Ferries, Shetland, knitting!

Driving to Aberdeen the weather closed in and we wondered what would be in store for us as we headed as far north as we have been in the UK. We’ve only had one day of rain in the whole 6 weeks or so of travelling. We had expected more, particularly at our next destination, but wind and rain weren't ideal for the next bit of the journey. 

As we boarded the Northlink ferry the rain stopped but the wind kept blowing, so we took the seasickness tablets and settled into our cabin before heading to Magnus’ lounge. We’ve learnt that the lounges are a great way to travel on ferries. They are much quieter areas to sit in, usually have free snacks and soft/hot drinks and although cost more, are often good value. This one didn’t disappoint. With free hot drinks and a selection of cold drinks, incredibly delicious biscuits, fruit and some Scottish Tablet, it served us well. We could also order our evening meal in there and have table service rather than having to head to the busy restaurant.

Despite our concerns the crossing was calm and after a reasonable (ish - OK poor) night's sleep we drove off the ferry into Lerwick, Shetland. The sun was shining, the wind was calm and the view ( fairly quickly after leaving the ferry port) was stunning. We had a few hours before we could check into our campsite, so as advised by fellow Magnus’ lounge passengers who visited often, headed to Tesco to park up, get food in the local restaurant and have a short nap - the very best thing about taking your home with you as you travel! The view was beautiful and the cafe full of locals, so clearly an excellent choice. Not a bad way to start the pinnacle of our trip.

We’d talked about visiting Shetland  a few years ago when we visited the Hebrides but it had taken a bit of time to actually get here. It’s a long way from home , and couldn’t be more different in many ways. The Shetland isles are about level with Bergen in Norway,  isolated in the North sea, high up above the very north of mainland Scotland. We’d anticipated rain, cold and strong winds. Not many trees grow on Shetland and it rarely gets about about 15 degrees. How wrong could we be? 

The view most days from our beautiful campsite was stunning, we had blue skies during the day and  clear starry nights ( but no Aurora). We had the warmest of welcomes that matched the temperature at Scalloway campsite with Janet bringing us a welcome bag of tea and biscuits, and showing us round the amazing facilities. The little hub had a free washing machine and dryer (unheard of in campsites) A washing line(even more exciting!) a microwave and fridge as well as other cooking supplies for tent campers. The hub was warm, with hot showers and immaculately clean facilities. An absolute joy to stay at.

Our main reason for wanting to visit Shetland was the history and scenery, as you know by now, we love both of these things, so this was a perfect location. It’s hard to describe the beauty of Shetland. Every corner brings a new gasp, we found ourselves constantly saying wow, look at that. It is just stunning.  

On our first full day we headed off to find Stanydale Temple which is about 20 minutes walk from the road over the peat bog. Unfortunately, the sunny weather belied the reality of the previous week's weather. As we set off the ground was solid, as we walked it became a bit ’spongy’, but we could hop from heather tuft to heather tuft. Having climbed over a style and jumping down, we realised that maybe full on waterproof walking boots might have been a better idea. One squelch later and our feet were cold, wet and mucky! Hey ho, it was worth the walk!

This definitely felt isolated and as Ian headed back to the van with much wetter feet then mine, I had the place to myself. It felt calming, and somehow I could feel the power of history in the stones. It was wonderful - if wet of foot. 

 Luckily with all our belongings with us we were able to change our shoes and socks, get warm and head off along one of the many single track roads across the island. Interestingly, the quality of road surface on Shetland was significantly better than the vast majority of the rest of our UK trip. I don’t think I have mentioned how incredibly poor the roads have been! That oil money is being put to use!

Two of the things I had read about before visiting, apart from historical sites, were food related and we managed to visit both! The first being a cake fridge. Yes a cake fridge! Cake fridges started a long time ago when local people had surplus food or cake and popped it out in a box on the roadside and people left a donation and helped themselves. Many are not actual fridges ( the usual ambient temperature  is cold enough I suspect) but the  Cake Fridge we found actually is a fridge, and now has a cafe attached, but my feeling was the only way to properly experience it was to use the fridge and leave my payment in the honesty box. I have to say, the cake (rocky road for me) was delicious and great value.

