Mushrooms in the field
There’s something otherworldly about mushrooms. They’re more closely related to animals than they are to plants. A very different kind of life …
Song Thrush – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was a small child on a mission – to see wildlife and to feel the joy of observing …
Alive
The fact that I’m alive is so incredibly unlikely. To be here now, to witness the Earth turning around the Sun, is a privilege.
The bit in-between
Winter days on Westray are very much like the short flight between Westray and Papa Westray. The flight is the shortest scheduled …
Stormy sunset on Westray
Walking down to Grobust beach from the tiny car park I’m suddenly aware of how dramatic the sky has become. There’s such …
The worms of Woo
Lugworm casts litter the beach at the Sands of Woo on Westray.
The Late Swallow – a poem by Edwin Muir
Orcadian poet Edwin Muir is a favourite of mine. As I watched the Swallows at Einar I remembered his wonderful poem The …
Chaffinch – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Male chaffinches are such beautiful birds, and I’m not the only one who thinks so; female Chaffinches agree with me. In fact, …
‘The refugees born for a land unknown’ – a poem by Edwin Muir
‘I have fled through land and sea, blank land and sea,
Because my house is besieged by murderers
And I was wrecked in the ocean, crushed and swept,
Spilling salt angry tears on the salt waves,
Coal Tits – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
I’m a man on a mission. I’ve recently rediscovered my old nature notebooks from when I was a child and I’m on …
Robins – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
As a twelve year old boy, seeing any wild bird was a thrill. Seeing a Robin was a particularly special occasion, especially …
Woodpigeon – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was very excited to see a fat Woodpigeon and record it in my childhood nature notebooks. I was …
Blue Tits – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was a 12 year old boy heading off into the woods with the intention of finding wildlife. I …
Jay – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Jays always seem like exotic birds to me. They’re pink! They have a crest! They have blue and black feathers! They look …
Great Tits – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was busy compiling my nature notebooks. I was twelve years old when I started them and was very …
The Horses – a poem by Edwin Muir
One of the first times I heard of Orkney was when I read Edwin Muir’s poetry. It was so strong, so vivid …
A petrosphere at the Orkney Museum
I’m fascinated by this neolithic petrosphere, or stone-age stone ball, at the Orkney Museum. I lean forward and suddenly bump my nose on the glass looking at it. What is it? What was it used for?
White Clover – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was busy lying in the grass looking at the clover. White clover is beautiful and highly productive because …
Shag – alone on the rocky shore
This Common Shag (Phalacrocorax aristotelis) is a species of cormorant. It stands alone on the rocky shore.
Sigurd the Stout and his Raven banner
Earl Sigurd the Stout was an Earl of Orkney. The Orkneyinga Saga says he fought with a Raven banner made by his …
Beguiling
A calm day flying over the coastline of Orkney is beguiling. Looking below at the beautiful fresh blue water there’s little hint …
The Bay of Noup
The Bay of Noup looks to have beautiful sand on this rocky and rugged coastline.
The Grip of Cleaton
The history of Westray is told in two small volumes. One is its telephone directory, with its handful of names, many of …
The top 10 reasons you shouldn’t visit Westray
Friends and relatives often ask me whether Westray is a good place to visit and my answer is always very clear. “No,” I say. “I wouldn’t recommend it.” Here then are my top ten reasons why you should never visit Westray.
Holland Farm from the air
Every time I visit Papa Westray I say “Next time I visit Papay I must have a look at all those beautiful …
18 inches of pew
St Peter’s Kirk in Sandwick on Orkney looks so beautiful in the low sunshine, standing quietly alone in its graveyard. It’s now …
Westray phone box
Westray still has several relics of a bygone era; red telephone boxes. There are weeds growing inside some of them as they …