Build in your imagination the ideal of bothy. A long walk to get to it; a huge view; and even some dry blankets to sleep under. And then head off and find it. Hint: it isn’t actually in the UK...
Nice story, nice bivy, luxury in fact - apart from a very few noisy hut nights on The Ben and in the Alps, all my bivies have been proper bivies, some wonderful, some grim, but all memorable, part of the game. A storm on Norway's Troll Wall was probably the worst, but across the valley in another storm on the Romsdlashorn resulted in a bivy in Vengedal. It was undoubtedly the best, when unexpectedly a builders' hut emerged from the mist and rain . It was unlocked and heated, with a stocked kitchen and tempting beds; I'll say no more!
Well it's not really a 'bivouac' any more than most 'Hütte' are actually huts. I guess I could post about some real bivvies - though that might lose a few subscribers...
hmmm, bivouac or not, we were expecting to bivvy under a boulder that I knew about, but instead a builders' hut emerged through the mist, so as far as I'm concerned we had a luxury bivvy! Definitely ***** :)
Our colleague Paddy Dillon once bivvied in a piece of furniture, a wardrobe indeed, that he found lying on a rubbish tip. No, he didn't end up in Narnia...
Another Bivy tale: having hitched up to Aviemore I arrived late at night and as the weather was bad (it was winter) I kipped in a goodswaggon parked up at the end of a train at the station. After a good kip I woke and opened the door. The train had gone but my goodswaggon was still in the same place. It must have been unhitched. How lucky was that!
Nice story, nice bivy, luxury in fact - apart from a very few noisy hut nights on The Ben and in the Alps, all my bivies have been proper bivies, some wonderful, some grim, but all memorable, part of the game. A storm on Norway's Troll Wall was probably the worst, but across the valley in another storm on the Romsdlashorn resulted in a bivy in Vengedal. It was undoubtedly the best, when unexpectedly a builders' hut emerged from the mist and rain . It was unlocked and heated, with a stocked kitchen and tempting beds; I'll say no more!
Well it's not really a 'bivouac' any more than most 'Hütte' are actually huts. I guess I could post about some real bivvies - though that might lose a few subscribers...
hmmm, bivouac or not, we were expecting to bivvy under a boulder that I knew about, but instead a builders' hut emerged through the mist, so as far as I'm concerned we had a luxury bivvy! Definitely ***** :)
Our colleague Paddy Dillon once bivvied in a piece of furniture, a wardrobe indeed, that he found lying on a rubbish tip. No, he didn't end up in Narnia...
Another Bivy tale: having hitched up to Aviemore I arrived late at night and as the weather was bad (it was winter) I kipped in a goodswaggon parked up at the end of a train at the station. After a good kip I woke and opened the door. The train had gone but my goodswaggon was still in the same place. It must have been unhitched. How lucky was that!
You’ve reminded me of a wonderful night in the Dent Blanche bivouac hut in Switzerland. Happy memories.
My last bothy was White Laggan, the past February. The walls were too frozen to laugh at us.