As temperatures in Scotland are set to return to full winter lows this weekend and into next week, safety experts have warned that even modern technical clothing is not proof against the dangers of hypothermia. Hypothermia, when body temperature is lowered to dangerous levels, can occur all too easily in the mountains and it is essential that climbers and walkers know how to avoid it and recognise it when they see the signs. Heather Morning, Mountain Safety Advisor with the Mountaineering Council of Scotland, said: “A common misconception amongst hill goers is that modern clothing is so good that hypothermia…

The programme has just been released for the first ever Peebles Outdoor Film Festival at the Eastgate Theatre from Friday 13 to Sunday 15 February. Festival organisers are inviting lovers of the outdoors to relive the experiences of Dr Andrew Murray, hot foot from running across the desert in the Namib 550, Rob Jarman on Life After Downhill, Richard Moore on covering a particularly epic Tour de France, global adventurer Alastair Humphreys on creating adventures on your doorstep and Lukasz Warzecha on capturing wild women athletes going to extremes. The film line up takes in the Best of Kendal World…

Legendary backpacker, writer and photographer Chris Townsend will be re-living the adventure of hiking the Pacific Crest Trail at an event in Inverness later this month. Chris completed the 2,600 mile long hike in the 1980s, walking through desert, forest and mountain wildernesses. Out of the many hikers who started that year, only eleven completed the trail. Come and hear firsthand about his experience, the trials and tribulations on this epic, six-month walk. This illustrated talk will be held at Eden Court in Inverness. It starts at 7pm and costs £7 (£6 concessions). There will be time for a Q&A…

They can be some of nature’s most beautiful winter creations and they can also be killers. With snow now firmly established in Scotland’s mountains, those who venture among them are being warned about the dangers of cornices. Cornices are ledges of snow which form on the edges of cliffs and steep ground furthest from the wind. From the side or below they can be beautiful curls of snow and ice and might extend for several metres over thin air. But for people walking on the top of the mountain there can be little or no sign that they are there,…

Geoff Monk from the Mountain Weather Information Service will be giving an evening talk in Inverness on Wednesday 21 January. The theme of the evening talk, organised by the Royal Meteological Society will be “Weather forecasting – how good have we got?”. The event is free and starts at 7pm in Room G20, University of the Highlands and Islands, 3 Longman Road, Inverness IV1 1SA. Prior to the 1990’s weather forecasts were routinely produced using a scarcity of data, and forecasts beyond a few days were little more than (sometimes inspired) guesswork. This situation has since changed dramatically with vast…