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This year, Scotland received a constellation of stars at the Guild of Fine Foods’ Great Taste Awards 2021. They are Perth-based Chapter 7 Whisky, who won for their Chapter 7 Monologue Blended Scotch Whisky, which is aged for 26 years in a single sherry butt. But as impressive as Kinloch Castle is, the best reason to visit Rum is to simply set off and explore it.
The Corbetts Glas Bheinn (776m) and Beinn Leòid (792m) are both readily accessible from the bothy and make for some great hikes. These are obviously non mountaineering grade descriptions I’m using. If you read this blog you’ll know I’m not a seasoned / technical mountaineer. Although Rum is best explored on a mountain bike, day-trippers on foot will find a number of short walks around the ferry jetty and the village of Kinloch, as well as the beautiful Kinloch Castle. While the entire range can be broken down into short sections, the majority of people attempt the classic Cuillin Ridge Walk (link to the Walk Highlands guide) which crosses 5 peaks over 13 miles. Visiting Tips 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.
Guirdil Bothy, Rùm
The entire island is managed by the public body Nature Scot as a National Nature Reserve, and due to the fact it’s so remote and has just 40 people living on it, Rum is one of the few places in Scotland that remains almost entirely unchanged by tourism. We never actually saw a group larger than this – to say there are about 1500 Red Deer on Rum I had expected to see more but I think they congregate around the other side of the island. The only other notable feature is Kinloch Castle – a grand 19th-century country house that was built for the wealthy Sir George Bullough and is occasionally open for guided tours. The Isle of Rum is a paradise for hill walkers and mountaineers alike. If you are here for a few hours or a few days there are walks to suit all abilities, but remember to BE PREPARED. Rum, while wonderful, can have savage weather (so have suitable clothing, footwear and navigation aids); has very rough terrain and in season midges are a considerable nuisance so please ensure thorough preparation and take suitable precautions. It’s very, very scenic though, and it has an otherworldly beauty that guarantees it will stay in your memory for a long time.
After chaining my bike against a fence post (I admit I didn’t need to chain it on this island, but I live in Edinburgh and old habits die hard), I pressed ahead on foot to climb partway up the 2,300-foot summit of Hallival. The bothy is the byre to a ruined house that lies close by, once an outpost of a large sheep farm that operated as part of the Loch Eil Estate from the mid-19th century. The last inhabitants, the Camerons, moved to Strathan during World War II, yet sheep continued to graze in Glen Kingie until the 1990s. Fishing pots at Guirdil Bothy. Part of Bloodstone Hill over to the right rearing above the bothy. A map of Rum and some info on the MBA and how the bothy came to be made interesting reading. http://www.mountainbothies.org.uk/ Evening on Guirdil beach, great sunset albeit a tad chilly Steve tends the seaweed fire at Guirdil Bothy. And looking pretty stern with all that responsibility too.Although none of the mountains on Rum are Munroes, the weather can change in the blink of an eye, so be prepared and ensure you have suitable clothing, footwear and navigation tools. But after Trollaval I had basically lost my nerve with some of the exposed parts particularly on Askival and my legs were wiped… there’s only so much adrenalin they could take. Doh.
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