Category Archives: Something different

My Last Oyster Catcher

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To town again for lunch with an old school friend who was visiting Shetland.

This was the view from our table at Fjarå Café Bar.  Not too shoddy at all. We were looking over Breiwick Bay to Bressay with The Knab on our left.

We nattered for hours about everyone and everything and were eventually told our table was needed for others so had to leave.  How time flew.  We were totally unaware.

Suddenly here was a fierce rain shower and afterwards a beautiful rainbow appeared.

These houses are part of The Knab area of Lerwick.  Obviously today they got the gold

And, after saying good bye to my old school friend, I saw an oystercatcher – probably my last this year.  By now, they should have departed Shetland for warmer shores, but apparently a few stay for the winter (though I have never seen them before).  Maybe this was one of those.  There is something good about seeing an oystercatcher – they are the harbingers of Spring and so that makes me think of warmer days.  It made my heart smile along with talking endlessly about being 16 again in an all-girls’ English boarding school (don’t ask).

And lastly a quick nip down Commercial Street for some easy-to-pack miniature bottles of holiday essentials and I bought a walking stick to make my life easier for the possible 2 hour queue to see the Bayeux Tapestry at The British Museum next Tuesday.

On my way home, I met my sheep shearer who told me that he had just passed a small ginger dog wandering around the road. I drove on, scooped her up and went home  *** sigh ***.

Back to a Normal Saturday

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I took this panoramic photo to show where everyone eats their breakfast.

From right to left, which is also the order I feed them:-

Kolka in the corner, with a touch more food than everyone else so she doesn’t got off to steal Haakon’s.
Haakon, who also has a sachet of boswellia added and is a slow eater.
Iacs – he has his four anti-cancer pills in his food at the top so if he is pushed off his food, at least I know he ate them.
Then Vitamin who eats very quickly. Wolfs it down.  She would only steal from Fivla, if she could.
And lastly Fivla who is possibly the slowest eater in the whole world (Haakon is a close second).

Once everyone has eaten and I have done all the remainder of my chores (put tomorrow’s food on to soak, put the sheep out in their field, swept up the sheep shed), I go back to the horses’ field and collect their buckets to take away and wash.

There was a soft light this morning and Iacs looked particularly nice in it.

He is very much an autumnal chap, I think.

I went inside and made a quick breakfast for myself, and then left the house, much to Pepper’s dismay.

Saturday mornings have gone back to being for Turriefield again.  There was lots of vegetables to weigh, pack and label.

I was particularly taken with the natural fractal geometry of Romanesco broccoli (I had to look that up).

It is extraordinary.  Nature at it’s cleverest.

And back home again just before lunch to my ever-waiting wee dug, Pepper, who has since followed me everywhere ever just in case I wanted to go out again without her.  That’s not happening on her watch.

Setter Farm Trip

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A friend of mine, who is here in Shetland for Wool Week, won a Facebook Like-And-Share “raffle” for a tour of Setter Farm.  She asked if anyone would like to accompany her (this was a few months’ back) and I thought that it sounded very interesting and said yes, please (pick me, pick me!)

There are only two dairy farms in Shetland and Setter Farm is situated in Tingwall (about 5 minutes out of Lerwick). It is the UK’s most northerly dairy farm – dairying has been done at Setter for over 100 years.  As well as cows and calves, they also keep sheep.

So first up, we saw the sheep – these were the Cheviots who, I think, will be going to the sheep sales later this year.

I was fascinated by their expressions and social interactions.

The “hill” Shetlands were in another pen and very mad, alternating between huddling and scattering if they saw anyone.

There was definitely a look of Edna is some of them.  *** sniff ***  Pretty little sheeps.  I wanted to take them all home.

Then we went to look at “the plant”.  Yes please to everything. The folk at Setter Farm also work as agricultural contractors around the islands.

And then we stood to the side of the track and watched the dairy cows come home, which was lovely.

The calves were kept in calf stalls where they had regular buckets of milk and are then weaned onto water and hay.

The cows were munching silage before going back out again for a little while before the evening milking.

I watched them for a long while.  I am very fond of dairy cows. I remember them from my childhood as my step-mother had a dairy farm and my job was to get the stragglers and strays to keep up when we were moving the herd to a different field. Obviously, I was always on horseback and, possibly stupidly, fearless!

I enjoyed my afternoon. Something completely different for me while being totally recognisable and full of childhood memories.

Sørlandet – Oldest Tall Ship in the World

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Ted had an appointment with his hair-dresser’s so I dropped him off and went on to town to get a few things.

It was a lovely calm day and the harbour looked gorgeous.

While I was driving in, I noticed there was a beautiful old ship in port so obviously I had to go an investigate.

She was the Sørlandet, a Norwegian heritage tall ship – the world’s oldest and most authentic fully-rigged ship.

I wandered around on the pier side and admired her beautiful lines and rigging.

From Wikipedia – “Construction on the Sørlandet was started in 1925 at Høivolds Mek shipyard in the city of Kristiansand on the south coast of Norway based on a £25,000 grant from ship owner O.A.T. Skjelbred. Completed on 28 May 1927, she measured 210 feet in length and 577 gross tons. She was given the name Sørlandet after the Norwegian region from where she originates.”

From Sail Training Website – “The objective of the ship’s sailing activities is to offer the general public an experience in traditional life on board a tall ship, as well as maintaining the ship by active use.

Our trainees will be divided into three watches; Port Watch, Midships Watch, and Starboard Watch. The watches work in shifts during the voyage. our sail trainees become a part of the crew onboard the Sorlandet. Everyone will receive training and guidance from our professional crew members regardless of previous experience or knowledge. It is exciting and rewarding to be in charge of the important tasks that are to be solved on board. Trainees get and overview and an understanding of life aboard Sorlandet during the sail. “

While I am not a huge fan of boats, as you may be aware, even I might want to have a go (but only might, mind – boats and me are not a good combination. I would much rather ride a horse!)

Sands of Sound

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Floss and I were an hour early for my hospital appointment yesterday (yes, on a Sunday) so, to fill in time, we went on an expedition.

I have always known there was a small beach in Lerwick but have never been able to find it.

Yesterday, armed with Google maps and Floss to read me the instructions, between us we found the Sands of Sound – a lovely sandy beach quietly tucked away on the south side of Lerwick.  I felt we almost drove through folks’ gardens and backyards to get to it.  But we managed.

There is a small burn that runs onto the beach – the Burn of Sound.

Houses to the north east.

The beach wasn’t very busy – just three people at a table drinking tea and playing the board game, “Carcassonne”, like you do (there was definitely an Alice-in-Wonderland vibe).

There is also “island” in the middle (which worried me greatly) called the Holm of Sound.

On there, I could see a flock of sheep grazing and all I could think about was whether they were marooned or not, should I call the Coastguard, should I go and swim them back across, what were they doing for water?  What would Lambie do?

But I calmed down when the Carcassonne-playing folk told me that the island is actually attached to the mainland at low tide and the sheep can walk across easily. Phew.  Panic over.

I went back to enjoying the utter calm and serenity of the beach.  It was a lovely find.