Goldie, one of the Highland ponies, treks through the Cairngorms, Scotland. Photo / A Weild, Scot Mountain Holidays
Goldie, one of the Highland ponies, treks through the Cairngorms, Scotland. Photo / A Weild, Scot Mountain Holidays
Taking a log burning stove camping could be seen as overpacking. Unless, of course, you have four hooves and saddle bags to help.
Touring the Cairngorms with a team of fell ponies and sleeping in a heated Tipi is a novel way to see the Scottish Highlands.
Four days of wild trekking and camping through the Glens could be straight from the pages of Outlander or John Buchan. Although there's none of the hardship or hiding of illicit whiskey stills.
"There are few things better for the soul than spending days in the mountains surrounded by nature and far away from any light or noise pollution," says owner and mountain guide Andrew Bateman.
Don't forget to pack a pony: SMH Western Mountains of the Cairngorms. Photo / Tom Bailey, Supplied
Andrew says he first came across the idea twenty years ago. Followed by a pack mule through the French Pyrenees, it was an eye opening experience for just where ponies could go.
Highland ponies Foxglove and Goldie are members of the team Scot Mountain Holidays could not do without.
They're the best 4x4 one could ask for, he says, opening up the remotest parts of Scotland.
Carrying Nordic style between them they can take insulated tents, food, fuel and log burners they can bring comfort to places unreachable by road. Hikers need only take the essentials.
Hot tents or Nordic Tipi are a great way of finding remote comfort in the Highlands. Photo / A Weild, Supplied
"Some people are put off wild camping by the thought of wet boots or carrying kit, but with some simple comforts we turn what can be endurance into enjoyment," he says. Groups never exceed eight people, to make sure the pack horses are not overloaded and to keep the footprint light.
Pony welfare is an important part of the hikes. "If you don't have happy ponies you don't have safe ponies" he says. Having native breeds of pack ponies means they are extremely sure of foot on the moorland.
Wild comforts: A cup of whisky in a Nordic tipi. Photo / A Weild, Scot Mountain Holidays
A bonus of trekking through the glens without a motor is quite how close you can get to wildlife. It's a chance of seeing pine martins, osprey eagles and capercaillie black grouse in the wild.
The Cairngorms are the largest national park in the UK, roughly the size of Stewart island.
They're also home to dramatic mountains, lochs and landscapes rarely passed through by anyone other than hikers and mountaineers.
All itineraries start and end at Fraoch Lodge, in Boat of Garden. A BnB run by Andrew and his partner Rachel.
