalanche hazard were issued by the SAIS, notably in the Lochaber and Creag Meagaidh areas”. This was also when 21 human-triggered avalanche incidents occurred.
During the winter of 2013-14 the service documented one of the highest numbers of avalanches, with 350 incidents. This was one of the snowiest winters in Scotland’s mountains in nearly 70 years.
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Every winter, walkers and climbers are advised to check SAIS and mountain weather forecasts before planning trips into Scotland’s hills and mountains. The service provides information on the stability of snowpack on the mountains between December and April — and the SAIS begins its new season of avalanche warnings today.
