Support your national huts with our Crowdfunder

Monday 8th December 2025, 1:36pm

Mountaineering Scotland and the BMC are joining forces to raise £60,000 for urgent refurbishments to our members-only Alex MacIntyre and Don Whillans Memorial Huts to keep them open for future generations.

Our Crowdfunder

The Alex MacIntyre Memorial Hut and Don Whillans Hut are low-cost, volunteer-run, self-catering, bunkhouse-style huts in the heart of the mountainside and exclusively available only to Mountaineering Scotland and British Mountaineering Council (BMC) members, affiliated club members and their guests. Both are currently in urgent need of refurbishments to future-proof them for the next 50 years.

Alex MacIntyre Memorial Hut is run by both Mountaineering Scotland and the BMC, and the Don Whillans Memorial Hut is run by the BMC. The huts are maintained entirely by dedicated volunteers and available for Mountaineering Scotland and BMC members, affiliated club members and their guests to stay in at a fraction of the cost of regular accommodation.

Keep reading to find out what repairs, refurbishments and upgrades are needed at each hut, plus incentives for donating certain amounts. Share and support our Crowdfunder here. Please give generously if you can to keep our National Huts fully operational.

Alex MacIntyre Memorial Hut

Over the last four decades the Alex MacIntyre Memorial Hut has welcomed an estimated 60,000 walkers and climbers to the Western Highlands, with over 1,700 annual bookings for this 16-person hut. Now there are ambitious refurbishment and sustainability plans to future-proof the hut for the next forty years with a new ‘warm roof’, solar PV with a new heating system, replacement double glazing, bunk bed upgrades and refurbishments of the kitchen, common room and bathrooms. The BMC and Mountaineering Scotland look after this hut and have committed to a loan totalling £35,000, the former loaning £25,000 and the latter loaning £10,000. Total refurbishment costs for the Alex MacIntyre Memorial Hut are estimated in the region of £300,000.

Don Whillans Memorial Hut

The iconic Don Whillans Memorial Hut, built out from a cave in the gritstone cliffs of The Roaches in the Peak District, is hugely popular with climbers and walkers alike. This 12-person hut is fully booked every weekend and most weekdays, with over 1,000 bookings every year. However, this hut had to be closed for over a month this autumn due to water damage. Now repairs and a sensitive retrofit are urgently needed to protect this well-loved, highly-popular hut from further closures, and enhance comfort and sustainability for years to come. Plans include improved heating, an upgraded water pumping system, better ventilation to reduce damp, replacement windows, and refreshed décor whilst still maintaining the character of this quirky, unusual building. The BMC leases this hut and is donating £10,000 towards these costs. Total refurbishment costs for the Don Whillans Memorial Hut are estimated in the region of £100,000.

How we'll spend the money raised

All monies raised will go towards the vital refurbishments of the Alex MacIntyre and Don Whillans Memorial Huts.

If you are from a corporate enterprise, local business or wish to give a significant individual or club donation to a particular hut please contact us using the 'contact project' function on Crowdfunder here.

WOW! All donations over £500 will have their name added to a new 'Friend of the National Huts' area on the huts webpage.

  • £10 could help to buy a roofing slate
  • £25 pays for a pot of fresh, new paint
  • £50 pays for a new set of cooking pans
  • £125 buys a sheet of roofing insulation
  • £250 helps upgrade a bunk bed or radiator
  • £500 lists you as a ‘Friend of the National Huts’ on the BMC’s website, Bronze category
  • £1,000 lists you as the above, in the Silver category
  • £2,500 the above in the Gold category
  • £5,000 your individual/organisation name on a hut plaque
  • £10,000 funds one bedroom refurbishment at the Alex MacIntyre Memorial Hut, you choose the room name (within reason - no Maccy MacMacfaces please!), 5 rooms available
  • £10,000 funds a new heating or water system at the Don Whillans Memorial Hut, with your name on a plaque or similarly appropriate memorial at the hut
  • Leave your legacy to our huts and we will remember your generosity with a lasting memorial at your favourite one
  • Please contact us for other options through the 'contact project' button at the top of this Crowdfunder

Thank you so much for your support!

Back to Latest News Share on Facebook Share on Twitter