058:57.868 N
003:17.632 W

Stromness III

After waking up to a rather misty morning in the marina the sun came out and the mist cleared away as we made our way to catch a bus that would take us to see the neolithic village of Skara Brae.

The bus whizzed along the tiny roads past the Ring of Brodgar (an impressive circle of stones) to a beautiful bay and the remarkable 5000 year old remains of the village which had been inhabited for around 600 years before the dunes covered it over.

Having learnt a little about the discoveries at the site in the visitor centre we went through a modern replica of one of the houses. It was sobering to think of families living quite successfully in such a remote site long before the Pyramids were built. The houses were solidly built of stone to protect the occupants from the bitter winters.

We then walked along the beach to find a nesting colony of Arctic Turns, Sand Martins and Fulmars flying past us just feet away along the cliff edge. Harry’s camera worked hard to capture the images, we’ll share his photos tomorrow.

Then it was back to the boat for tea and a chat with some of the neighbours in the marina.

Bol