Hugh Barrie and Thomas Baird, graduates of Glasgow University, arrived in Aviemore on Wednesday 28 December 1927, to spend a few days climbing the Cairngorms. A brief previous visit had whetted their appetite to spend longer in such grand surroundings and their ambition seemed about to be realised. In Aviemore, they made a number of purchases, then set about finding suitable cheap accommodation. Luck was with them and they found Mr and Mrs McKenzie’s small croft at Whitewell a few miles SE of Aviemore. That evening they outlined their plans to their hosts. They intended to set out early in the morning for Corrour Bothy in the Lairig Ghru, use it as a base for a number of climbs, and return in a few days by Glen Einich. The McKenzies were most unhappy at the thought of two young men, with comparatively little experience of the mountains undertaking such a program in mid-winter, particularly as the weather was unsettled at the time and seemed likely to remain so for some days. They did their utmost to dissuade them from setting off, but to no avail. On the morning of 29 December, Barrie and Baird left the house on the journey destined to end in tragedy.

The traverse of the remote Lairig Ghru pass is the finest and most exciting hillwalking expedition in Scotland. It was into this great wilderness of boulder and mountain that Barrie and Baird walked soon after leaving Whitewell. Despite a fair amount of snow in the Lairig, they made good progress, arriving at Corrour without mishap well before dark. After a comfortable night, they set out early next morning to climb Devil’s Point using the path uphill behind the bothy, leading to a ridge giving easy access to the summit. In late afternoon, they returned to the bothy, and after eating, settled down to plan a more extended outing for the next day. These plans were made in vain, for during the night, there was a dramatic change in the weather, and they were soon experiencing the full force of a winter storm in the very heart of the Cairngorms. These mountains are very exposed to the cold, snow-bearing winds which blow from the north and east, and in consequence, receive abnormally heavy falls of snow. In winter, storms of great severity can rage, conditions on the higher ground becoming sub-Arctic with temperatures as low as 20°F. Hurricane-force winds can blow up suddenly, making it impossible to stand upright, with blizzards making it difficult to breathe and impossible to see any distance ahead.

The severe blizzard continued to rage with unabated fury throughout the following day while the temperature dropped steadily. By nightfall, a severe frost set in and conditions became truly Arctic. Their boots froze, and they had to sit on them for a prolonged period until they thawed out sufficiently to be worn. Their Primus stove failed to function. Their food was running dangerously low, with no means of restocking. Their situation was becoming desperate. They must have realised that with conditions steadily deteriorating, their one chance of survival was to leave the bothy at daybreak, regardless of weather.

It is easy to imagine the thoughts tormenting them during the tedious day of confinement at the bothy. Face to face with the greatest crisis of their lives, their confidence in their own ability to control their destiny must have rapidly melted away as they realised the frailty of man when pitted against the remorseless fury of Nature in her wildest mood. How bitterly they must have regretted their failure to accept the McKenzies’ advice.

On Sunday, New Year’s Day, they awoke to a bright, sunny morning, with the surrounding tops standing out clearly against an azure blue sky. The forecast was not good however: a red sky towards the east, and great storm clouds massing ominously on the horizon, heralded by another blizzard. Perhaps these signs passed unnoticed for by 8 o’clock they were on their way.

The route they planned to follow, was to make the ascent to the ridge behind Corrour Bothy, and crossing over Cairntoul, strike the summit plateau of Braeriach, thence making the descent into Glen Einich. This walk from Corrour to Braeriach has been described as the finest high-level 3.5 mile walk in the UK, and can be accomplished under reasonable conditions in around 2 or 3 hours.

About 10 o’clock the storm broke. The two climbers would have reached the higher ground by this time and would therefore be completely exposed to merciless hurricane-force winds and blinding snow. The movements of the two men up to this point were briefly recorded by Baird in his diary, though the last entries were scarcely legible, no doubt due to numbed fingers unable to control the pencil. From the time of their arrival on Braeriach, we can only surmise what happened. They certainly must have been reduced to crawling, and when descending Coire Bogha-cloiche immediately the north of Coire Dhondail, they lost contact with one another due to darkness, the storm, or a glissade. Had they been able to keep together, they might well have reached the safety of the Upper Bothy*, near the head of Glen Einich. The movements of the two men since their departure from Corrour can only be surmised, but certain clues cast light upon their progress. It would have been natural for them to descend from the summit of Braeriach into Coire Dhondail rather into Coire Bogha-cloiche, which is much more precipitous. The fact that their rucksacks were found in Coire Bogha-cloiche, at about 3000ft suggests they came down by the more hazardous route.

Baird reached the foot of Braeriach near the bothy before he stumbled in deep snow, bruised, battered and completely exhausted, never to rise again. He was in a most pitiable condition, the skin of his left hand completely worn off, several fingers badly lacerated, his right knee injured. His breeches were badly torn at the knees, suggesting had been forced to crawl a considerable distance. By cruel coincidence, the storm played itself out about the very time Baird fell and a great calm fell over the glen. He was found next day by two men out for a leisurely walk up Glen Einich. They carried him the short distance to the bothy before one returned to Coylum Bridge for the police and doctor. The news of Baird’s death was widely reported, but the main talking point now was the whereabouts of Hugh Barrie. Was he still alive or had he perished in the same way as his friend? A large search party gathered in Glen Einich the next day to search for the missing climber, a great effort which proved fruitless due to deteriorating weather. Another search party from Braemar was turned back by bad weather before they could reach Corrour Bothy. It was now clear that Barrie must be dead. No one could survive so long in such conditions. It was a case of waiting until winter snows melted.

On 24 March while walking in Coire Bogha-cloiche, a Rothiemurchus estate stalker found the rucksacks of the two men lying about 300ft apart. This discovery pointed to the fact that Barrie was probably somewhere between the corrie and the foot of the mountain. Next day, a search party’s Labrador retriever found Barrie in a peat-hag where he had fallen. The body was in a wonderful state of preservation despite the passage of almost 3 months.

After keeping the world waiting, the mountain had at last yielded up its secret and revealed the mystery of the lost climber.