January location - Glencoe or Derbyshire

alan72

alan72

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i've got the chance to plan a few days away for my hobby. It's most likely going to be January and I've got it down to these two areas

I live in London and with family I will have to plan this well ahead, there will likely even be flights involved for Scotland, so won't be able to just up and go on a good forecast.

Question is which has the best chance of the weather in January. I did a workshop in glencoe last year and love the lochans on Rannoch moor and would love to explore the area more.

Derbyshire is near home but strangely somewhere I have not really shot and there are definitely places I want to try.

I'm hoping for frost and snow.

Any opinions on which has best chance of not p*ssing down for 4 days in January?

Any thoughts appreciated!
 
Thanks guys, I looked at the same data, which is what really prompted my question. I know it's difficult to predict 3 months ahead (or even 3 days!) and Jan is a higher month for precipitation in glencoe, but it is also a lot colder than Buxton.

My heart says glencoe, but I thought it worth testing views!
 
Alan, if you want frost in January then either will be fine I think. If you want to see snow then Glencoe is by far the better prospect.

If the snow is lacking there you can head to Cairngorm where I'm sure you will find snow; Derbyshire is absolutely wonderful but it is not Scotland.

Dave
 
Keep your options open, Alan.

Glencoe is very handy for a trip over to Ardgour (very short trip on the Corran Ferry - ferries cross every 30 mins. £8 for a car and passengers are free).
Ardgour is just across the sea from the west end of Glencoe, but the weather is often very different. The January average rainfall for Ardgour is zero http://www.myweather2.com/City-Town/United-Kingdom/Highland/Ardgour/climate-profile.aspx?month=1
Once over there you are very handy for Ardnamurchan (seascapes)
 
arclight said:
Keep your options open, Alan.

Glencoe is very handy for a trip over to Ardgour (very short trip on the Corran Ferry - ferries cross every 30 mins. £8 for a car and passengers are free).
Ardgour is just across the sea from the west end of Glencoe, but the weather is often very different. The January average rainfall for Ardgour is zero http://www.myweather2.com/City-Town/United-Kingdom/Highland/Ardgour/climate-profile.aspx?month=1
Once over there you are very handy for Ardnamurchan (seascapes)
Click to expand...
Thanks Doug, Ardnamurchan looks really interesting, I was all set on glencoe but I'm very tempted to go and spend a few days over this side.
 
That is an interesting weather website but there is clearly something wrong with the average rainfall figures. I've looked at about six different moths and the text says the same (ie zero) for every month.

Dave
 
Tringa said:
That is an interesting weather website but there is clearly something wrong with the average rainfall figures. I've looked at about six different moths and the text says the same (ie zero) for every month.

Dave
Click to expand...

Never thought of looking further. Must admit that I was influenced by several experiences of hillwalking in brilliat sunshine in Ardgour and looking across into Glencoe where it was tipping it down.
 
I've spent many Dec/Jan trips on the NW coast of Scotland.
There seem to be three basic weather patterns that settle in and last for at least a week.

1) Low Pressure - unlike the South of the UK, this is often the best weather for photography. Huge heavy showers and walls of rain with bright sunshine in between, and stunning visibility. Usually very windy; only takes about 10mins for the wall of water on the horizon to arrive, so best not to stray too far from shelter.
i-JGkBpQn-S.jpg


2) High Pressure - unlike the South of the UK, this is often rubbish weather for landscape photography as it is usually associated with a grey overcast and light winds. Very frustrating to spend a week up there and every day is the same flat light and calm seas. Just have to make the most of whatever sunshine you get offered. On one occasion I ended up with two weeks of sunny high pressure which was amazing, but that is not normal in my experience.
i-xTnBHZs-S.jpg


3) Stormy - horizontal rain and thick cloud. Spectacular seas!
20120102-142534-DSCF4922-S.jpg


On the plus side, the days are short and the sun stays low.
Photographing sunrise is easy after a leisurely breakfast. I usually stayed out for the day photographing sunset and back in time for a slightly late cup of tea. Plenty of time for processing images in the evening.
The low sun means the quality of light remains excellent throughout the entire day. But note that it probably won't get into the deeper valleys unless the orientation is right.

I've picked the three photos above to illustrate the weather patterns rather than being my best images.
So here's a couple I like, both illustrating you just need to make the most of what you find :)
20101224-104249-IMG_9821-M.jpg


20101224-152853-IMG_9936-S.jpg
 
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Good comments from Duncan. I'm on the NW coast of Scotland now and we are on the edge of a high pressure area and it is grey and fairly calm. However, last Tuesday we were in a high too and it was brilliant.

Good (and bad) weather can occur in Scotland at any time of the year - in a T shirt in October and days of driving rain and gales in May. I think January is a good month to visit Scotland (though I haven't found one that isn't). It will be quieter, as mentioned above sunrises and sunset are easy, timewise (just check the maps and TPE, and if it frozen the walking is easier.

One of the most notable features of the weather here is it can be very changeable. There may be only one good hour in the day, but it could be superb and being ready to grab it is useful - not that I should be saying this to anyone; I've missed plenty.

Dave
 
Im up in Glencoe in January Alan so if you see someone struggling do say hi
 
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