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Orkney Mainland

Sidmouth - the Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Deadwood

There’s a beautiful piece of driftwood on the beach at Sidmouth. It’s the sort of thing which would become an essential structural …

Arctic Terns - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Big fish

I’ve loved watching the Arctic Terns in Orkney this summer. They’re fascinating. I spent hours watching them come back to their colonies …

Arctic Terns - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

A family affair

An Arctic Tern family from this summer. I wonder where they are now? I suspect they’ll be somewhere on the way to …

Hen Harrier - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Hen Harriers at The Loons

I’m going to London for the weekend. That means getting the ferry from Westray to the Mainland first. No, not the mainland …

Stone Balls in Orkney Museum - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Stone balls from the stone age

Orkney Museum has an assortment of stone balls in its cabinets. They’re from the Neolithic and our ancestors kept them and prized …

Sandstone - St Magnus Cathedral - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Lakes and deserts

There are two beautifully contrasting colours of Devonian sandstone in St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall in Orkney. Both are 380 million years …

Pictish Eagle - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Pictish Sea Eagle

It’s from the 6th or 7th Century. It’s carved in sandstone and was excavated by amateurs in 1936 from the ruins of …

Picnic Noust - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Noust

A noust is a boat-shaped hollow. It’s an ancient word from Scandinavia. There are nousts made from stone laid by Vikings on …

Stenness Sheep - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Stenness sheep

We’re at the Standing Stones of Stenness when a sheep stares at me. There are only four of the twelve ancient stones …

Ring of Brodgar - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

A wild Neolithic hat-trick

It’s time for me to catch the ferry away from Orkney for a short while. I have an evening to spare and …

Rock Dove - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey

You see a Pigeon

The weather in Orkney may be grey but it’s never dull. I’m waiting at Kirkwall harbour for the Westray ferry when I …

Einar - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey

Einar

My house is called Einar, just like the Viking Earl of Orkney mentioned in the Orkneyinga Saga. That’s because of a spelling …

Black Guillemot - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey

Black Guillemot

I’m on a day trip to the Mainland. That’s the mainland of Orkney. In the harbour at Scapa there’s a bird paddling …

Ringed Plover - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey

Ringed Plover

Ringed Plover are meant to breed on the coast. Human destruction of the environment means they now breed in gravel pits and …

Turnstone at the Peedie Sea - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Turnstone at the Peedie Sea

Turnstones have a lovely mottled plumage. They always look as if they are in transition to me. Have they decided how their …

Kirkwall Harbour - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Signs

Changing a road system is always a problem. There’s the planning, the time it takes to do the work and then there’s …

Redshank at the Peedie Sea - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Redshanks at the Peedie Sea

It’s only a few minutes after dawn and there’s a Redshank on the Peedie Sea. I can’t quite believe it’s being quiet. …

Kirkwall Bay - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Dawn over Kirkwall Bay

Arriving off the Aberdeen ferry at nearly midnight gives me a quandary. Is it worth paying a small fortune for a few …

Meadow Pipit - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Pipping Pipits

Meadow Pipits are very common birds of farmland. It’s the most common songbird in upland Britain. They thrive in Orkney. They fly …

Eristalis intricaria - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

To bee or not to bee

There’s a bumble bee on this thistle. At least I think it’s a bee. Then I see its eyes. Its eyes are …

Kirkwall - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Technology

Arriving in Orkney by ferry is a great experience. We’ve got a day on the Mainland before heading to Westray on yet …