Bob Scotts Bothy

LOCATION: LAT/LONG 57.0118, -3.9004, NN 847927, 389m, LR Map 43/35
Carved and smoothed by glaciers and carpeted with moss and heather, Glen Feshie is crowned by a patchwork of beautifully shaped trees interspersed with spiky green knots of juniper. This wide valley, the ‘jewel in the crown of the Cairngorms’, is the stunning setting for Ruigh Aiteachain, the ‘shieling of the juniper bush’. The bothy has a particular association with the 19th Century English landscape painter Sir Edwin Landseer, whose most famous work, the instantly recognisable Monarch of the Glen, was inspired by the time he spent here, and the bothy is often mistaken for the cottage where he stayed. This stood close by though, owned by the Duchess of Bedford, Landseer’s patron and long-time lover. Over the years the artist painted a number of frescoes of stags on the interior walls, including a fabled work above the fireplace. Sadly, the building was left to deteriorate after Landseer’s death, and all that remains is a lone chimney stack, with its fireplace and hearth still intact. The ‘Feshie’ as it is affectionately known, was one of 3 houses recorded in the 1841 census, an estate house that fell into disrepair before World War II, when it was used as an army training base. By the early 1950s, anything of value had long since disappeared, and there was barely a habitable room. The only door had been jammed shut, so you had to enter through the remains of a window opening, covered at night by a sheet of corrugated iron placed across the gap. Once the MBA took over maintenance, the place was transformed into one of the best-kept bothies in Scotland. Danish businessman Anders Povlsen, the new owner of the Glen Feshie Estate, has not only supported the bothy’s upkeep but begun a major refurbishment. An external porch has been constructed, with stairs leading to the attic, which has become an additional sleeping space. New windows and doors and a second wood-burning stove have also been installed.