Amazing pictures show the results of “exceptional” amounts of snow clinging to Scottish mountains in the height of summer.
Experts say low summer temperatures mean vast quantities of the white stuff remain in places they would never normally be seen.
An unusual mix of circumstances has produced a stunning world of snow tunnels and bridges towering higher than a double-decker buses.
A range of factors has seen a growing number of ‘snow patches’ refusing to melt since 2007 but this summer there are more than experts have seen in 20 years.
The stunning structures are created when the snow begins to melt. As water begins to flow underneath a tunnel of air forms, melting the snow from underneath.
The results are magical – vast caverns, sometimes so big you can walk underneath, decorated with melting patterns that look almost like choppy waves.
Helen Rennie at Ciste Mhearad, Cairngorms
Metre-thick slab of snow near Arrochar, Argyll, in July this year.
The rare sight of a patch of snow clinging to iconic Buachaille<br />Etive Mor, Glencoe, in August.
Snow bridge near Dalwhinnie, Cairngorms
Reindeer in the Cairngorms enjoy summer snow
Nicholas Adam, stumbled upon this bridge on Tuesday while climbing An Stuc, a mountain in the Ben Lawers range to the north of Loch Tay.
