The Mountain Bothies Association has reaffirmed that bothies in Scotland, England and Wales should not be used except for emergency circumstances. Despite the reducing rates of infection, Covid-19 precautions are still at the forefront of their thinking and there is a worry that social distancing, regular sanitising and the wearing of face coverings may not be practised by some visitors.

MBA Chairman Simon Birch said:

"While we now have a timetable for when travel restrictions might be removed, there is as yet no firm information about when other restrictions that currently apply in the bothy situation- groups meeting indoors, social distancing, personal hygiene requirements etc- might be eased. So for the moment, the situation remains the same and regrettably, therefore, we have to repeat our advice that bothies should not be used.

"We fully understand that this will be disappointing news for many bothy users. However, I should like to reassure them that we are closely monitoring Government announcements about further easing of restrictions throughout Great Britain and that it is our intention to make bothies available again, subject to appropriate precautions, just as soon as it is safe to do so.

"While we cannot at present put a date on when that will be, we're looking forward to the day when we can fully resume our maintenance activities and when those who enjoy the wild and lonely places can once again visit these special buildings."

The MBA has established a small group who are monitoring the changes in rules throughout Scotland, Wales and England. There is currently no information about when restrictions that apply to bothies may be lifted.

For up-to-date information, check the MBA website or their Facebook Group.