Shetland Islands, Scotland
Soaring gannets surrounded the ship as we cruised through the swell off the cliffs of Ness. Fulmars were also in abundance, the windy seas making the perfect conditions for their effortless soaring. The cliffs were clearly covered in birds sitting on nests and eggs. Looking through binoculars it was obvious that most of the white on the cliff was the white of gannet feathers. One last look from those who had woken up early to get a good look and we continued on to the Isle of Mousa.
Here we anchored off the rocky shore and spent some time deciding if the weather conditions would allow us to board the Zodiacs and then to land. The decision was made to go for it. Adventurous guests dropped into the boats on the surging seas and made their way ashore at the base of the broch. The broch at forty feet high is one of the best preserved brochs in the area. Built around 100 BC by the Picts, it is a wonder that they were able to build with such ingenuity and thought. Getting out of the Zodiacs at the ship was also an adventure that some found rather exciting.
The afternoon found us docking in Lerwick, the capital of Shetland. Tours immediately departed in the cool air for various parts of the island. Most went to Sumburgh Head to view the nesting puffins, kittiwakes, and guillemots. Guillemots gathered in large groups near to the base of the cliff. Guests looked down on the birds from high above. A few puffins were spotted as well, standing nobly outside of their burrows. This tour ended with a long seaside walk through fields and over hedgerows to the amazing site of Jarlshof.
Here is a site that was occupied through all of the major periods. An Iron Age wheel house is built next to a Viking settlement which is nearly built over a series of Stone Age dwellings. On top of all of this is the remains of a medieval farmstead. This is an archaeological site that can be walked all around and through. It is interesting to wonder about what each successive people thought when they arrived at the location and decided to build there. Was anyone there living in the previous dwellings when they arrived? Or had the former layers of buildings already been abandoned or mostly buried by sands and grasses?
Still others from the National Geographic Explorer decided that a walk around Lerwick was the best way to spend their afternoon. This ended at the very interesting and surprising Shetland Museum and Archives. An excellent museum full of information on the entire history of the Shetland Islands, from the ice age to present, it was fascinating to walk through and very well put together.
Finally, our long day was through and the ship got underway, this time heading out across a bit of open water for the Faroe Islands.
