Scottish skier days double last season's total

A snowboarder enjoying the conditions at Glenshee earlier this month

Scotland's mountain snowsports industry has already had this season more than double the number of "skier days" recorded for the whole of last season.

A skier day means one person who skis or snowboards on one day. Many of the same people return to the slopes several times during the season.

Ski-Scotland said more than 132,000 of the "days" had been recorded so far.

Scotland's mountain centres are The Lecht, Glenshee, Nevis Range, CairnGorm Mountain and Glencoe Mountain.

The sites have had frequent snowfalls and spells of low temperatures since December.

Family fun at The Lecht

Stormy weather, dubbed the Beast from the East, is expected to bring further accumulations of snow to Scotland's mountains.

The previous season was described by the industry as "challenging" because of a lack of snow and mild weather.

Ski-Scotland's chairman Andy Meldrum said: "We estimate that already this winter we have generated over £13.2m for the economy, of which at least £10m will have been spent 'off the hill' in accommodation, shops, eateries and filling stations."

Glenshee along with Scotland's other mountain resorts are expecting further snowfalls this week

All the images are the copyright of Steven McKenna.