Bothies, bunkers and beaches

Nick Harding discovers a secret nuclear shelter, a tantalising gin-tasting experience and breathtaking coastline on a visit to eastern Scotland

Scotland’s Secret Bunker

This summer, Lin and I decided to take the path less travelled, exploring Aberdeenshire and Angus on the east side of Scotland, from Aberdeen on the coast to the Cairngorms and Dundee. Although it is quieter than the more popular west coast, there is plenty to see, and a welcome lack of midgies!

We stayed at three Club campsites as well as taking in an Affiliated Site (AS) and a Certificated Location (CL). With fewer than 100 miles between the most northern and southerly of these sites, any combination of these (or all five) would make for a great road trip.

En route to our first campsite, we stopped at Scotland’s Secret Bunker, near St Andrews. During the Cold War this was a highly important listening post and control centre. Ironically, it’s well signposted now that it’s a full-blown tourist attraction.

The Secret Bunker was built using some 40,000 tons of concrete, its underground labyrinth extending to radar rooms, dormitories, a broadcasting studio and even a chapel. The conventional-looking farmhouse on top was enough to ward off any suspicions.

After an afternoon exploring the bunker, it was an hour of relaxed driving to our base for the next two nights – Forfar Lochside Club Campsite, a waterside site within Forfar Loch Country Park, and barely a 10-minute walk away from the town’s High Street.

Also 10 minutes away – although this time by vehicle – is Glamis, which is famous for its castle. However, we instead made a beeline for the nearby Gin Bothy Experience. While Lin volunteered to sample the gins during an hour-long tutored tasting, I was given a ‘driver’s pack’ to take home, consisting of two miniatures and a small bottle of tonic. They make a number of gins here and Lin sampled four, ranging from the London dry gin-style Original to Gunshot, which resembles a whisky and has notes of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and honey.

Dundee break

V&A Dundee

Forfar Lochside is also the Club campsite that is nearest to Scotland’s fourth-largest city, Dundee. There is a direct bus service from just outside the site into city, but we opted instead to make the 30-minute journey by car and, once there, parking was straightforward.

We had a full day’s itinerary, starting off at what was once one of the city’s many mills. The Verdant Works Museum shines a light on the history of jute weaving in the city, which relied upon raw jute imported from India to the local docks. The end product had a wide range of uses, including sacking, ships’ rigging and ropes, carpet backing, webbing and boot linings. Such was Dundee’s world-leading role in producing jute goods that it was once known as ‘Juteopolis’. It brought great wealth to the city, if not those that worked under extremely tough conditions in the mills; the museum offers visitors an insight into all aspects of the industry, including the hardships suffered by the workers.

From the museum, we walked about 20 minutes through the centre of the city to its waterfront, and Discovery Point Dundee. Here is moored the RRS Discovery, sailed by Robert Falcon Scott, Ernest Shackleton and crew to Antarctica in 1901.

The ship was made in Dundee, and was completed within a year of being commissioned – an amazing feat back then. In 1986 it returned to the city and is now open to visitors.

Adjacent to the ship is The Dome, which is home to galleries that offer a brief audio history of the city, tell the story of the Antarctic expeditions and present collections of artefacts from the voyages.

Right next door to Discovery Point is the city’s latest large-scale attraction – the V&A Dundee design museum. A cousin of London’s Victoria and Albert Museum, the collection is housed in a purpose-built, eye-catching building inspired by the cliffs of the Scottish coast. Entry is free here apart from to the temporary exhibitions; when we visited, the big draw was the ‘Kimono: Kyoto to Catwalk’ exhibition.

Lochside to seaside

Dunnottar Castle. Photo by member Rachel Shears

Our next campsite was less than an hour’s drive from Forfar Lochside and situated in the pretty harbour town of Stonehaven. Stonehaven Queen Elizabeth Park Club Campsite, to give it its full name, is a pebble’s throw from the beach, while next door is a sea-filled, heated, open-air swimming pool.

We arrived late afternoon to a full site, pleased to have made our booking in well in advance. By early evening we were in the queue at The Bay Fish and Chips, a great chippie, with an eye on sustainability and displays indicating that day’s suppliers of fish and potatoes. There’s also freshly made tartare sauce, etc.

The other chip shop in town is The Carron (is billed as the “birthplace of the  deep-fried Mars bar”). Opinions vary as to which is the better of the two – unfortunately we didn’t manage to try The Carron’s wares. Nor did we get to the The Ship Inn, which was fervently recommended by a fellow Club member later on in our tour.

Walking along Stonehaven seafront is a highlight, and, if you’re so minded, it’s well worth going the extra couple of miles to the medieval ruins of Dunnottar Castle, which sit atop a 160-foot-high rock, staring down in defiance at the North Sea.

Stonehaven is also the birthplace of Robert William Thomson, inventor of the pneumatic tyre, among other items – and therefore something of a hero to leisure vehicle owners.

Fit for a king

Grampian Transport Museum

If you’re keen on city life, Aberdeen is less than half an hour’s drive from Stonehaven. However, we opted for a different direction, heading inland to Grampian Transport Museum in the village of Alford. A great find, it was easy to while away the whole afternoon exploring everything from the wooden-bodied Daimler Shooting Brake custom-made for King George V, to the wacky Outspan Orange Mini with automatic transmission, which was used to promote the citrus brand in the 1970s.

Sure enough, there’s a motorhome among the displays – a Bedford Romany from Dormobile. This has a great little story: it was a competition prize back in 1963, but the winners kept and used it until 1998, when it was loaned to the museum. It comes complete with eight-track stereo system, as well as an Electrolux (now Dometic, of course) electric coolbox. As far as I could see, it had covered some 69,000 miles and is said never to have broken down.

Incidentally, another 1963 Romany recently sold at auction for over £16,000, having been fully restored for the TV programme Wheeler Dealers. A cheaper alternative is to ‘adopt’ the Romany at Grampian Transport Museum for just £25 per year!

Beyond the museum, Alford is an interesting little town, offering a sprinkling of shops and attractions like Alford Valley Community Railway, a Heritage Centre, and – almost inevitably considering the area – at least three castles nearby.

Although Alford is only about 35 miles from Stonehaven, a couple of other sites are great alternative bases and within closer reach. By the River Dee, Silverbank Club Campsite in Banchory lies midway between Aberdeen and the eastern edge of the Cairngorms National Park and is an ideal base for walking, cycling, nature-spotting and a round or two at one of the many local golf courses. Alternatively, Firbank Park CL positions you just within the national park and offers tranquil, spacious pitches. You may even spot members of the Royal Family out and about, as Balmoral is only half-an-hour’s drive away!

Prison break

Our final base, though, was north at Huntly Castle AS. We couldn’t resist heading seaward again, pointing our bonnet east to visit Peterhead and its Prison Museum, set within the walls of the notorious former prison.

HM Convict Prison Peterhead was known variously as the ‘hate factory’ and ‘Scotland’s Alcatraz’. The illuminating tour allows you to go at your own pace, with an audio guide that reveals stories of the cells, the living conditions and the violence that took place in this bleakest of gaols. After the tour, it was almost a relief to ‘escape’ to the café, with its plentiful windows, great views out to sea, natural lighting and welcoming staff.

There’s plenty more to eastern Scotland. If you’re not on the coast there’s every chance you’ll be within touching distance of a loch. Or a castle. Or a golf course. Or a whisky distillery. We also found most of the roads made the going easy – we’ll be back!