In the lonely uplands of Southern Scotland habitations are few and far between. As the terrain gets wilder in the western hills of Galloway only a few remote outposts remain. These places have long been deserted for their former use but they still perform an important function to hillwalkers, mountaineers and outdoor folk. These forlorn buildings are now open shelters where travellers in these remote areas can find a refuge.
In Scotland These Simple Buildings Are Known as Mountain Bothies
In Galloway most of these buildings are defunct sheep farming cottages. When swathes of forestry came to Galloway the shepherd's day was over. One of the remotest of these dwellings lies in the Dungeon of the Buchan. That is a rugged area surrounded by some of the remotest and difficult mountains in all of Galloway. There were shepherds at Backhill of Bush for many years. They were hardy and self reliant folk and needed to be for a working life in such a wild spot.
Backhill of Bush Was Not a Place for the Inexperienced
It was a hard life, fraught with many difficulties and dangers, living in these wild hills. The Galloway shepherds were well up to the task. They spent long hours tending their hardy flocks of blackfaced sheep. The ground on the Buchan was not the easiest but the shepherd could have up to a thousand sheep in his flock after lambing time. Dipping, clipping and gatherings all were labourious tasks but the Galloway shepherds coped well with this isolated lifestyle
The Females at This Farm Also Had a Very Busy Life
The women had just as busy a life as their menfolk. They looked after all their family livestock. They milked the cow, fed the pig, the hens and the hardy hill pony. They also did all the cooking and baking and the general day to day to day running of the place. In autumn the stores of provisions were hauled over the Rhinss of Kells mountains by shepherd with the surefooted pony. This ensured that they could survive when the winter snows fell deep in the Dungeon.
Wartime Plane Crashes Were Commonplace
During World War11 many military aircraft crashed in Galloway hills. Backhill of Bush had its fair share of these sad incidents. One winter two planes crashed on the same day. The crew of one plane perished but amazingly the crew of the lighter plane survived an upside down crash landing. After the war sheep farming gave way to forestry in many upland areas of Scotland. By the early 1950s plans were laid to plant most of Backhill's hill ground except the high tops and the notorious floating bog of the Silver Flowe.
Backhill Becomes a Mountain Shelter
When the shepherds left the cottage door was never locked. Backhill became a welcome refuge for hillwalkers. It was around the fireside there that the idea of forming the Mountain Bothies Association was first thought up. Sadly, due to excessive misuse by motorbiking yobs, the Mountain Bothies people no longer look after the place. The future of the refuge is now very much in doubt. It now looks like this historic and handy mountain shelter will now be allowed to go wreck and ruin.
Dave McFadzean - Based in southwest Scotland I have been a freelance travel writer and photographer for nearly two decades. Building up a strong market for ...
