Aultbea All The Way!

In 2007 as part of the Highland Year of Culture, Aultbea along with the help of Laide Wood applied for a grant and bought a 20’ diameter Mongolian Yurt.  This is a genuine Yurt made for us in Mongolia by a company called Ulaantaij painted and decorated by hand.  Ulaantaij also helps a children's charity in Ulaan Baatar in Mongolia which provides support for ultra poor families.

The charity is Lotus Childrens Centre.

Yurts are traditional tent like dwellings of Mongolian nomadic herdsmen and women while also being the primary form of housing for 70% of the entire Mongolian population.  Some of the materials in the Yurt include Willow trellis walls, Pine roof spokes, horse hair ropes, small camel hide rivets, sheep's wool felt insulation and a high quality Russian canvas

Aultbea’s Yurt has already appeared at one Funday, been used as part of an SNH biodiversity day in Kinlochewe and played a part in a recent birthday celebration in Mellon Charles.  A team of local volunteers are gaining skills in erecting and dismantling the Yurt.

The yurt's natural strength:

Rafters push inward on compression ring and outward on tension cable, which acts in a similar way to a hoop on a barrel preventing the rafters from moving/spreading outward

An aerodynamic shape:

The yurt's aerodynamic shape allows the wind to easily flow around it rather than pushing against flat walls.

Roof Load:

Roof loads are transferred down the rafters to the tension cable