Photos and the City

Tag: Scottish Isles

Mousa

Even when you are already on an island there are still so much more islands to visit. I´ve already seen the Island of Mousa lying next to mainland Shetland while driving from Lerwick to my lovely Airbnb and on day two it was time for a visit.

The Mousa boat was just a shirt drive away and I arrived early enough to see some seals having a little nap right on the historic Sandsayre pier. Some people even walked right to them to take some pictures, I wanted to gíve them some space. And there was also a little museum about the Mousa boat in the old boatshed.

During the summer the boat crosses the short distance to Mousa once a day and leaved enough time to explore the island before going back three hours later.

Mousa is 1,5 miles long and around 1 mile wide, there is a lovely circular path following the coast line. Mousa Broch is the best preserved broch in the British Isles. A broch is a Iron Age fortification, a kind of tower to live in, often surrounded by a village.

Upon arrival we were greeted by some lovely dogs and lots of very loud sheep, who were in the middle of getting sheared and seemed not too happy about that.

Besides all the sheep Mousa is a known breeding ground for little birds called storm-petrels who live in stone walls and also for grey and common seals, black guillemots and Arctic terns.

The circular coastal and moorland walk around the RSPB reserve starts right by the landing and shouldn´t be left to not disturb the breeding birds.

My first “sight” was the lighthouse and the East Pool where the path continue around. Lots of the other visitors had already stopped for a picknick or little break and I almost felt as I was the only person on the island.

To be continued…

16/11/2021
St. Ninian´s

On my way home from Jarlshof I made one further stop – at St. Ninian´s Isle. St. Ninian´s Isle is a small tidal island on the south-western coast of Shetland and connected to mainland Shetland with a “tombolo”.

A tombolo is a narrow piece of sand connecting an island to the mainland – the tombolo or locally known as “ayre” connecting St. Ninian´s Isle to mainland Shetland is the biggest one in the UK.

The causeway is usually covered by the sea in the wintertime with waves crashing over it and “returns” in spring to let walkers cross it to the island.

View from St. Ninian´s Isle towards the mainland.

A small chapel from the 12th century or better said the ruins of a small chapel dedicated to Shetland’s patron saint, St. Ninian of Galloway can be found at the end of the causeway, but somehow I missed it. I walked to the isle and up a bit, but decided to return another time for the circular walk as it was already late in the day.

But under the chapel, there were already older buildings, Neolithic graves have been found under the (former) floor of the chapel.

In 1958, an excavation found a hoard of 8th century silver in the chapel grounds under a stone slab in a wooden box, which caused a renewed archaeological interest in the island. (St. Ninian´s Isle)

28 Pictish silver objects and the jaw bone of a porpoise were buried under a cross-marked slab close to the altar. It might have been buried there to hide it or stolen from a Viking raid. The remains of a pre-Norse chapel were also found.

Shetland was formed after the glacial times,

Spits, bars and ayres or tombolos are characteristic of the inner coast and voes of Shetland. They are typical of submerging coastlines. Today in Shetland you are never more than 5km from the sea but it wasn’t always like this. During glacial times, a large amount of water was locked away as ice, making sea levels considerably lower. Only when the ice began to melt some 12,000 years ago did the seas begin to rise. (Shetland Heritage)

Much of Shetland was flooded as the lower ends drowned in the sea and the many sea inlets, the ‘voes’ now so characteristic for Shetland, were formed. It was also the rising sea levels that formed the causeways and stunning sandy beaches.

It doesn´t get dark in Shetland in the summer, it was late evening already and after a short break on this bench, it was time to go home for the day.

11/11/2021
Sumburgh Head

My very first excursion brought me to Sumburgh Head and the lighthouses, which was actually due to missing the turn to Jarlshof, but I didn´t mind.

Sumburgh Head is the southern tip of Shetland, has 100 m high cliffs, two lighthouses (you could rent the big one), lots of sheep and wildflowers, stunning views and is a bird nature reserve.

I was so excited about the smell of the sea, the views and all the sheep that I forgot to watch out for Puffins, I have to do that at my next stay if we both visit at the same time.

Steep cliffs at Sumburgh Head support a large seabird colony, with each seabird species occupying different areas of the cliff. The sandy soils of the cliff tops are perfect for puffins to dig their burrows, and lots of passerines such as twites, wrens and rock pipits use the stone dykes, rocky cliff face and grassy cliff tops for nesting and feeding. (Rspb.com)

It was a lovely little walk around the head and my first encounter with lots of different birds. Over the next weeks, I started to get to know the names and different species. From the tiny storm petrels to shags and many more. Seeing puffins, later on, was definitely a highlight.

Nearby Sumburgh Head is Sumburgh Airport, one actually has to cross the landing strip to go to Jarlshof and Sumburgh Head. It is a bit of a different junction than usually.

And right next to the airport was my very first beach with Caribbean feeling, white sands and turquoise water, just a bit loud due to all the helicopters landing and flying.

14/09/2021