Raiders of the lost Aak
Guillemots are known as Aaks in Orkney. This Aak egg has been raided from the cliffs at Noup Head and eaten.
A different view of a Puffin
I’m on the cliffs at Westray’s Castle o’ Burrian with the Puffin Whisperer. They are such curious birds that when she calls, …
Magnificent battlements, gunloops and ravens
Noltland Castle is a ruin that was never finished built by a paranoid man who placed defensive positions everywhere; it has walls 7 feet thick and 71 gunloops to shoot at attackers.
Nousts
The outrageous thing about several of these nousts, designed to provide protection to boats pulled up onto the shore, is that they …
Published in The Orcadian – “Italy visit for chapel committee members”
I was delighted to see my photographs used in The Orcadian‘s article about the Italian Chapel Preservation Committee’s trip to Moena in …
5,000 quills
A strange beast of 5,000 quills has decided to pay us a visit.
Handsome chap
Red Bull. All I need now is the vodka.
The more you can see the horizon…
The more you can see the horizon, the more you can see the arc of your whole life and think about what’s …
Black William
The name Guillemot doesn’t sound English at all, and it isn’t. It’s French, from Guillaume, or William. Here then, are a few …
A glorious day
When you have a beach to yourself.
Mice nibble… #12
Knee protectors.
Pierowall Bay
Just a glimpse at Pierowall from the air tells you all you need to know about why the Vikings held Pierowall in …
Mice nibble… #11
Shoe laces.
Daniel
Stained glass window featuring Daniel from St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall.
Round the back of The Italian Chapel
I love the view around the back of the Italian Chapel.
Wreck
The wreck of SS Reginald just off Orkney’s Churchill Barriers.
Blown away by a windmill
I was completely blown away by Sangar Mill. It’s incredible that’s it’s survived so intact, with the windmill mechanism still visible and …
Sitting in a stall of hay at Quoygrew
A dirt floor. A stone hearth. An open fire. No glass or windows. A turf roof. Stone stalls with hay bedding. What am I describing?
Down the garden path at Quoygrew
My favourite part of the ruined house at Quoygrew is the garden path of the 13th to 16th Century house. What a …
The fifteen hearths of Quoygrew
Quoygrew is a 1,000 year old house on Westray which was lived in by Vikings from 950 AD, shortly after they arrived …
Cathedral Carving
This grimacing head wearing what seems to be a wig and surrounded by wings is in St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall. It …
A sense of taste
Hardly any bird species have a sense of smell – and that probably means they have very little sense of taste either. …
The Bay of Skaill
It must be shell sand below for it to be so beautifully pale and for the water to be so turquoise. The …
Breck o’ Aikerness
The language that estate agents speak is not English as we know it. Breck o’ Aikerness was for sale recently. It may …