I’d also read about (and was advised to visit by our fellow ferry passengers) the award winning Frankie’s fish and chip shop. We were told it was essential to book as it was usually full and they could run out, but having seen it wasn't far from us one day we decided to pop in on the off chance mid afternoon, having not had lunch, and were in luck! Ian tells me it was probably the best fish and chips he’s ever had, and my sausage and chips was fabulous. Well worth a visit!

We did have one disappointing day where we tried really hard to get to Unst, one of the more northern Shetland islands. I’d read it was well worth visiting with lots of Viking history, but we were defeated… To get to Unst, you need to drive to north east mainland Shetland, then get a ferry to the island of Yell. This bit went well, we had a stunning drive, got the ferry and disembarked, driving north on Yell ( which was absolutely desolate) to the next ferry terminal in Gutcher. We arrived in plenty of time for the next ferry and they were due every 30 minutes, so we felt confident. How wrong we were. We watched a ferry arrive, everyone got off, and we waited. And waited. And waited. People were restless, the ferry just sat there, empty, with a queue growing and the staff just standing around, not sharing any information about what was happening. About an hour later, the staff started boarding the ferry, but we didn’t manage to get on.

They then informed us the next ferry was a couple of hours away (with no explanation why). For us, this meant we just couldn't risk waiting and going on the next available ferry.  If we were to go, we wanted enough time to see everything, but also to get back to our campsite again. If they could cancel these ferries, they could cancel the ferries back too. So we turned around and headed off to find some lunch on Yell. Unfortunately we couldn’t find a cafe on the whole island open, but we did find a little shop with some fresh bread, so sarnies in Agy it was before returning to the main island, stopping off at the Shetland Textile museum.

This is a tiny museum situated in the Bod of Gremista and focussed on Shetland textiles, specifically knitting and Shetland lace knitting. Volunteers are happy to teach you new knitting techniques and  encourage you to stitch a few rows on the extra long scarf that has been created by visitors over many years. Mum would have loved it, but as a non knitter, sadly I couldn’t contribute.

As we reached the halfway point in our trip I realised I haven’t mentioned ponies. Of course there are lots of Shetland ponies.. So here’s a friendly one that came over to say hello as I sat on the wall taking in the scenery.

Is this a dagger which I see before me?

Leaving England we paused not far from Perth for a night before heading to a small campsite not far from somewhere I’d heard about during my O’Level English lessons. As my love of Shakespeare formed, Glamis became one of the places I had heard about, but had no idea it was a real place! So just to confirm, it is! I'm not a Royal fan, so I had no idea about their connection until researching our visit… 

As we took a tour of the castle we learnt about the Royal history of the castle but for me, hearing about the friendship ( or more likely, more of a  useful relationship) between Shakespeare and the Laird.

We learnt that Shakespeare  was hoping to gain favour with the king, and thought that the Laird could help him with this by offering to set his new play (Macbeth) at Glamis, making himself the Thane of Glamis, in exchange for a good word. 

It is thought Shakespeare visited fairly often, and I’m glad he did, as it led to a fascinating visit, at a stunning location.

The Castle is still a family home, but is open for visitors with guided tours of the house and beautiful gardens. It really feels like a storybook castle.

The Shakespeare trail, carvings made from fallen trees in the woodland, is beautiful and well worth the quick detour from the main path through the gardens.

The whole site is simply stunning, with a walled Garden full of flowers planted to attract wildlife, and chickens and vegetables to supply the restaurant.

I know it’s a long way north, but if you can make the trip, I highly recommend it!   

Our next stop as we travelled north took us to Montrose, and the Air station heritage museum, another absolutely hidden gem!

The air station was the first operational military air station in Great Britain when it was established in 1913. It tells the story of the people who worked there until 1952 when it closed for the last time.

The sheds, based on the airfield house a room replicating a wartime home, as well as workshops and a lot of aircraft! 

They also do a lot of work in encouraging children to take up STEM subjects with small activities for children in the middle of the aircraft.

The star of the show (for me) was the Tornado GR4 that was flown by the RAF from 1980 to 2019. It is huge! Interestingly, this particular aircraft was flown by Ewan McGregor’s brother Colin (nickname Obi Two).