An Teallach Mountaineering Club, who lost three members in the avalanche tragedy in Glencoe on Saturday have issued a joint press release with the Mountaineering Council of Scotland, paying tribute to their friends and also emphasising where walkers and climbers can go to get weather and avalanche risk information. A spokesman for the An Teallach Mountaineering Club said, “The members of the ATMC are very saddened by this terrible accident and the loss of our friends Eamonn, John and Brian. Our thoughts are first and foremost with their families and all other friends at this difficult time to whom we…

A Mountain Rescue operation is under way in Glencoe after a group of climbers were avalanched on Buachaille Etive Mor. Helicopters from Lossiemouth and Prestwick have been scrambled to the scene of the accident, which happened at noon today. UPDATE 8pm: 3 of the climbers have died after being taken to Belford Hospital in Fort William whilst a fourth has been treated shoulder injuries. Reports suggest that the avalanche occurred in Coire na Tulaich, the usual route of ascent for those heading for the summit of the Buachaille, and affected nine climbers in two groups. Further update: The dead climbers…

Two climbers who were reported missing after failing to return to Glenmore near Aviemore have been found alive and well by the RAF rescue team from Lossiemouth. The men were located from their torchlights during a helicopter search of the nearby mountains. They were picked up at 6:30 am having spent a night out in freezing Cairngorm conditions.

Three climbers were forced to spend much of Sunday night in a snow-hole high on Liathach after they became stuck on the Torridon mountain as night fell. In a joint rescue with the Torridon Mountain Rescue team, the three men were airlifted to safety by an RAF Lossiemouth helicopter team at about 3 O’clock in the morning. None of the group required hospital treatment. The group were believed to be near the Fasarinen Pinnacles on the hardest part of the ridge when they got into difficulty. Unable to carry on, they summoned help and dug a snow hole to provide…

The Mountain Bothy Association (MBA) has revealed in its annual report that 52 of the 99 bothies it maintains were repaired by its volunteers last year. The report highlights the work of its volunteer members who regularly join work parties or carry out maintenance work on the bothy that they look after. The biggest project was the refurbishment of Luib Chonnal in the West Highlands. This included replacing the stairs and fitting new windows and stove. The work party involved a special workshop on using lime mortar given in association with Historic Scotland. Lairig Leacach, also in the West Highlands,…

The elderly female walker, missing over night on Schiehallion has been found safe and well after walking into a medical centre in Kinloch Rannoch this morning. It is understood that the 73 year old from Ayrshire had been on the mountain with her son to scatter the ashes of her late husband when they became separated. Despite an extensive rescue search she was not located on the hill before the search had to be called off at 3am. The weather in the area last night was windy with drizzly rain on the tops. Speaking to the BBC, Sgt Colin MacDougall,…

Police have found a man’s body which may have been lying in a tent in the Cairngorms for a number of weeks. A local gamekeeper had spotted the tent at the south end of Loch Einich below Sgor Gaoith about a month ago. On Tuesday 9 September, Aviemore police received a further report saying the tent was still in the same location. Members of the Cairngorm Mountain Rescue Team, together with Police officers searched the tent and found the body. A police statement said: “The remains will be taken to Inverness for post mortem and enquiries will be ongoing to…

The Mountain Rescue Committee of Scotland has released figures showing that the number of rescues is rising but the number of fatalities on the hills has fallen since 2006. In 2007 there were 20 deaths on Scotland’s mountains and 491 rescues. Just over half of all Scottish rescues were initiated by mobile phone calls. The figures were published as more than 300 members of the UK’s Mountain Rescue Service gathered in Stirling to mark the organisation’s 75th anniversary. The Scottish Government said £300,000 would be spent on Scotland’s 28 teams. The figures show that 139 people were injured while hill…

The Met Office is running a survey asking walkers how they use weather forecasts as part of a review of the Public Weather Service. The aim of the consultation is to better understand and prioritise the needs of people who spend time in the hills and mountains of Scotland. There will be similar consultation in Wales, Northern Ireland and England. The Mountaineering Council of Scotland is cooperating with the research and the survey can be found at their website. Anyone filling in the survey can enter a raffle to win a VIP tour of the Met Office’s headquarters in Exeter…