First snows of winter in the Cairngorms

MONDAY, October 21 is a date to warm the cockles of the heart and chill the toes.

This was the view from ground level Aviemore up through the Lairig Ghru as the first significant snows of the winter arrived boldly enough to make their mark in the legendary pass in the Cairngorms.

As the temperatures fell to sub-zero on Monday morning the hopes of many rose that nature might just offer up some respite for the local economy after some very trying recent times.

The Strathy last week reported the latest £200,000 investment on the hill.

Cairngorm Estate owner Highlands and Islands Enterprise have brought in a new Kassbohrer Pistenbully 100 to replace the 20-year-old previous piste bashing machine.

HIE will own it and lease the equipment to the mountain operator, Cairngorm Mountain (Scotland) Ltd, and it will help to keep the slopes groomed with a mix of artificial snow from the Snowfactory machine and the real stuff.

But as one-time ski instructor and photographer David MacLeod pointed out: “It’s a bold move but no piste machine can work alone or anything like it.

“As ever those working on the hill are utterly at the mercy of the conditions.

“The most successful seasons we have seen over the last four decades have been those where the snow came in October and November and kept coming.”

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