Police have confirmed that the two climbers swept away by an avalanche on Buachaille Etive Mor have died. The two men, who have not been named, were swept up in the avalanche shortly before 5pm today while climbing on Curved Ridge on the mountain in Glencoe. The two climbers in Glencoe were with a third man, who escaped being carried down the ridge. A group of walkers behind saw what happened and called the emergency services. The leader of Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team, John Grieve, told the BBC: “Two of the party set off a very small, slab avalanche that…

A climber has been killed by an avalanche on Creag Meagaidh. Mountain Rescue and an RAF rescue helicopter were called out mid afternoon today (15 Feb) and the climber was airlifted to the Belford Hospital in Fort William. However police later reported that the climber was dead on arrival. No further details have been released although it is understood that no one else was caught up in the avalanche. Creag Meagaidh is situated between Spean Bridge and Laggan. UPDATE: Police have now named the dead man as Stephen Young, aged 18, from Kent. He was part of a large hill…

Dave MacLeod and Andy Turner have been successful in their attempt to recreate an epic series of winter climbs on Ben Nevis. The pair retraced Jimmy Marshall and Robin Smith’s first ascents of six routes in winter conditions made in a week 50 years ago and have filmed the climbs for the Fort William Mountain Festival taking place this weekend. Mr MacLeod said it was great to mark the achievements of Marshall and Smith saying, “When I started in climbing, and I guess it was the same for a lot of people of my generation, I read the articles and…

The Government has announced plans to privatise the whole of the search and rescue service (SAR). This covers the helicopters used to search for lost and injured walkers and climbers in Scotland. The plans do not affect the Mountain Rescue Service which will continue as a voluntary service, although Mountain Rescue Teams work in close cooperation with the SAR, and the Government has said that the service will remain free to use. Search and rescue operations are to be transferred from HMS Gannet at Prestwick to Glasgow under a new multi-billion pound deal to move all SAR services to the…

The 200th anniversary of the publication of Sir Walter Scott’s poem Lady of the Lake, is to be celebrated in a series of outdoor events later this year, including a new walking trail around Loch Katrine. Scott’s work transformed popular perspectives on landscape and generated the first surge of tourists to the Trossachs and Scotland. The new event, Scottsland – Celebrating the Language of the Landscape will run from June to October this year. It will include a varied programme of cultural and literary events to take place throughout the Trossachs. These include a new art and literary trail around…

26 members of an RAF rescue team will spend the festive season on stand-by in a mountain hut near Newtonmore. The team from RAF Leuchars will be well placed in the heart of the Cairngorms to respond to any emergencies. Although the main role of the team, based near St Andrews in Fife, is to search for, and rescue, survivors of crashed aircraft, the team is also called out to assist with the rescue of mountaineers and climbers on a regular basis. The combination of the holiday break and the recent snowy weather, is expected to attract a lot of…

The SportScotland Avalanche Information Service starts publishing its detailed reports for the Scottish Mountains today (Thurs 17 Dec). The five mountain areas covered are North Cairngorms, South Cairngorms, Lochaber, Creag Meagaidh and Glencoe. Each report covers snow, avalanche, and climbing conditions. The reports are available from the website or via mobile phone and are in a slightly different format from previous years. The SAIS is also asking any walkers or climbers who see an avalanche to report it to them. This can be done on line from the SAIS website As well as the forecasts, the website also contains a…