Shetland Wool Week .. pt 5 .. Yell, Tablet Weaving, and Salt House

This morning, I dropped A and a fellow “wool weeker” at North Noss Public Hall on Yell – before heading out for a rain blasted day attempting to explore some of Yell’s archaeological remains. I stopped first at Old Haa Museum  enjoyed the exhibits and nursed coffee and cake as the rain lashed in from the north east.

Following the gist of tours laid out in Fojut, N. (1993) [see reference below], I punctuated my journey at the road heads for several brochs on the east side of the island. At the first stop the rain was so heavy I declined to leave the car. At the second and third stop I did not feel at all welcome as a tourist. Several strategically placed fences (all at deer fence height) and hugging the road so tightly they prevented me from both parking and accessing the second site without a long walk in from elsewhere in the rain. At the third stop the road ended at a croft and several sheep folds.

Here, there was room to park without obstruction, but I would have felt uncomfortable walking through the small folds. My discomfort was heightened when a Hi Lux pulled in and the driver so obviously letting me know he was “checking me out” before turning around and driving straight back up the road. Bollocks to that, I was clearly unwelcome, the vibe being so uncomfortable I could almost hear the banjos playing on the bitter wind.

I plugged Brechon Sands into the sat-nav and headed north and west. Parking at the road head, the local crofter welcomed me with a cheery hello and relieved I set out on the short walk to the beach.

The archaeological remains in the dunes were extensive, cluttered, and apparently comprising of Viking, Pictish, prehistoric, and more modern remains. The remains completely defied my amateur attempts at distinguishing anything about them other than the more obvious stone clearances of the field systems.

Returning to North Noss I was pleased to see that A and her colleague had had a rather more productive and enjoyable day crafting.

We caught up on each other’s day over a pint or two at The Noost, before heading to Mareel for the excellent Salt House It was a cracking end to the day.

Shetland Wool Week .. pt 4 .. Bressay .. a handful of seals and a souterrain

After a relaxing start to the day, we headed to the Bressay Ferry terminal for the 12:00PM crossing. At the jetty I noticed and orange “football” floating around the foot of the jetty. Then it flexed, and suckered legs appeared propelling along the ironworks. It was our first ever encounter with an octopus, and it was extremely exciting. The camera being stowed in my rucksack – we were unable to get a photograph before it swam further away and into dark water.

As we crossed to Bressay, I did a search of Octopus species to be found in UK waters, and both Curled Octopus (Elodine cirrhosa) and Common Octopus (Octopus vulgaris) seemed potential candidates based on our briefest of views. This evening, I referred to the hive mind on the Shetland Birds and Wildlife FB group, and Curled Octopus was put forward as the most likely, as it has the most northerly distribution.

Walking past Bressay Marina Harbour we noted 3 Grey Seal (Halichoerus grypus) and two Common Seal (Phoca vitulina) hauled out on the rocks, whilst a fourth Grey Seal corked in deeper water.

Grey Seal, Bressay Marina

Common Seal, Bressay Marina 

Following Uphouse Road, up and over, we turned downhill to the Loch of Brough. From the open moorland came the calls of Red Grouse (Lagopus scotia), and as we turned our attention towards the source, a covey flushed away from us. Turning to follow the track along the side of the Loch, we disturbed a couple more small groups of grouse.

Red Grouse

Our destination was the souterrain [Fogou] at Wadbister; the former an underground passage dating to Bronze Age; the latter an abandoned mediaeval settlement. Having found the entrance to the underground chamber, I climbed through the short narrow remains of the passageway and sat inside for a while. Using the phone torch to explore the very cramped interior, I noted the repurposed quern stone in the dry-stone walls.

Wadbister settlement

entrance to the souterrain

inside - note the repurposed quern
on the left of the picture

looking out / looking in

looking in / looking out

Exploring the remaining structures of the mediaeval settlement we saw our first Shetland Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes zetlandicus) of the trip. Returning to the Bressay Ferry terminal we noted the non-native Monkeyflower (Mimulus guttatus) flowering in the wet ditch alongside the Uphouse Road.

Seep Monkeyflower, Uphouse Road

Back on mainland the short walk back to The Watchmakers, was punctuated with respite at both The Noost and The Lounge.

Shetland Wool Week .. pt 3 .. a croft visit and St Ninian's Isle ..

We have enjoyed a really engaging visit to West Lynne Croft, run by Cecil and Sue Tait – Cecil is a sixth generation Shetlander living in Ireland, whose family originally arrived on Mainland because of the highland clearances. Along with the sheep and the wool making – the working croft is also the location of Paparwark Furniture and we were shown around the workshop by the young apprentice to the craft.

Both of us were completely captivated by the pair of working sheepdogs - Ness and Bell, who rounded up the flock with only the briefest of commands from Cecil. A joy to watch.

After the Croft, we took lunch overlooking the tombola linking St Ninian’s Isle to mainland. As we ate, we were entertained by three Northern Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe) fly-catching from a large rock below us. White Wagtail (Motacilla alba) passage migrants no doubt heading back from Iceland were also on the wing.

On the tombola itself distant waders flushed as walkers or their dogs intruded on their strandline forage.

Walking across the thin stretch of white sand the waders’ identities were clarified, Dunlin (Calidris alpina), Sanderling (Calidris alba), Ringed Plover (Charadrius hiaticula), a Redshank (Tringa totanus), Turnstone (Arenaria interpres), and a single Black-tailed Godwit (Limosa limosa) following the tide line pickings.

At St Ninian’s Kirk we congratulated a couple who announced that they had just got engaged – he proposing as they explored the sacred site. It was a touching moment.

Approaching the “well” we got distracted by the marginal and aquatic plants in the seeps and drains. Encountering a new plant to both of us: Montia arvensis ... colloquially known as Blinks.

Blinks

Water Forget-Me-Not (Myosotis scorpioides)

Marsh Willowherb (Epilobium paluster)

Bulbous Rush (Juncus bulbosus)

Lesser Spearwort (Ranunculus flammula)

Broad-leaved Pondweed
(Potamogeton natans)

Marsh Bedstraw (Galium palustre)

Crossing back to mainland on the tombola our eyes were drawn to the wreck of jellyfish (Aequora vitrina) and a couple of dead Gannet (Morus bassanus) of the latter we worried that they might be an indication of Avian Bird-flu?

Northern Gannet - deceased

Aequora vitrina

Returning to Lerwick we grabbed a couple of pints at The Noost Bar followed by a swift a pint of 60O North at The Lounge Bar. Although welcoming, the latter watering hole was somewhat tired and the few local customers all very much the worse for wear, despite the time of day.

Back at the cottage, we’ve broken the seal on the Shetland Reel and I’m sampling the Tushkar Oatmeal Stout brewed by The Lerwick Brewery so perhaps I should not be too judgemental?