Is April a good time to hike to the very North of Scotland?

[EmmaMichelle]

So I'm planning a hike from Glasgow to John o Groats sometime in 2021. It will be about ~450km and take roughly 14-16 days.
I'm trying to figure out the best time of the year to go.. right now I've sort of decided on early April. Basically I can't go between mid-April to mid-May as I have something else on. My other option would be to go around mid-May or else leave it until June. I had the nice idea of hiking there in time for the Summer Solstice in June. However the main problem with going then is the midges. I hiked from Glencoe to Inverness last Summer and it was horrific. Midges in my breakfast, thousands of them squished into my tent, even midges on my toothbrush.

I'm aware April might be quite cold. However I have a really good Winter sleeping bag and from my experience, April is often the least rainy month of the year (I also think the highlands look the most interesting a this time of year).
I've camped in April before and never had any problems with midges, has anyone here ever experienced a lot of midges that time of year?
My other main questions is, does anyone have some reason I've overlooked that April would be a bad time to go? And has anyone else here ever done a hike like this at that time of year?
Thanks!

[jmarkb]

There won't be any midges in April - the weather can be bad (wet/cold/windy) or lovely (sunny, not too hot) but if you are not heading onto the high tops, snow is unlikely to be a problem. Of course, there might still be travel restrictions in place.

[EmmaMichelle]

Thanks for your reply, that's re-assuring to know about the midges. Haha I'm currently in denial there will still be a lot of restrictions then, but guess I'll have to see!

[al78]

I've not had a problem with midges in the second half of May through to the third week in June, which is my recent experience of Scottish highland trips, and I am normally ground zero for midges.

[davekeiller]

You'll not get midges in April because it's too cold for them.
At that time of the year there will likely still be snow on many of the tops. If you're planning on walking long distances I'm assuming you'll be staying mostly in the glens so this won't be too much of a problem. It will, however, be cold at night.
It's worth checking the availability of accommodation, as some places might not open until May.
Personally, I would expect that June would be better because there are likely to be at least some coronavirus restrictions still in place and it's more likely they'll have been lifted by June. June also has the advantage of giving you more hours of daylight.

[Mal Grey]

What he said, really.

April can be lovely, can be grim. I often go up around Easter. You will not have a midge problem. There can still be ticks, but they're far less of a short term annoyance.

One other consideration would be regarding route planning. The terrain is generally still holding a lot of water, and there may be snow melt too, so river and stream crossings may be difficult on some sections.

Personally, if I had to choose April or mid-May to beginning of June, I'd choose the latter for a two week trip. I've rarely had bad midges until into June. It also buys you more time for the situation and restrictions to have eased enough to justify it happily.

[EmmaMichelle]

Thanks for your replies. I hadn't thought about the fact the rivers would have more water flowing in them so glad you reminded me of that. There's aren't too many river crossings on the route that don't have bridges so hopefully it wouldn't be too much of a problem. If restrictions have eased and it's warm I might go in April, but if not, then May or June it will be, and hopefully there won't be too many midges by then..

[Sunset tripper]

I never give much consideration to the midgie when planning trips, but yes at times they can be a menace.
A lot of good advice already in this thread, all I can add is, generally in May, if they are about at all they are scarce and sometimes scarce well into June. For weather and midge my ideal month would be May. April is sometimes a bit wild weather wise, but to be fair no guarantees any time of year. From mid May onwards would be my choice mainly due to a better chance of decent weather and the daylight hours really start to stretch at that time of year.

All the best.

[ScotFinn65]

The only thing l can think of, apart from what has already been mentioned, is that you might have 2 - 3 kgs extra due to sleep system and extra layers / spare clothes between a mid April start and mid May start.

[WalkWithWallace]

Late April / Early May is my favourite time to hike in Scotland. Pre midge and sometimes the most settled weather of the year.

Winter can still be hanging around though and temps can drop below freezing quite often, but think you're aware of that.

[Caberfeidh]

April is still winter in the far north (and even in the south, I was caught in winter conditions in Galloway in April) but if you treat it as a winter expedition you should be fine. I understand the aversion to midgies, midsummer would be wonderful without them, but we don't get that! I once had a horrible time with midgies in early May, but that was an unusual year when we had summer in April so by the time May came we had midgies in full swing. And there was me doing the West Highland Way in my kilt...

[al78]

April is still winter in the far north (and even in the south, I was caught in winter conditions in Galloway in April) but if you treat it as a winter expedition you should be fine. I understand the aversion to midgies, midsummer would be wonderful without them, but we don't get that! I once had a horrible time with midgies in early May, but that was an unusual year when we had summer in April so by the time May came we had midgies in full swing. And there was me doing the West Highland Way in my kilt...

Was that April 2007 or 2011 by any chance? Those were two of the driest and sunniest Aprils on record until April 2020 eclipsed them.

[Caberfeidh]

April is still winter in the far north (and even in the south, I was caught in winter conditions in Galloway in April) but if you treat it as a winter expedition you should be fine. I understand the aversion to midgies, midsummer would be wonderful without them, but we don't get that! I once had a horrible time with midgies in early May, but that was an unusual year when we had summer in April so by the time May came we had midgies in full swing. And there was me doing the West Highland Way in my kilt...

Was that April 2007 or 2011 by any chance? Those were two of the driest and sunniest Aprils on record until April 2020 eclipsed them.

I think it was 2008. Full on summer weather in the highlands in April, then for two years we had the worst winters for decades, with sub-zero temperatures for months. Sub-zero like minus ten through the day, and minus twenty at night. I lived in the highlands then, it was crap! You'd think such winters would give great climbing conditions, but it was so cold the snow would not settle, but remained fluffed up powder, and the roads were like ice-rinks. Hypothermia was a danger at home never mind venturing out in the hills. At the time I worked on a vessel out west of Shetland, and sometimes in the Norwegian fjords or around the Faeroes, so it was a cold time for me. I got some good photies though. I wonder if this next few months will provide some spectacular winter conditions, to taunt us as we are trapped in our disease-raddled cities...

Foula

Glamaig, Skye.

[matt_outandabout]

You'll not get midges in April because it's too cold for them.

You had best tell that to the midges in my garden, any time from February to November.

As I understand it the breeding cycles are more the issue - triggered by warmer days. Usually we get two, a warm season we can get three.

Midges are a factor - but use of Smidge, head nets and careful campsite choice can reduce them hugely and rarely are they such as issue as to put me off.

[3peaker]

I prefer May generally as the best month for better weather than April, however it canbe very cold at night if you are camping and very few midges. The middle towards the end of April is not far behind. I would recommend `Skin-so-Soft` to deal with any midges encountered along your route. This also has the bonus of smelling quite pleasant if you are camping for several nights. Good luck with your challenge.