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Published: February 13th 2007
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Old Man of Hoy
450 feet high it is the tallest sea stack in Britian. Getting up at 6:30am, we skipped breakfast Wednesday so as not to miss the NorthLink Ferry in Scrabster to the Orkney Islands. The ride took 90 minutes and was also a car ferry. It was chilly out but amazingly no rain. To our right, the rock stack of the Old Man of Hoy was visible to us. It is the tallest stack in Britian at 450 feet high. Getting nearer to Stromness, we saw a few lighthouses. Approximately 70 islands make up Orkney, with only 16 being inhabited and most of the population living in Stromness or Kirkwall.
Once we got off the ferry, we drove west to Skara Brae which is known as the "best preserved Neolithic village in Europe". It was uncovered by a huge storm in 1850 and is stone built with 8 dwellings. It dates back to 3100 BC and was occupied for 600 years. This was such an amazing site and had lots to see as I took many pictures. The visitor cantre had displays and right outside was a re-created house. A path with a stone timeline led to Skail Bay and Skara Brae. Tourists were not allowed in the real houses but paths
Holborn Lighthouse
Leaving on the ferry, on the way to Orkney. went around them and we were able to look down upon them and see the stone furnishings. All were roofless and the best one had a protective covering. A joint ticket let us also see Skail House, a large mansion dating back to 1615, although what we saw was from the 1950's.
Yesnaby had spectacular cliffs and a rocky coastline. We climbed on the rocks and walked the cliff path with windy weather but relatively warm. There was only a handful of people walking around. The Stones of Stenness are the remains of a stone circle dating back to 2500 BC. There are only 4 of the original 12 stones left standing, with the tallest one at 19 feet high. We were the only people here. Not far away is the Ring of Brodgar, another stone circle surrounded by a ditch. This one dates back between 2500 BC and 2000 BC and 36 of 60 original stones are left standing. One was split by lightning and had a marker. The Heather was in bloom so the stones made for some pretty pictures. After touring, it was time for us to check in at Bella Vista B&B in Kirkwall for
Stromness
As the ferry was approaching, we got great views of the mainland of Orkney. 2 nights. We were next to the water and it was a lovely place. We ate at Buster's that had delicious Mexican food! It did not get dark until 10:30pm.
We explored more of the island Thursday morning heading south to St. Magnus Cathedral. It was reddish in color because of the sandstone that was used. It had beautifully painted windows and high ceilings. We were looking to find a bathroom and walked down a side street and found a public one but there was an attendant charging a fee and we said "no thanks" and walked away. I just don't think a fee shouls be pain to use a bathroom. It was a beautiful day for walking and touring, probably the best weather we had in the 28 days we were here and we were further north! We toured Bishop's and Earl's Palace which are across from the cathedral. Both are ruined and Earl's Palace is larger with more to explore. It was built in 1607 and used until 1688 and then went into ruin. The walls and ground floors are intact but roofless. From the top we saw people on teams that looked to be bowling. They
Skara Brae
Best preserved Neplithic village in Europe with Skail Bay in the background. were older but having a good time hooting and hollering. Bishop's Palace was built in 1150 then went into ruins after being left for Earl's Palace in 1607. It is smaller and has a tower called Bishop Reid Tower that had wonderful views of St. Magnus Cathedral and Kirkwall.
Southeast we drove across the 4 Churchill Barriers that were opened in 1945 to link the islands of the mainland and South Ronaldsay. We stopped and took pictures of the sunken ships. We saw a little white chapel, stopped and went inside. It's called the Italian Chapel and was built in 1943 by Italian POWS. The interior was very pretty even without furniture. Outside was a statue of St. George killing a dragon. Further south we made a stop at St Margaret's Hope in South Ronaldsay. We walked around and on our way back to the mainland, we were crossing one of the barriers, when I spotted something jumping out of the water. We found out they were Red Nosed Purpoises! There was a few of them and we spent about half an hour here.
I wanted to see Maes Howe and Suzi wanted to find pottery, so we
Skara Brae
This was the best preserved house that had a protective covering. split up for the first time on this trip. Maes Howe is older than the Egyptian Pyramids and built around 2800 BC and is believed to be used as a calender. It was a guided tour and it was across the road from the visitor centre with a path and the guide met the group in front. We went inside the 9m long passageway and it was tall enough to be able to stand up straight. There was a lot of graffiti carved into the walls from the Vikings, including a picture of a carved lion. Suzi picked me up and we took the A966, heading north along the coast taking in the sites of a lighthouse and the Brough of Birsay in the distance. These can only be visited during a couple of hours of low tide. We didn't chance it. We also drove past Earl's Palace of Birsay; not to be confused with the other Earl's Palace in Kirkwall.
We had dinner at the Albert Hotel with Mexican food again. We didn't go out but we saw a beautiful sunset from our B&B. We were up at 8am the next morning and talked to our hostess before
Skara Brae
The ouside of the houses, all built of stone. setting off for Stromness to catch the ferry back to Scrabster. I was hoping to get better pictures of the Old Man of Hoy since it was another beautiful clear day. Wouldn't you know the only time it was foggy was when we passed by it! Oh well.
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