Beyond the mainland

This issue we look at the two great groups of islands that lie north of Scotland. Damian Riley Smith and Tom Morton take you to these outposts of the nation.

Orkney My image of Orkney was one of remoteness, ruggedness, loneliness and just a hint of the primitive. Yes, it has elements of all of these, but it is, and has, so much more. The overriding memory is that Orkney is the most fascinating, stimulating, magical and broad ranging Scottish island I have visited, and yet at the same time a very modern and historical experience.

To say it is remote is wrong – it is just four miles from the coast of mainland Scotland, and only 40 minutes by plane from Aberdeen and 50 minutes from Edinburgh or Glasgow.

If you have the time, the way to arrive is by sea. You can sail from Aberdeen in eight hours or so, or travel to the far North of Scotland and join a sailing.

Even the climate is not what one expects.

Orkney is surprisingly temperate, the Gulf Stream ensuring they are rarely snowbound even in the harshest winters, although the fierce prevailing Westerlies do keep the trees to the very minimum.

Orkney is not just one island – rather a collection of 71 different isles, 21 of which are currently inhabited, and with a total population of a staggering 20,000 or so.

So much for the image of being small and Spartan – it is the most fascinating mix of modern and magical, mythical and contemporary, stunningly beautiful and historically significant.

The most incredible thing about Orkney is the variety it offers. It is perhaps most famous for its incredibly well-preserved Neolithic monuments, scattered throughout the islands and lo...

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• By : Damian Riley-Smith and Tom Morton
• In : Regional Focus
• Issue : 52
• Page : 32
• Words : 3,184