Into the Midnight Sun: Shetland Islands of Scotland, Part 1
Sep 8, 2020 17:22:49 #
On day 10 of our cruise we docked in the port of Lerwick Scotland in the Shetland Islands.
The Shetland Islands, formerly Zetland, is a subarctic archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated in the Northern Atlantic, between Great Britain, the Faroe Islands and Norway.
The islands lie some 80 km (50 mi) to the northeast of Orkney (our next port call), 170 km (110 mi) from the Scottish mainland and 300 km (190 mi) west of Norway. They form part of the division between the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the North Sea to the east. The total area is 1,466 km2 (566 sq mi), and the population totalled 22,920 in 2019. The islands comprise the Shetland constituency of the Scottish Parliament. The local authority, Shetland Islands Council, is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. The islands' administrative centre and only burgh is Lerwick, which has been the capital of Shetland since taking over from Scalloway in 1708.
The largest island, known as "Mainland", has an area of 967 km2 (373 sq mi), making it the third-largest Scottish island and the fifth-largest of the British Isles. There are an additional 15 inhabited islands. The archipelago has an oceanic climate, a complex geology, a rugged coastline and many low, rolling hills.
Humans have lived in Shetland since the Mesolithic period. The early historic period was dominated by Scandinavian influences, especially from Norway. The islands became part of Scotland in the 15th century. When Scotland became part of the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707, trade with northern Europe decreased. Fishing continues to be an important aspect of the economy up to the present day. The discovery of North Sea oil in the 1970s significantly boosted Shetland's economy, employment and public sector revenues.
The local way of life reflects the Scottish and Norse heritage of the isles, including the Up Helly Aa fire festival and a strong musical tradition, especially the traditional fiddle style. The islands have produced a variety of writers of prose and poetry, often in the distinct Shetland dialect of the Scots language. There are numerous areas set aside to protect the local fauna and flora, including a number of important sea bird nesting sites. The Shetland pony and Shetland Sheepdog are two well-known Shetland animal breeds. Other local breeds include the Shetland sheep, cow, goose, and duck. The Shetland pig, or grice, has been extinct since about 1930.
The islands' motto, which appears on the Council's coat of arms, is "Með lögum skal land byggja". The Old Norse origin of this phrase is likely from the Norwegian provincial laws, such as the Frostathing Law. It is also mentioned in Njáls saga, and means "By law shall land be built".
There were several tours to chose from, including one that had a stop to see Shetland Ponies. We chose a 4 hour excursion called “The Rugged Beauty of the North” and were very happy that we did.
This first of 5 sets of photos covers our sail into the port of Lerwick. As will be seen, we continued to have excellent weather for this part of the world. Photos 5-7 show the boat that delivered the pilot to guide us into the dock. All of the photos were taken using my Canon 80D with the EF-S 18-135 lens. The previous part of our journey was posted at https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-663404-1.html
These are best viewed in download.
The Shetland Islands, formerly Zetland, is a subarctic archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated in the Northern Atlantic, between Great Britain, the Faroe Islands and Norway.
The islands lie some 80 km (50 mi) to the northeast of Orkney (our next port call), 170 km (110 mi) from the Scottish mainland and 300 km (190 mi) west of Norway. They form part of the division between the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the North Sea to the east. The total area is 1,466 km2 (566 sq mi), and the population totalled 22,920 in 2019. The islands comprise the Shetland constituency of the Scottish Parliament. The local authority, Shetland Islands Council, is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. The islands' administrative centre and only burgh is Lerwick, which has been the capital of Shetland since taking over from Scalloway in 1708.
The largest island, known as "Mainland", has an area of 967 km2 (373 sq mi), making it the third-largest Scottish island and the fifth-largest of the British Isles. There are an additional 15 inhabited islands. The archipelago has an oceanic climate, a complex geology, a rugged coastline and many low, rolling hills.
