Graemsay Trip

We both joined the U3A last week, as much for the social side as for anything else. They have many groups which will probably be of interest such as archeology, botany etc. There was a U3A bird watching group having a trip to Graemsay today so I decided to go (another tick for my island list).

This is the MV Graemsay which took us over. I have seen films of this boat going over in rough weather and it made me have doubts about the sanity of the skipper but fortunately the day was calm.


Looking back to the Orkney mainland the view of Stromness is good. I have always prefered Stromness to Kirkwall but am told that it is no good because it does not have many shops. I thought that a lack of uneccessary shops was one of its virtues but then I am male and do not need a new pair of jeans every few days.


It was a really good walk of about 6 miles around the coast of Graemsay. There was no noticable bird watching but it was a pleasant stroll and chat, very social.
It was very informative in one respect. One of the ladies in the group happened to mention that her husband had a model railway and that there was an Orkney railway modelling club which would be at the vintage rally in the auction mart on Sunday so it was a really useful walk, if not very bird oriented.



There are two lighthouses on Graemsay. For some reason they are called Hoy High and Hoy Low lighthouses although they are not on Hoy.
Guess which one is Hoy High and which is Hoy Low.

We stopped by the side of Hoy Low to eat our butties and have a general natter.



I was impressed by the community hall where we were told they have famous parties where people from as far away as Hoy and Stromness come to enjoy themselves.




I noticed that, though the community hall was still in good order, the old kirk was unfortunately starting to deteriorate. A small part of the corner of the roof had come off and many windows were smashed. Maybe it is an indication of priorities.

Although Graemsay is a very pretty island, you cannot ignore Hoy as Ward Hill and the rest of North Hoy tower, dark and threatening just across a narrow strip of treacherous sea. (I made a mental note not to go for a walk on North Hoy unless I was feeling suicidal).



The promised rain held off until after we had boarded the ferry and were returning to Stromness and most of the day was pleasant and warm, a shade to warm at times.
As I dropped Barbara, one of the group, back to her house just across the other side of barrier on South Ronaldsay, we saw a short eared owl hunting across the fields by our side so the day was not totally birdless.

I got home about 6PM, a good day.
Pam whinged (again).
Pam has been told to start her own blog possibly called "Whinges from between the barriers".