Orkney and Neolithic Remains

 Far and Away is officially in the North Sea! We had an easy crossing to the salty town of Stromness. Our first day there we rented bikes and traveled to some of the Neolithic sites nearby. Neolithic means the late Stone Age period, 10,000 BC to 1,200 BC. Orkney is very fertile even though it is far north so people were attracted to this area a long time ago. On the way to the first site we stopped and walked along some cliffs to a couple of sea stacks.

We picnicked by the edge and watched the guillemots coming and going.

Then we popped back on our bikes and traveled a few miles up the coast past many, many sleek, heavy cows to Skara Brae. In the 1800’s a storm washed away some dunes, exposing a beautifully preserved village from the Neolithic era. Luckily, the laird who owned the property was interested in history. He called in knowledgeable people who knew what they were doing so the site wasn’t destroyed.

Each home had a central hearth.

The trash middens gave a good picture of what they ate and harvested. Lots of limpets!

Each round house was connected to others by covered passageways.

They had these structures opposite the entry that historians call dressers but no one really knows what they were used for.

The boxes with stone slab side walls were beds that they believed were filled with grasses and skins for warmth.

The walls were beautifully made. Hard to believe they are 4,000 years old. Despite no written record, one got a sense of the people who lived here so long ago.

This figure was found there. A toy? Religious object? These people had time to decorate and create. 

After visiting the site we wandered through the manor house, owned by the laird who wanted to preserve Skara Brae. It too gave a good depiction of family life of the wealthy. The house was lived in full time until the sixties.

Next stop on our bike tour was an isthmus separating two lochs. There were two sets of standing stones and a huge archeological dig going on.

No one knows why the ancient people cut the stones with angles.

This is The Ring of Brodar, considered one of the largest and best preserved circles - although I’ve never seen Stonehenge to compare. Perhaps a henge is a different category.

This is a stone from The Stones of Stenness, the remains of one of the oldest rings - 5,000 years old! In the 1800’s a farmer leased the field and he was tired of plowing around the stones so he started to take them down! Even back then the neighbors realized that wasn’t a good idea so they stopped him. They even tried to burn his house down twice. I was surprised how thin this stone was. They say they aren’t dug in very deep.

This is the excavation called The Ness of Brodgar. They have been at it for 30 years and now have so many artifacts and data that they are going to cover it up at the end of this summer to preserve it while they take the time to analyze the information they have collected.

This massive collection of buildings seems to be ceremonial because they haven’t found any homes. They are built around various standing stones. Looking at this site created many unanswered questions!

Once again, beautiful stone work. This corner is an obtuse angle, not just a plain 90 degree angle.

Northern Scotland and Rounding Cape Wrath

After our pleasant time in the Outer Hebrides we crossed back to mainland Scotland and anchored a cozy anchorage named Loch Roe. The seals were particularly fond of the peaceful spot. We had a spectacular calm morning.

Nico bravely went swimming to change the zinc. 

Soon the wind came up and we had a brisk sail (wind on the nose, 20 knots and swell) further up the coast to Badcall Bay. It wasn’t a bad call - it was out of the wind!

The next day we rounded  the infamous Cape Wrath, which is named that for a reason! We, however, carefully picked the weather and the tides and it was not so formidable. I still wouldn’t want to be there in bad weather! Just as we were maneuvering through some lumpy tide rips with the headland looming above us, Nico’s phone rang. Hands full at the moment, we ignored it. As soon as things calmed down we saw the call was from Phoebe. Calling her back we found out the delightful news that Zac had proposed! I’ll never forget where we were when we heard. 2025 is going to be a great year!

Now we were on the dramatic north coast. We went way down Loch Eribol where at the end of WW II thirty German U boats surrendered and they took off the weapons, dropping them to the bottom of the deep loch. English warships hung out there and the crewmen would write the ship’s names on the hillsides with rocks. One of the ships, the Hood, was sunk by the Bismarck in May of 1941. Out of 1418 men on board, only three survived. The local schoolchildren paint the rocks of  the Hood in remembrance.

Our anchorage was behind an old lime kiln.

The Outer Hebrides

 The Outer Hebrides are a chain of 15 inhabited islands and about 50 uninhabited ones to the west of northern Scotland. The most well known islands are Harris (Harris Tweed) and Lewis. We set sail from the lovely island of Rona (population 4) off of Skye, where we spent several days in Portree, and headed across, landing in North Uist. We worked our way north, visiting Taransay, Tarbert, Scalpay and then Stornoway. These islands are known for their gorgeous white sandy beaches and turquoise waters. It may look like the Bahamas but it certainly didn’t feel tropical! They are also known for their connection to the land and sea, for generations. The further north we went the more impressed we were with their seamanship in such a challenging area. They are able and tough.

The colorful harbor of Portree on Skye

We like to help out the local economy

The lovely, protected harbor on Rona. There are two caretakers and their wives who live there full time. We invited one couple over to the boat for a drink after the wife mentioned it had been a very quiet winter. He manages the deer herd for the owner of the island. We bought some delicious venison from them.

The landing

The entrance. There used to be two villages on the island until the laird kicked everyone off - the old story all over Scotland. 

A tremendous waterfall as we passed the north end of Skye.

I wish there was a boat to give perspective. The height is mind boggling.

Now we are on the Atlantic side of the Hebrides. It looks like my pictures from the Bahamas! This is the island of Taransay, once a thriving community and now uninhabited.

This is the busy town of Stornoway, known for its fishing boats, lifesaving boat and Coast Guard. It is also known as the place where King Charles was given a drink as an underage sea cadet, causing a huge media fuss.

I thought the town had a slight Scandinavian feel.

They get some pretty bad weather up here. The Royal Life Saving Society often gets called out on a January night during a gale to help out some poor mariner. This boat would be a sight for sore eyes if you needed assistance.

The castle was closed for a wedding but we did get to see a bunch of guys in their dress kilts and we were able to go to the attached museum of Hebridean culture. 

We also got to see more of the Lewis Chessmen. We saw some of the set in Edinburgh last summer at the National Museum. They were uncovered in a sand dune on the island of Lewis. The pieces were carved in Norway in the 12th century and I just love their expressions!

The harbor in Stornoway had quite a collection of serious sailing boats from around Europe. We met two men from the Faroe Islands and invited them over. We learned all about life in the Faroes, a country of 54,000 people and a lot of puffins. They have tunnels connecting some of the islands, one even has a roundabout under the water! They couldn’t understand the interest in viewing puffins. One of the men, whose name I can’t even begin to pronounce or spell, said “we just eat them”. I have to say he even looked like a Viking.

Certainly not the Bahamas!