Humans have lived in Shetland since the Mesolithic period. The early historic period was dominated by Scandinavian influences, especially from Norway. The islands became part of Scotland in the 15th century. When Scotland became part of the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707, trade with northern Europe decreased. Fishing continues to be an important aspect of the economy up to the present day. The discovery of North Sea oil in the 1970s significantly boosted Shetland's economy, employment and public sector revenues.
The local way of life reflects the Scottish and Norse heritage of the isles, including the Up Helly Aa fire festival and a strong musical tradition, especially the traditional fiddle style. The islands have produced a variety of writers of prose and poetry, often in the distinct Shetland dialect of the Scots language. There are numerous areas set aside to protect the local fauna and flora, including a number of important sea bird nesting sites. The Shetland pony and Shetland Sheepdog are two well-known Shetland animal breeds. Other local breeds include the Shetland sheep, cow, goose, and duck. The Shetland pig, or grice, has been extinct since about 1930.
The islands' motto, which appears on the Council's coat of arms, is "Með lögum skal land byggja". The Old Norse origin of this phrase is likely from the Norwegian provincial laws, such as the Frostathing Law. It is also mentioned in Njáls saga, and means "By law shall land be built".
There were several tours to chose from, including one that had a stop to see Shetland Ponies. We chose a 4 hour excursion called “The Rugged Beauty of the North” and were very happy that we did.
This first of 5 sets of photos covers our sail into the port of Lerwick. As will be seen, we continued to have excellent weather for this part of the world. Photos 5-7 show the boat that delivered the pilot to guide us into the dock. All of the photos were taken using my Canon 80D with the EF-S 18-135 lens. The previous part of our journey was posted at https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-663404-1.html
These are best viewed in download.
Sep 8, 2020 17:54:24 #
Sep 8, 2020 18:04:48 #
Sep 8, 2020 18:29:30 #
Another great set Dennis. We loved the Netflx series "Shetland" and I'm looking forward to seeing more.
Sep 8, 2020 21:50:57 #
Sep 8, 2020 21:54:00 #
Daryl New wrote:
Great shots,looks lonely....
Thank you Daryl. It is a pretty remote part of the UK. Later in this series I have some photos from our walk around Lerwick. I note you are from New Zealand; I'm in the early stages of planning for about a 3 week drive around your country and really looking forward to it.
Sep 8, 2020 21:55:53 #
srfmhg wrote:
Another great set Dennis. We loved the Netflx series "Shetland" and I'm looking forward to seeing more.
Thank you Mark, I've got 4 more sets from the island. I'll have to check out the Netflix series.
Sep 9, 2020 07:14:43 #
COLANN
Loc: Pahiatua Tararua New Zealand
Top photos and good info, I see you said that you intend to come to New Zealand and do a three week drive tour. I am sure you will like that but , try and take longer than three weeks , I live in NZ and even though it is a small country you will be realy pushing it to see it in just 21days, try for 2weeks on both the North and South Islands, I live in a small town called Pahiatua. which is around 40k from Palmerston North, or about 170k north of Wellington, have also lived in Dunedin and Auckland, so know the country reasonably well, If you need any info on NZ get in touch and i will help if possible,.Colin
Sep 9, 2020 11:04:05 #
COLANN wrote:
Top photos and good info, I see you said that you ... (show quote)
Thank you Colin, I'm glad you enjoyed my photos.
Also, thank you for your offer. I teach at a local university and am off from just before Christmas until the spring semester, which starts around January 25, so that is my travel window (other than our summer, your winter). We could stretch it a bit and be gone from maybe 12/27- 1/23. I'll PM you when I get a little farther along on the trip planning. Our original thought was a 2 week Australia-New Zealand cruise, but after doing some research, I realized that would not be enough of New Zealand.
Sep 9, 2020 22:36:52 #
Sep 10, 2020 00:16:58 #
David in Dallas wrote:
I'm enjoying your photos of your travels.
Thank you David, I'm glad you are enjoying my photos. It was an amazing trip.
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