Category: Shetland Islands
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42. Day Ten in Shetland: Bum Knee & Funky Weather in Foula, Packing Up
Again with the knee I was. It was a grey day, and very windy, so didn’t have huge regrets. I was SO grateful to have had my excellent first day on Foula. I was content to spend another day indoors, with a bit of a walk to capture the ocean and Gaada Stack. My friend…
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41. Day Eight in Shetland: A Short Flight to Foula, Many Puffins, Dinner and a Sunset
When I was making my plans for Shetland back in fall of 2021, I had a big question in my mind: Fair Isle or Foula? These two small islands were attractive in similar ways: remote, lots of birds. Fair Isle has the whole knitting thing, Foula has the really high sea cliffs. Another question was…
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40. Day Seven in Shetland: One Last Day in Hamnavoe and Minn Beach
This day was for doing one last bit of exploring in West Burra, on Minn Beach. The day prior, before my petrel adventure, I had gone shopping for groceries for the the three days I would be on the isle of Foula (where there is no shop). They were to be delivered by boat. I…
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39. Day Six in Shetland: Storm Petrels at Mousa Broch
The main event of this day: heading out after sunset with the fine folks of the Mousa Boat to see the storm petrels come in from the sea to nest in the wall of the Mousa Broch. I had heard of this phenomenon before I made my final decision to go to Shetland in June…
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38. Day Five in Shetland: Moar Puffins, Cake Fridge Found, Beach Ramble, and Sunset
My big plan for this day was to be some kayaking, but the guide had to cancel, so I had a whole day to play with. So what does one do? THIS one headed back to Sumburgh to see if any puffins would come out to play! Wandering around the lighthouse area a bit, I…
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36. Day Three in Shetland: Levenwick Beach, Mousa Broch
Long before I left for my trip, even before I had decided to go to Shetland, I had heard of the storm petrels migrating nightly to a broch on a deserted island there. When I started making my plans, I booked a reservation as soon as I could. As the time to leave approached, I…
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35.2. Day Two in Shetland: St. Ninian’s Isle, Tombolo, Cliffs, and Treasure
Because the days are insanely long in Shetland, I had time for a complete second adventure after returning home from Scalloway! This one I drove to, as it was a good 15 miles south. St. Ninian’s is famous for three reasons: the tombolo (swath of sand connecting mainland to island), the beautiful white sands and…
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34. Day One in Shetland: Breakfast in Lerwick, Ancient History in Jarlshof, First Puffin at Sumburgh, Home in Hamnavoe
I woke as we were a little north of Sumburgh — although the ferry feels like it’s chugging along, it does take a while to work its way up the archipeligo. Located on the north side of Commercial Street in Lerwick, the Lodberries were merchant’s private wharfs, extending out into the Bressay Sound, and represent some of…