HIKERS have been warned to prepare professionally for treks on snow-capped hillsides this Spring as a munro-bagger failed to direct rescuers to his position on a Scottish peak - because he didn't know its name.

The advice was issued following a spate of ill-equipped hillwalkers getting into difficulty on the Scottish ranges.

A 23-year-old hillwalker from London became stuck more than 2000ft up on a ledge on Bla Bheinn on Skye on Sunday evening.

He took on the Cuillin Range peak using no more than a Google map on his mobile phone for orientation - before it ran out of power.

Lochaber and Skye Police praised the work of the Skye Mountain Rescue Team and a helicopter crew who came to the man's aid said it was all "entirely avoidable".

They tweeted: "Google maps on a phone with no charge, no map and a hopeful attitude are no mix for hills on Skye ( or anywhere!). Be prepared not rescued."

Last month Sara Albone, 28, was rescued from Ben Nevis after attempting an ascent while reportedly wearing summer clothes and carrying just a selfie stick.

Read more: Young woman rescued from Ben Nevis in a pair of shorts and trainers admits 'I could have died'

The 28-year-old became disoriented and began to develop hypothermia after being caught in blizzard conditions while wearing shorts and trainers, it is understood.

She was found by chance while lost on the north face of the 4,400ft peak, where several climbers have been killed in recent months.

The woman from Brighton later issued an apology and thanked the team that had to walk her off the mountain when cloud and driving rain made her unreachable by helicopter.

Read more: Idiocy and the art of the extreme selfie

Despite the approach of May, forecasters say that summer will feel a long way off as Scotland faces chilly Spring temperatures and snow thanks to a blast of Acrctic air.

The Met Office issued yellow warnings about snow and ice valid till 8am on Tuesday for Central, Tayside and Fife, Grampian, the Highlands and the Western Isles.

The weather forecasters said that frequent sleet, snow and hail showers will affect northern Scotland into Tuesday.

It said that two to four inches of snow may accumulate on high level roads above 300m, with some drifting in strong to gale force northerly winds.

On lower levels, up to an inch of a half of snow is expected, mainly above 150m, though temporary slushy falls were possible even on the lowest ground.

The forecasters said that icy stretches were an additional hazard in the clearer spells between the showers, mainly over higher routes.

"While accumulations by day will be temporary and slushy away from the hills, snow showers will settle more readily later on Monday evening, overnight and early Tuesday," the Met Office said.

"Please be aware of the risk of some difficult and unseasonal road conditions, and the possibility of some low impact travel disruption."

Neil Reid of the Mountaineering Council of Scotland warned that people can be lulled into a false sense of security when facing sea level Spring sunshine and weather conditions on hills and mountains across Scotland can vary radically from peak to peak.

He said that even now, walkers should still be looking at taking boot crampons - a metal plate with spikes designed for walking on ice or rock climbing - and an ice axe to provide extra stability and prevent slips.

Walkers were also urged to carry extra clothing, as the temperatures are likely to drop markedly the higher they go.

"I was in the Cairngorms at the weekend and it was still full winter conditions, with pretty severe weather. Sunday was a lovely day, but you were still talking about complete snow cover on the plateau, which isn't going to be the case on the west coast.

"The message is that people should be prepared for what the conditions are in the hills and make an effort to find that out, in relation to precisely where they are going. "It's a case of proper preparation, check the forecast, and not just the BBC forecast after the news, you need the Mountain Weather Information Service which are very reliable.

"It's very easy to label people stupid in these incidents (when there are rescues) but usually it is ignorance, rather than stupidity."

The bodies of Rachel Slater, 24 and Tim Newton, 27, from Bradford, West Yorkshire, were discovered on Ben Nevis on March 23. They were reported missing on February 15 after failing to return from a climb.

On March 25, Peter Nielsen, 32, an experienced climber from Tranent, East Lothian, died after falling on the Aladdin’s Buttress area of the Cairngorms.

Met Office forecaster Emma Boorman said: "It's going to be cold this week, particularly at the start of the week.

"Winds are coming from the north. The originated in the Arctic and that's why it is colder than we normally expect it to be at this time of year.

"In the south it will be mixture of sunshine and showers but further north these showers will turn increasingly wintry - that's a mixture of rain, some sleet and some snow.

"The winds will be strengthening through Monday and so this afternoon they could reach gale force in Scotland and then early evening in the north of England as well.

"Later on, eastern swathes of the country could see some winds reaching gale force."