Country diary: The bewitching white powder snares us | Merryn Glover

Cairngorms, Highlands: The snow is thick and so softly layered that our steps sink deep, sometimes over our kneesLocals call it a bluebird day, though no birds of that colour are anywhere in sight. It's the sky. The particular brilliant blue on a clear, cold morning when the Cairngorms are flanked in white and the sun dazzles. Early spring snows have turned the mountains to swan backs, looking so much higher and grander as the light sets them shining and marks out their shadows in indigo.We set off from the car park at pace, my golden retriever hauling us up the slope in her excitement. But it's not long before all that bewitching white powder snares us. This is a mountain that will not be mounted quickly, even when she looks so benevolent. The snow is thick and so softly layered that our steps sink deep, sometimes over our knees. Each one is slow, slow, slow. It's called postholing and we take it in turns to lead the way up the pure expanse, pausing now and then to free the dog's paws from frozen clumps. Continue reading...