Replace the tent with fuel for a fire, walk to a hut hidden away in the hills and you have… Bothying.
These shelters in the hills are open to all hill walkers but don’t expect any mod cons. Take a warm sleeping bag, some fuel if you want a fire a candle or two and hunker down for the night.
We arrived at Allt Scheicheahan in the southern Cairngorms at lunchtime having walked in from Blair Atholl. After a quick bite to eat we left our stuff in a safe place and headed off for the remote Munro of Beinn Dearg. Less than two hours later we were on top where it was misty and cool.
Back at the bothy our friends arrived at 7:30pm and we all got something to eat and found places to sleep on the platform above. There was soon a roaring fire, the odd mouse too, but we all survived the night.
The next day while we descended to Blair Atholl the others set out to backpack the much more distant Munros beyond the River Tilt.
We have also used the bothies at Dulyn, Penrhos Isaf and the summit shelter on Cadair Idris.
