WILD AT HEART
Let’s face it, we could all use a digital detox and we already know that embracing the great outdoors is the perfect way to switch off. Janice Hopper heads to the North East and gets back to nature in style at glorious Glen Dye
Where better to switch off from modern madness than at Glen Dye?
Sir Charles and Caroline Gladstone take outdoor life seriously. Known for running the Good Life Experience in Wales with musicians Steve Abbott and Cerys Matthews, they also oversee two Welsh farm shops and have written a ‘Guide to the Great Outdoors’, teaching their readers how to cook on a campfire and tickle a trout.
But not all their ventures lie south of the border. Charles is the great great grandson of former prime minister, William Gladstone, and his Scottish links are strong – the Gladstones purchased Fasque House in Aberdeenshire in the early 19th century, and the Baronetcy of Fasque and Balfour was later bestowed on the family in 1846. Returning to these roots, Charles and Caroline’s latest project is the launch of the simultaneously wild, yet luxurious, Glen Dye cabins and lodges.
Glen Dye, a 30,000-acre estate straddling Aberdeenshire and Kincardineshire, is a rugged destination where visitors escape to ‘rewild’ themselves. The offering is quirky, unique, and consistently focussed on Scotland’s wildlife, produce and landscape. Charles Gladstone spent his summers as a boy at Glen Dye, running ‘feral’ as he remembers, so he could immediately see the appeal of getting back to basics in the great outdoors.
‘Today, many people are living at an unsustainable pace, and they’re hankering for simplicity, and the desire to reconnect with themselves,’ says Charles. ‘We knew that Scotland was having a moment, as people seek natural beauty, the remote, the off-grid, the trees and the mountains. At Glen Dye we harness these elements, and combine them with high quality, luxury accommodation.’
Glen Dye’s motto is ‘Home of the Brave’, and visitors can be as brave or indulgent as they wish. Guests who book the North Lodge will discover very comfortable accommodation (think a high thread count, roll top bath and roaring fire) but the focus is getting outside to use the lodge’s exclusive riverside cabin, complete with a Swedish wood-fired hot tub, barbecue and fire pit.
This is a location for families and friends to spend an entire day outdoors, partly because the activities require an element of effort and attention. Guests don’t merely flick a switch to fuel their fires and hot tub, but lovingly build and nurture the flames. Other options include wild swimming in the River Dye or heading off on a hike, before chatting into the night as the embers glow and lights illuminate the woodland. For those who wish to reignite their basic hunter-gatherer instincts, Glen Dye is a tempting proposal.
Naturally Charles and Caroline Gladstone relish time in Scotland’s great outdoors: they brought up their children at Glen Dye, enticing them on family walks and hikes with the lure of jelly babies. Today, they split their lives between Scotland and Wales, and the estates continue to be both a place of work and play for the Gladstones. Charles explains that most of the land at Glen Dye is productive, with a working farm, commercial woodlands, grouse moor and a Christmas tree farm. Charles is a strong believer in energy and duty.
‘I inherited two estates in catastrophic condition, and spent around 25 years getting them into a good condition,’ he explains. ‘It’s been much of my life’s work, and I find “duty” a strong and fascinating notion. Once Glen Dye was in good shape, it was time to search for new, interesting projects to create energy and employment for the people who live there and offer alternatives to traditional industry.’
Glen Dye is certainly alternative. Consider the Sawmill accommodation — we’re talking a giant bed in a fully refurbished 1955 Airstream Safari caravan, with an outdoor rainfall shower. Stroll a few metres from the caravan to discover a converted seed store and shelter for former estate foresters, which has been reinvented as the caravan’s kitchen, dining and sitting room. While many hotels are attempting to ‘bring the outside in’, Glen Dye is ‘bringing the inside out’.
The ever-present outdoor theme continues with a series of micro festivals running throughout 2020, focusing on crafts, food skills (such as foraging and butchery) and living life outdoors. A series of renowned outdoor experts will encourage and lead, including Gill Meller of River Cottage, Olympic athlete
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A rugged destination where visitors escape to ‘rewild’ themselves
Tim Weeks, printmaker Tom Frost, charcuterie experts Anja and Jan Jacob Baak, folk musician James Sills, plant-based chef Lauren Lovatt, and herbalist Terrill Dobson.
‘People are desperate to develop new skills, make something with their hands and try something new,’ says Charles. ‘When they come to Glen Dye they experience 4-5 nights of excellent accommodation, good food and they learn in the great outdoors. We send them back to the rest of their life calmer.’
The Gladstones see the festivals, cabins and lodges as the beginning of the journey for Glen Dye, but they’ve set the bar high. ‘A job done well is terrifyingly exciting,’ concludes Charles, and you get the sense he won’t settle for anything less.
www.glendyecabinsandcottages.com