An icon of a desk calendar. An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. An icon of a paper envelope. An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. An icon ...

But a lucky father and son had the slopes all to themselves at the Lecht ski centre in Aberdeenshire yesterday lunchtime after finding the last patch of snow on the hills. Winter sports fan David ...

However, at venues such as the Lecht Ski Centre in Aberdeenshire, business is booming. The blue skies of 2 January saw it so busy they had to stop selling tickets for only the second time in 45 years.

Today, there are five ski centres – Glencoe, Glenshee (opened in 1957), Cairngorm Mountain (1961), The Lecht (1977) and Nevis Range (1989) – and there is a raw beauty to it all. The brilliant ...