We need your help to raise £26,000 to cover the costs of unexpected repairs to Athnamulloch Bothy.
Known fondly as ‘The Bothy’ in Glen Affric, Athnamulloch has been a base for Trees for Life since the 1990s – a vital part of the infrastructure in our mission to save and expand the area’s precious Caledonian forest. Many of you will have spent time there during Conservation Weeks and remember it as a place of great comfort and solace in one of Scotland’s most beautiful but remote glens.
After noticing the fireplaces were a little damp and the stoves beginning to rust, we asked an expert in historic building construction to survey the bothy. He identified significant water ingress around the chimney breasts on the gable walls, and we have already begun to take action to stop further damage to the chimneys. There are also repairs needed to the roof, including leadwork, flashing and mastic work.
We need your support to help us cover the costs of this unplanned spend so we can keep Athnamulloch in good condition – serving future rewilding volunteers, tree planters and wildlife watchers.
Athnamulloch is at least 150 years old, made from traditional materials using traditional techniques. To keep this historic building Highland-weather-proof, we need to remove all coats of paint, lime harl and limewash from the exterior walls. We then need to repoint them with a combination of lime mortar and small sections of clay brick to ensure the joints are solid. The walls will then be carefully recovered using rough harling mix, mastic and limewash. This lime work on the exterior walls will be undertaken next spring when the weather is drier.
Once this work is complete, the new lime harl should last a very long time. We will ensure its longevity by adding a new coat of limewash each year - work we can carry out ourselves.
Athnamulloch is deeply woven into the cultural heritage of Glen Affric and the rewilding history of the Scottish Highlands. Trees for Life are its long-term custodians. Please help us to secure the bothy’s future by supporting our appeal. With your support, we can continue to rewild this magnificent area of the Scottish Highlands - with a warm and dry base for the volunteers and staff who make it happen. Thank you.
Any surplus funds raised by this appeal will be used to fund our wider work to rewild the Scottish Highlands.