Sometimes the simple ideas really are the best, as highlighted by this very basic but appealing mountain hut located in the Scottish Highlands. Designed by Moxon Architects, the Culardoch Shieling is a contemporary take on traditional Scottish which blends into the surrounding landscape thanks to a green roof.
The Culardoch Shieling joins the ranks of a number of attractive mountain huts and cabins we've seen of late, including Norway's Cabin Ustaoset and Skåpet Mountain Lodges. It was commissioned by the owner of a highland estate in Cairngorms National Park, the largest national park in the British Isles. It takes the "Shieling" part of its name from the Scottish Gaelic term for a hut.
It has a total floorspace of 47 sq m (505 sq ft) and comprises a timber frame with large overhanging eaves. The green roof is covered in moss, heather and stone, to ensure the hut doesn't unduly blight the terrain. Judging by the photos, it certainly seems to do the trick and you can barely make it out from above. In addition to traditional Scottish crofts and shepherds' huts, the design also takes some subtle cues from 20th Century Modernism.
"The monolithic form references the work of Alvar Aalto, whilst the irregular cut-out windows are a nod to Le Corbusier's Notre Dame Du Haut church at Ronchamp," says the firm. "At the Shieling, the window arrangement is used to precisely frame views out to particular landscape features such as the granite tors on the top of Ben Avon or a bend in the river Gairn."
To be clear, the hut isn't a home in any sense but instead is made to host gatherings and consists of a single room dominated by a long dining table. It's finished in spruce wood inside. We've no word on any toilet facilities so assume that visitors avail themselves of a suitable bush.
Naturally, given its remote location, the Culardoch Shieling operates off-the-grid. The only lighting comes from either sunlight or candles. Heating and cooking duties are handled by a wood-fired stove, while a small table is placed nearby for preparing food.
The hut was completed in late 2016.
Source: Moxon Architects
