It was that awkward week between Christmas and New Year. Other than enjoying The World’s Strongest Man competition and indulging in Boxing Day sales, there is little else to do during this period. With this in mind, my mate Jack and I decided the best option was to totally escape and head to the wilds of Scotland. The Cairngorms would be our destination of choice and we decided our first port of call would be The Red House Bothy. This shelter had only opened earlier in the year and looked amazing in many ways. It certainly didn’t disappoint and provided some of the best bothy accommodation we’ve come across.
Where Is The Red House Bothy?
One of the reasons we picked this as our first bothy was for its ease of access. The Cairngorms cover a huge area and many of the bothies listed in The Bothy Bible can take several hours to reach. After both completing long drives from England and with such short hours of daylight, neither of us much fancied this option. The map below shows the location of the Red House bothy well as well as the clear route we took the entire way.
Getting To The Car Park
The easiest approach to the bothy is by using the Linn Of Dee car park. It is a beautiful drive along the narrow road out of Braemar. Be warned though that it is longer and takes longer than you expect it to when looking at the route on paper. The road can also easily become impassable and dangerous in winter conditions. We nearly found that out on the return leg. Winter tyres could certainly come in handy!
The car park itself is a pay and display site. It cost us each £6.00 for two days, which I think is reasonable compared to some other car parks in much less beautiful areas.
The Walk In To The Red House Bothy
Picking up the main trail is easy, as there is only one proper track that heads west away from the minor road you’ve driven earlier. If you’re still in doubt, look out for the sign below. The distances on it are impressive and the warning about the remote territory you are entering is a reminder that you need to be prepared. Help may well be thin on the ground in these parts.
According to the excellent OS Map App I regularly use, the journey to the bothy is 7.51 km ( just shy of 5 miles ) and only gains 74 metres of elevation. Lugging wood and/or coal to a bothy is never particularly fun, but the lack of climbing makes it much simpler on this route. Well worth it any time of the year, but especially during the long winters that are found in these parts.
You are into the wild stuff as soon as you leave the car park and a wide tumbling river follows the track. The scale of everything here made me feel like I could have been in Alaska. The snowy mountains surrounding us on all sides certainly helped in this regard. I wouldn’t have been surprised to see a bear hunting for fish down on one of the banks. Thankfully none were spotted. I’m not sure how successful a walking pole would have been in fighting them off!
Reaching & Exploring The Red House Bothy
It was remarkable how early and quickly darkness fell. Being this far north a few days after the solstice meant light was fading at just after half past three. A long night lay ahead and so it was a relief to finally spot The Red House Bothy in the distance. The video clip below shows how the weather deteriorated on the approach and also what our priorities were once inside.
As soon as we inside, it was a case of changing into some drier and warmer clothes as quickly as possible. A pair of thermal socks and these new down booties I purchased from Amazon did a cracking job in keeping my feet toasty. We also needed no excuse to start burning the two bags of wood we had carried in . Finally sitting by the wood burning stove with no weight on our backs felt like heaven. The first beer of the evening went down a treat too without hardly touching the sides. It had been earned!
Inside The Bothy
Even with the fading light it was immediately apparent to us just how comfortable The Red House Bothy was. The brilliant team of volunteers from the Mountain bothies Association ( MBA ) had done a wonderful job and it really felt like a home away from home. That was even with an inside temperature of 1 degree when we arrived. The photos hopefully do a good job in showing you what you can expect upon arrival.
I am rather annoyed that I didn’t capture a photo of the large wooden table available at the other end of the living space. It is one of the best I’ve come across in a bothy and can easily accommodate six people.
There is also an outside compositing toilet available, which is very amusing when you see it. Three were available when we visited, which were laid out in a line like they would have been during Roman times. A very sociable poo is available if you are so inclined!
Making New Friends For The Evening
Jack had almost been certain that by seven O Clock it was highly unlikely that anybody else would be joining us. They’d have to complete the entire walk in the dark with blowing snow to boot. I agreed with him. Anybody willing to trudge for nearly two hours in those conditions needed their heads looking at. Time to welcome the three crazy guys from Wiltshire who rocked up at just before eight.
We were part way through our tea when they ‘ checked in’ and it didn’t take long for us all to get chatting and have the booze flowing.
A great evening was had underneath the Wilshire Flag that one of the chaps had carried in with him. A very proud lot! They also had more wood and the fire was raging even hotter with their help. The excitement was almost tangible as we watched the mercury creep ever higher on the thermometer. First it hit twenty degrees and eventually leveled out at about twenty four degrees. What an achievement! We were almost down to our base layers.
As great as was this was though, it made finally retreating to the right- hand room all the more difficult. I don’t think I’ve ever changed so quickly to go to bed. Thankfully, it was soon comfortable in my sleeping bag. My sleep was broken though due to the snoring and other funny noises than emanated from all corners of the room. It turns out I contributed to this when I was actually unconscious too. That’s a team player for you!
Onward Journeys
It was a welcomed treat to wake and enter the main room, which had been heated for a good hour already. One of the chaps had decided to bed down in the warmer room instead and was kind enough to start the fire before the rest of us got up. A very kind gesture I thought. Bothy folk are generally a great bunch it must be said.
After breakfast, myself and Jack re-traced our steps with the Wiltshire guys about half an hour behind us. I have included that sub heading though, as The Red House Bothy is a great place to stop en-route to other parts of the national park. On the way back for example you meet the start of the path that will take you into the stunning glen that is home to Corrour Bothy. This excellent video documents one chap’s three day adventure, where he stops at this bothy on the first night. It is so well shot that this alone may be enough to entice you into visiting.
