Weekend Weather Outlook

Weekend Weather 11/12 March '06 in association with GORE-TEX® fabrics

Fact of the Week! The biggest snow flake on record 8 inches in width!

Our regular Friday round-up of what's in store for the weekend. Just check the links for the relevant weather forecasts and if you want to know how things look in a particular area right now, check out the OM web cams page for a selection of hill cams. And whatever you do, have a good one. For winter kit advice, see the links at the bottom of this article.

Metcheck for good overviews of localised areas based on a number of meterological models. Loads of quirky options for stuff like rain forecasts plus offbeat, leftfield weather generalisations. Get stuck in and have a browse, there's a lot on this site. 'The wet weather will continue throughout Friday and into the weekend with further spells of persistent rain and showers likely. It will however be mild, especially across England and Wales, with temperatures into double digits.' So pack your waterproofs but the scarf can stay at home. You can check out individual areas or dig a bit deeper for the Mountain Forecast page or the Climbing Forecast page. The Seven-Day Charts give a handy overview too.

Mountain Weather Information Service has great downloadable mountain-specific forecasts for NW, W and SE Highlands, Cairngorms, Southern Uplands, Peak District and Lakes in PDF format. Plus a Snowdonia forecast. The Peak and Snowdonia forecasts are now restricted to weekend forecasts and go out on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Worth wading through the increasingly cluttered lay-out. New the number of Scottish forecast areas has been increased to give better coverage and now includes the Southern Uplands in addition to the main highland areas "Severe upland gales will affect many mountain areas. Snow, heavy in the east, will extend north across the Scottish Highlands, but further south will turn to rain and then ease." There could be yet another 'last bite' at the Scottish mountaineering scene for the winter, if you live north of the border. Otherwise, flippers are definitely in order. Check individual forecasts for specific details. Arguably the best mountain-specific forecast out there by a way.

BBC Weather Site uses Met Office data, but more user friendly. Just been revamped for the summer, weird stuff but easy access to a lot more information including rain forecasts, cloud, wind, temperature, visibility etc. Nice. Localised forecasts accessible from the same page. Saturday 'Northern Scotland will stay cold with rain and hill snow. Elsewhere it will be mild in the brighter spells but further outbreaks of rain are likely especially in the south in the afternoon. Breezy for all.' Sunday 'Staying unsettled and breezy with further showers for most parts, again the heaviest rain likely in the south. Feeling mild in the drier and brighter spells. Northern Scotland may be drier and brighter but also chilly.' BBC specific areas: Fort William / Kendal / Betws-y-Coed / Aviemore / Skipton / Glossop (Peak) / Brecon / Milton Keynes.

Met Office For localised five-day forecasts use this page. Saturday 'Changeable and often cloudy with rain at times. Some bright or sunny intervals mainly in the south. Feeling less cold.' Sunday More of the same, and breezy ... Welsh Mountain Forecasts Useful online forecasts covering the National Park areas of Snowdonia - and the Brecon Beacons.

Scottish Avalanche Information Service - Full service now up and running for winter with avalanche and climbing condition reports for five major Scottish climbing areas - Lochaber, northern and southern Cairngorms, Glencoe and Creag Meagaidh. The forecast for today, Friday, ranges from considerable to high avalanche risk, depending on where you are. Heavy snowfall and very strong winds will rapidly form weakly bonded windslab, especially on northerly and westerly slopes, and new cornices will be weak. It's worth watching this space for updates.

OUTDOORSmagic web cam page Links to all the UK mountain web cams we're aware of. If there's one that we've missed, please drop us a line and we'll add it to the page. Good for getting a general idea of what the snow situation's like, if the sun is shining, whether there's anywhere to park in Coniston etc. Check the image you're viewing is up to date as they often seem to go down. We'll overhaul this page shortly as some of the links aren't functioning or the cameras have disappeared.

Snow.
Soggy, windy, and possibly hazardous on the higher slopes in Scotland:-(

Verdict Yet another 'last fling' of winter north of the border, with strong winds, a fresh dumping of snow, and the usual outcome of that particular combination of weather conditions - unstable snow slopes. Further south, the paddling pool effect will apply, so take your waterproofs and treat your boots before you head for the hills. On the plus side, it's getting milder, and the sun might just take a brief peep at the scenery in between showers. I wouldn't count on it though:-)

For winter kit advice, see the links at the bottom of this article.