A bothy is a wilderness shelter here in Scotland and there are around 100 dotted about the country - we are so lucky to have this resource as a place of refuge when out exploring and there is no doubt that this humble example of hospitality has saved many lives. Bothies are usually small cottages made of wood or brick and are completely free to stay in -maintained only by volunteers and guests. Bothies are generally used by hillwalkers and backpackers so they can get some rest, food and heat before returning to their journey. They are a place to get yourself fit and ready to continue a journey but to stay here for multiple days (unless ill, injured or due to bad weather conditions) would be frowned upon (the bothies are for people who need them out in the wilderness). The tradition of bothies is a wonderful example of Highland hospitality and blessed kindness here in Scotland.
Below are some images (credit photo credit: hillcraftguidedwalking.com) of the bothy at Glen Duror. As you can see, the inside of a bothy is modest, with simple supplies that must be left in the bothy. There are elevated wooden beds, a stove, gas for cooking, water and some simple home comforts. It is good practice and basic human kindness to leave something for the next person that will be of use as a thank you (i.e. water, snacks with a long shelf life, extra warm clothing if you have spare etc). A bothy is a simple life saving building for those who need it.
This particular bothy and the location that it stands in Glen Duror has a long and peculiar history. I will start with the history of the bothy itself and move onto the location nearby which peaked my interest in the area. This bothy was the birthplace of Seumas a' Ghlinne or "James of the Glen" who belonged to the Stewarts of Appin - fighting on the side of Bonnie Prince Charlie in the 1745 rebellion against the English monarchy. At the time, Appin and the Glencoe area belonged to the Campbell Clan who were in favour of the English monarchy. Colin Campbell, known as the "Red Fox" was working for the English at the time as a tax collector and was generally hated by locals in the area.
In May 1752, the Red Fox was busy collecting taxes near the Ballachulish Ferry when someone fired a shot that killed him outright. No one knew who had fired the shot, taking the life of the Campbell man, but the authorities could not leave it unpunished as it undermined their power. They accused James of the Glen as he had been a long time critic of the Campbell clan and having him hanged would serve as a warning to others. At James's trial, 11 out of the 15 jurors belonged to the Campbell Clan and the judge overseeing the trial was the Duke of Argyll - the Campbell clan chief. It has been widely recognised at the time and in the present day that this “trial” lacked any justice and was actually an predetermined execution...
Poor James was sentenced to hang at a location overlooking the scene of the murder but in his bravery and believe of his own innocence, he showed no fear and expressed no guilt or remorse. As he stood at the gallows, he worried what his future clan generations would think of him. To add insult to injury, poor James' body was left to hang and rot. Only after his body fell apart completely was he allowed a respectable burial. The gallows were then dismantled and thrown into Loch Linnhe. In 2014, an appeal was opened with the Scottish Government to pardon him post humorously but it was refused. Today James of the Glen, who was born and lived in this bothy, remains a victim of a miscarriage of justice.
The monument at the location he was hanged reads the following:
James Stewart
James of the Glens
Executed here November 1752
For a crime of which he was not guilty
Nearby this bothy is another fascinating location whereby the word of mouth from the Highlanders has much been lost save from an antique book published which details the location and haunting in depth. The maid of Glen Duror, as she became known, is a kindly spirit and is seen widely in the area and has been there for many generations. She is known to save lost children in the glen and it is customary to leave a small vessel of milk or "cogie" outside the house for her. Those that have scoffed at this tradition and not done their nightly duty have been punished with a slap across the face by the ghostly maid. To this day, some locals still leave the cogie outside their door at night.
The story starts at Achnadarroch Farmhouse which sits across the river
from the bothy, just a few hundred yards away. This house is one of the oldest in the area and is said to have been built by one of the Stewarts of Ardsheal - an ancient
Appin property. It is here that the maid of Glen Duror is soften seen, believed to have been a dairy maid in her living life but how she died no one is sure. The maid is described as an older woman who wears a green cloak (a green cloak of dress in often called the "witchin' cloth o' green") who is often seen peeking out the windows of
Achnadarroch and at night she causes great crashing sounds of broken plates where there are none ever to be found, disturbing everyone who stays there from their sleep.
The maid is also seen wandering the area and climbing the glen at an inhuman speed. One story which has been verified by the children themselves, now elderly, tells of how their step mother would send them out late at night to fetch the cows home, in the pitch dark and bitter cold while their father was still at work. If they did not do so successfully, there would be a punishment. In days of old, everyone in the area had a cow or two and would let them graze no the lower slopes of Ben Vair, bringing them home at night.
Cows can be great wanderers and the little brother and sister could not find their cows that night. They sat down no a boulder and wept - scared of the wrath
of their step mother, cold and hungry and too scared to go home empty handed. Suddenly they were approached by a woman who smiled at them and sat between them, placing her cloak over them, keeping them warm. She asked them kindly why they were upset and so far from home at this late hour. The children explained and the maid took the little girl in her arms and the boy by the hand, found their cows and took them home. At the front door, the maid loudly told the children, so their step mother could hear, that she was never again to let these two little children out so late and so far to fetch the cows! The step mother was taken aback - how dare anyone tell her what to do!
Only a week passed before the children were set off again to retrieve the cows in the dark and cold. On this occasion, the father returned home from his work early and demanded to know where his children were. The step mother told him and he flew into a rage - leaving the house to go and find his children. After many hours of searching, the father found his children, wrapped in a green cloak and soundly asleep. Beside them stood a woman who loudly renounced the father for his carelessness and told him that if she were to return his two sleeping children back to him that he must promise to be a better father and to stop the cruelty of the step mother. He did so through tears and asked who she was. She replied with "I am the Maid of Glen Duror" and disappeared.
The maid is also known ot interact with hillwalkers and visitors in Glen Duror. On one occasion, a local man was on a hill walk and she informed him that he must leave the area immediately and go to Australia where he would make his fortune and prosper. He was so spooked by his encounter with the maid that he did so and he did prosper! On another occasion, an Irishman was employed to put up fences near Achnadarroch on a Sunday (he never usually worked on a Sunday) when the seen an old woman in a green cloak climbing the glen at an alarming speed. He enquired locally who the person was and he was told it was the maid of Glen Duror. He never worked on a Sunday again.
If you decide to stay in this beautiful area of Scotland, make sure to visit the bothy and leave a cogie outside for the maid!