Two-day rescue of exhausted walker in the Cairngorms
- Published
Police and Braemar mountain rescue teams used tracked vehicles to get through deep snow
A walker found exhausted and cold deep in the Cairngorms mountain range has been rescued after a two-day effort.
A couple out walking came across the man in the Loch Avon area in the early hours of Monday morning.
They spent the day helping him to a mountain shelter at Ford of Avon and spent the night there.
The couple walked to Braemar on Tuesday morning where they raised the alarm and mountain rescuers completed the rescue by 08:00 on Wednesday.
Braemar Mountain Rescue Team, external said the area where the man got into difficulty was like a "massive bowl" and there was no mobile reception.
Rescuers set out on foot to reach the refuge where the man was sheltering
The team along with members of Police Scotland Mountain Rescue Team faced difficult conditions on Tuesday due to Storm Barra, which brought high winds and heavy snow to the Cairngorms.
The rescuers used tracked vehicles for as far as they could go and then set out by foot to reach the man in the refuge.
Malcolm MacIntyre, the mountain rescue team's support manager, told BBC Scotland the operation was in a remote area.
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"There was a storm forecast and as a team we were quite surprised and concerned that somebody called in", he said.
"A couple of walkers on Monday morning heard shouts and discovered a male in quite a dishevelled state. They managed to help get him a little bit warmer and walked him down to a recognised mountain refuge.
"The following day they left him with clear instructions not to move."
'Very sensible'
They then raised the alarm when they got mobile reception.
"What they did was very sensible", Mr MacIntyre said.
Rescuers were then sent out and they were eventually able to reach him amid the storm and deep drifting snow on Tuesday night, getting him to safety on Wednesday morning.
It was unclear how long he had been in difficulty. He said he had been out a few days, and was said to be "pretty disorientated".
Asked for his message, Mr McIntyre said: "Be prepared - think about your own abilities and be realistic about your choice of routes".