“Shetland has always been a place of sanctuary for me. It’s a bleak but very beautiful place.” – Ann Cleeves
Big day today – Mousa. One of the essential trips if you visit Shetland, that somehow I’d never managed to organise a visit to.
Before we’d even set off there was excitement! The talk was of Orcas in the area and as we arrived in Sandwick we marvelled as fins and black shadows appeared and passed by, along with a legion of binocular-attached fans and tourists. We then took The Mousa Boat across to the island, a relatively short passenger-only trip that lands on the south side. The journey in itself is beautiful, providing opportunities to see a range of seabirds and porpoises.
Whilst I’m not naturally a bird person, I’ve been converted over the years in Shetland, ever since I first saw puffins at Sumburgh back in 2015. Mousa gave the opportunity to view a whole host of sea birds, and the guide provided by the boat crew from the RSPCA was a great help in identifying many of them. I even saw a storm petrel chick – stunning.
Going around the island we visited Mousa Broch, a place that has been on my hit list for a number of years and my main reason for visiting. Thought to have been constructed around 300BC this incredibly preserved building still had a winding staircase around the edge and has awesome views from the top. The top is high, around 13 metres, visible from the mainland, but even more spectacular up close. A great day visiting an amazing place.
Far too many photos taken today managed to choose 12views but there are more I love saved for future bits and bobs.
Shetlandic word of the day: FOOL – bird
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