The 2013 #Scotwinter Sweepstakes: we have some winners!

Back in August I posed the question “when will the first snows of the new Scottish winter season arrive?” and plenty of you placed your bets. Most of you thought they would arrive at some point in September, and today the question on the mind of every winter mountaineer has been answered.

The evidence, posted on Twitter by @winterhighland, is above. Snow is settling on the upper reaches of Aonach Mor and Ben Nevis, and possibly some other mountains as well although given the dreadful weather few walkers or climbers have actually been up on the hill today. It seems likely that the snow will continue to fall for at least another day, so it definitely qualifies based on my original rules.

Due to the dual nature of entries we have several winners. The first three all said “third week of September” and, according to the rules, they win a free digital copy of one of my books of their choice. Unfortunately my new book isn’t ready yet, but they’re welcome to be put on the list to get one of the first copies for free!

@Barry_the_cat
@countrysideben
@edvones

And finally we have the winner of the grand prize, Jason Harrison @greedyrunner, who was lucky enough to guess the exact day … or does he have access to a crystal ball, perhaps? Jason will shortly be receiving a signed paperback copy of The Only Genuine Jones.

Here’s to a safe and happy 2013 Scottish winter mountaineering season!