Cabin fever' as Scottish Highland community opens up holiday huts with 'amazing views' in the woods

A Highland community is building holiday cabins in its woodland to raise money for the local economy.

The off-grid cabins in Glengarry have no running water, no electricity and no running water, but provide a shelter for those seeking to get back to basics amid views of the Great Glen and the surrounding Munros.

Tom Cooper, of Glengarry Community Development Trust, with the huts set in the woods. | Contributed

Community-owned Glengarry Community Development Trust is stepping into tourism to fund its activities locally, with the cabins close to the River Garry due to open this summer. Funds raised will support projects such as the trust’s timber business and the development of affordable housing.

Tom Cooper, development manager of the Glengarry Community Development Trust, said: “We are a community charity and we need an income that will enable us to keep various community projects going.

“We looked hard at the figures for different businesses, including a shop and café, but cabin accommodation gave us the best income. It’s about making the most of your assets.”

The community group took control of the woodland in 2016 and prioritised sustainable development of the woodland, education projects and a profitable firewood business. It now intends to develop affordable housing on other sites acquired by the organisation.

Mr Cooper said he recognised tourism in the Highlands was a “double-edged sword”. He said: “It creates jobs and brings in a lot of money, but it also brings in a lot of negative feelings around congestion and the lack of local facilities.

“If you are a trust that owns a beautiful forest like we do that has amazing views of the Great Glen and the Munros, looking at it objectively as a business, that is where the money is.

‘Of course, as community trusts we have to take a broader view … we have to consider social justice, sustainability and the wishes of the community. Ultimately all profits are used to benefit the community.

“I guess what we are trying to do here is harness the demand for tourism and raise money from that, but use it to deliver positive outcomes for the community.”

As well as visitors, the cabins will be made available for community events and retreats.

Mr Cooper said: “Everything we do is ultimately for the community. If getting an income from the cabins enables us to keep our other projects going and allows us to develop new projects, the overall benefit for the community is clear to see.”

The cabins have been built from local materials with all labour sourced from the Highlands.

Mr Cooper added: “ We use all our own wood, we use local labour, and our green footprint is very healthy.”

While the Glengarry group has often struggled to secure steady income, it is also now set to benefit from a rush of wind farm developments in the area.

Glengarry is surrounded by five different windfarm projects at different stages of planning or development. One wind farm donates £550,000 a year to be split between communities in Glengarry and Fort Augustus, with a further £50,000 a year from a second wind farm project.

Mr Cooper said: “We get a decent income from firewood and timber, but what really helps us at the moment is money the whole community gets from wind farms.

“The vast majority of our money comes from the wind farms’ Community Benefit Funds. I can’t stress how important these funds are in terms of allowing us to get things done. These funds at the moment are piecemeal and there is a need to standardise these benefit funds in order to benefit communities.

“When that is sorted, local communities should get a lot of benefit. But projects like the cabins will help keep us going independently into the future.”