If you are heading for the hills for some post-New Year exhilaration, make sure you carry out some essential checks before you set out.

With some great mountain walks within easy reach of West Dunbartonshire, many enthusiasts may make a spur-of-the-moment decision to head north for a day among the peaks.

However, with Scotland’s mountain weather being notoriously fickle, it’s essential to go prepared.

Mountaineering Scotland has drawn up a guide for those keen to access the hills in a safe and responsible manner.

Here are some of its key points:

Where to go?

Think of where you are hoping to go.

Depending on your level of experience and fitness, and the available clothing and equipment you have, you may be planning on activities from a walk in the glen, to easier, rolling hills, to sharper peaks and ridges, ski touring or even ice climbing.

Your experience

How much experience do you and your pals have of winter mountaineering? Everybody has to learn but, whether it’s yourself or a companion, skills and experience are best gained gradually.

Work up to difficulty in stages, don’t just go straight for the hardest routes.

Snow conditions

It’s all very well to look up the Scottish Avalanche Information Service (SAIS) website to see what the avalanche forecast is for the day – anything from very high, through considerable to low – but what does that mean?

You need to take some time out to read up on the SAIS website so that you can get the maximum benefit from the forecast.

Watch the weather

Similarly, the exact weather forecast will be something to deal with in detailed planning for a specific trip

If going out in a high wind is something new to you, then consider how it will affect you. Similarly, a thaw will have an effect on stream and river crossings, and heavy or blowing snow will affect visibility.