Joined in 2023 
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63 About this deal
If you find either, or both, you are in a very upmarket bothy. In fact, you are probably in the wrong place. Any facilities are rare and probably detract from the whole experience. What about the social life? Parking:Only locals with special permits are allowed cars on the Isle of Rum. But start from new pier at Kinloch (NM 411 992) OR from new pier at Kinloch (NM 411 992) But don’t outstay your welcome, whatever the reason you are there for. You could be depriving someone else who needs the shelter. Malkys point is certainly valid, the bothy may well have closed anyway, How many bothies were there when the book went to print and how many are there now?
Although it is hard to imagine today, this remote spot on the rugged coastal headland of Arnish was once a fishing village of more than 150 people, and Peanmeanach bothy was the post office for the whole Sound of Arisaig area. Built in the mid-19th century, it sits in a line of ruined houses facing out to sea with fabulous views across to Ardnamurchan and Eigg from the front door. The building is a typical but and ben – two downstairs rooms with fireplaces and an extensive loft sleeping area above. Visit the Telford Cairn built in 2007 to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the great engineer’s birth. It overlooks the car park at the start of the walk in. A place of pilgrimage for many bothy enthusiasts, the combination of apprehension, satisfaction and invigoration provided by the challenge of heading out here is only complemented by the almost palpable solitude and isolation experienced on your arrival.
SOURLIES
It is starting to feel like this thread was started because a few people have a bee in their bonnets about the existence of the Bothy Bible, and the fact that the MBA logo is on it. The bothy is one of just two MBA shelters where the communal area occupies only the attic space; the ground level is simply an empty shell with a cobbled floor. Access is via the replaced and slightly precarious ladder up to a trap door. The room is slightly cramped but there is a big stone fireplace at one end, and with a fire going, it is very cosy. A worn chaise lounge left in the house functions as a table, flanked by a couple of benches. Natural light filters through four clear perspex roof panels, but the winter months can be a little gloomy when the bothy is shaded by the hill and gets no direct sunlight. Key Attractions: Downstairs to the right is a rough-and-ready working area. The exposed interior stonework has been whitewashed and the floor retains much of its original cobbling. To the left, an interior door leads into a communal, wood-panelled room, a little cramped owing to a low ceiling but homely nonetheless. Arguably the most scenic section of the walk is the part that skirts around North Bay. The views over to Ben Tianavaig on Skye are beautiful from here on a clear day. There are also lots of nice places in this area to wild camp. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Warnscale+Bothy/@54.5026659,-3.2286239,14.26z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x46e17757b2f5556f!8m2!3d54.5085906!4d-3.2298067
No, bothies are free by the definition of the word. You may come across places using the name bothy that are; hotels, bunkhouses, or guest houses. These are not true bothies. Offering adult-only accommodation, Raasay Distillery is the only place in Scotland where you can stay overnight in an operational distillery. Borodale House has been revamped to include six ensuite bedrooms, all with wonderful views. Kylesku Hotel serves excellent fresh sea food, and organises boat trips to the bothy and waterfall. PARKING:By the Mountain Rescue Post at Morvich (NG 960210) OR in the layby on the A87, 1 mile east of the Cluanie Inn (NH 091 121)The view of Loch Glencoul is the reason this bothy tops the list of best mountain bothies in Scotland! So what you have achieved there is - the MBA loses thousands of pounds but it is able to sit on the moral high ground judging and criticising all others (which appears to be a common theme) who are not as squeaky clean as themselves. Basically achieving nothing possibly less than nothing.
The 180-degree view from the bay window at The Lookout has a certain wow factor. This former coastguard station, positioned precariously close to the clifftop above Rubha Hunish, the most northerly tip of Skye, offers a panorama encompassing the entire Western Isles and, on a clear day, the mainland all the way to Cape Wrath. The bothy is also a fantastic spot for whale and dolphin watching: schools of migrating minke whales pass through the Minch strait in autumn, and various other aquatic sightings are recorded in the logbook. There is even a pair of bothy binoculars to use. Built in 1928, the station was operational until the 1970s, when technology superseded the need for a duty officer. An old-style telephone hangs on the wall, along with an information board and a poster identifying types of whale, dolphin and porpoise. This is why we publicise the work of the association and why we’re on social media now,” says Stewart. The most recent newsletter reveals that unsuccessful approaches have been made to groups of Scouts and members of the Duke of Edinburgh scheme. “I think these days it’s more difficult,” says Barton. “It was easy enough for me. I had a job where you worked 9-5 and you could plan time off and knew you would get it. These kind of jobs don’t exist so much now.” Expect your time in the bothy to be a social one. Unless you score a bothy to yourself, the opportunity to spend time with other like-minded people is one of the appeals of bothying. You don’t have to join in, but it is normal to share the space socially as well as physically. If this thread has achieved one thing above all others it will have put people off getting involved in the MBA. If it had as big a readership it would probably do more damage than has allegedly been done by the evil book. The MBA should sever all ties with Allan and his book and do this publicly. This includes his new bothy cash-in book due to be out next Spring.Then I had to write the book, adding in a lot of detail and information so that people can find the bothies and also know what to expect when they arrive. My aim is to encourage a wider range of people to visit the bothies.”
The MBA did not endorse Geoff Allan's book. They simply permitted him to use the MBA logo in conjunction with a recommendation to readers to join the MBA and help look after bothies. In other words, he endorsed the MBA And the MBA had no more say in it's publication or content than they do on how much NASA spends on scented toilet rolls. It wasn’t until I was halfway through my hike of the Scottish National Trail that I stayed in my first bothy. And oh boy, did I appreciate it! Fortunately, most owners treated it with the distain it deserved (and some have since offered other buildings to the MBA, or entered agreements for them to maintain existing shelters). But, where perhaps they already had concerns about occasional problems/increased use (hardly a new issue!) it unfortunately, achieved its objective. In principle, there is no reason you can’t camp outside a bothy, and you may well have to if there is no space inside.
A flagship MBA bothy, Shenavall is one of the best-known and busiest in Scotland, and a visit is the perfect introduction to the delights of bothying. Spectacularly located on the edge of the Fisherfield Forest and close to an area of remote peaks described by Alfred Wainwright as ‘the Great Wilderness’, it has been a magnet for Munro baggers and walkers for over a century. As a bothy virgin I know hee-haw about bothy politics however reading this thread it comes across as individuals with an agenda against the current MBA decision makers or Geoff Allan specifically.
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