Author: scapaviews
December 2019
2nd December – Feeling a bit fed up today. Went in to work and my colleague, Norna, showed me photos of her family’s new yacht, Time Out. It looks very nice. On Saturday, they took it out for a sail in Scapa Flow and Hoy Sound and had an encounter with a pod of Orca.
These photos were taken, from the shore, by Graham Campbell and posted on the Orkney Cetaceans web site.
Those that have visited us will recognise the little lighthouse and know how close this is to our house, hence my being fed up! I was working on Saturday but H and I normally walk along here every day. You just have to be in the right place at the right time!
15th December – All hail the Sun god for granting us a few minutes of daylight! It’ll soon be the shortest day.
We had a chilly walk around the shore today but a few appearances from the sun made it bright (and bracing). Still no Orcas though!
17th December – Our first frosty morning of the winter. Looking across the golf course to the hills on Hoy.
24th December 2019 – Happy Christmas everybody!
25th December – What better way to celebrate Christmas than the traditional dip in the harbour.
By the way, if anybody is interested, over in Kirkwall, the Uppies won the first Boy’s Ba’ of the season.
And the Doonies won the Men’s Ba’. A titanic struggle this year that lasted over six hours and finished, in the dark, with the victors crashing into the harbour.
No fatalities or mutilations have been reported. It can only be a matter of time!
31st December – Hogmanay and the annual Stromness Yule Log Pull.
It’s the first time that the junior Northenders have won the event, so well done them. A surplus of big, hairy blokes at this end of town assured victory for the Soothenders.
Happy New Year!
November 2019
1st November – MV Pentalina arrives in Stromness on a grey, dreich afternoon. It’s looking a bit sad and tired after providing the St Margaret’s Hope to Gill’s Bay service for many years. The new MV Alfred is now in service on the route, see October 15th post.
Hopefully they can find a good use for this old boat and not let it rust away.
4th November – Orkney.com posted a nice, little video of Stromness. It has a little snippet in the Museum. Not sure if it will work for everyone as it was on Twitter.
5th November – Thrilled to see these gorgeous Waxwings in a Stromness garden this morning.
Winter migrants from Scandinavia, they arrive to scoff berries, rosehips and, in this case, apples in people’s gardens.
22nd November – Polish night at the Hamnavoe restaurant. Really good food. The Kapusnyachyky were paticularly nice and, of course, who doesn’t like Ryba po Mazurska!
Washed down with cherry vodka and accompanied with a fun quiz. A good time was had by all.
24th November – Orkney.com have published their 2020 Orkney Visitor’s Guide. It can be viewed using the link below.
https://www.orkney.com/plan/visitor-guides
There’s also an opportunity to win a holiday in Orkney. What’s not to like!
28th November – The Museum’s winter exhibition is now underway. Entitled Carry on Collecting: New Acquisitions it features various artefacts that the Museum has received this year.
Amongst the items are these beautifully carved Peruvian tagua nuts from the Arthur Arcus collection, donated by his family.
Also acquired recently is George Mackay Brown‘s O.B.E., awarded in 1974. This is particularly nice as he lived in a flat opposite the Museum for many years.
October 2019
3rd October – It’s definitely autumn now, a lot cooler and getting windier, but the roses are lasting well and enjoying some late sunshine.
The farmers have stockpiled their silage bales for the winter and can’t resist having a bit of fun at the end of a busy time for them.
These creations show that some of them have just too much time on their hands! (Actually they’re raising money for Macmillan Cancer Support).
4th October – A lovely day, so we thought we’d go for a walk around the stone circles. It’s great to get to see them without coach loads of summer visitors. The local wildlife get a chance to relax too.
12th October – A grey, drizzly day today. So time for a stark arty pic.
15th October – Popped over to Kirkwall for some errands. When there we can’t help visiting the Cathedral and its impressive architecture. This is one of the side doors, they don’t make hinges like this anymore!
Spotted the new MV Alfred in the harbour. This is the new ferry built for Pentland Ferries for the Gill’s Bay to St Margaret’s Hope run. It has just arrived after a long journey from the builder’s shipyard in Vietnam. A pity it couldn’t have been sourced more locally.
17th October – We went to see the National Theatre broadcast of A Midsummer Night’s Dream from London’s Bridge Theatre. Performed in the round, it was rather like the Bard meets Cirque du Soleil, with trapeze artistes, flying beds and music. Not AMND as we know it but still very entertaining.
22nd October – H went to see Matthew Bourne’s brilliant new ballet, Romeo + Juliet, filmed this summer at Sadler’s Wells. She really enjoyed the performance and thoroughly recommends seeing this production.
26th October – Tonight there is a torchlit parade through the town, led by the South Mainland Jarl Squad from Shetland. It culminates in a traditional boat burning ceremony down here at the South End. We should get a great view from the house.
September 2019
2nd September – Enjoyed a visit from this beautifully marked wheatear in the garden this evening. They’ll be heading back to Africa soon.
11th September – Just back from a long weekend trip to Kettering. H’s family gathered to celebrate the life of her Dad, Ron.
We caught the midnight boat to Aberdeen on Friday and with a comfy cabin, we arrived refreshed, early Saturday. After a nice breakfast on the boat we headed south, over the new Queensferry Crossing, and had a good run to Kettering.
On the Sunday we had the celebration and it was nice to see all the family together, many of whom I’d never met and some that even H had never met! Below, H, Simon, Gilly and Colin had a chance to spend some time together.
Monday morning saw us popping down to Rushden Lakes shopping centre. H taking advantage of the chance to visit M&S.
Then we headed off to the M6 for the journey north. It all went downhill from then. It took us seven hours to get to our Travelodge at Lancaster. Four of those getting from J19 to J21 !!! Never again.
On Tuesday we arrived in Aberdeen in plenty of time for the ferry, so we had a look round the Union Square Shopping Centre. Although there is an M&S here, there are some proper shops too.
Back home at 11pm on Tuesday night. A busy few days for us. And a big thank you to Fran and Jeanne for looking after Monty!
21st September – A glorious weekend here. A perfect day for a round of golf under a cloudless sky.
This must be one of the last swallows in Stromness, grabbing a few flies before heading south for the winter.
23rd September – We had a VIP visitor to the Museum this morning, Fiona Hyslop is the Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism and External Affairs at the Scottish parliament.
Here she is hearing about the sinking of the Royal Oak, in Scapa Flow, in 1939.
She is in Orkney launching Scotland’s Arctic Policy Framework at a gathering with our Nordic neighbours.
26th September – Went to the Picky this evening to see the National Theatres Encore broadcast of One Man, Two Guvnors. We saw it in 2011 but it is just as funny second time around.
27th September – Acting as a tour guide today. Jeanne Rose had invited a group of artists from Woodstock, NY, over to Orkney and I was asked to take some of them around the island.
Apart from one sharp shower, we had a nice day and covered a lot of ground. The tour included Maeshowe, Birsay and St Magnus’ Cathedral.
28th September – Very pleased with work that our local handyman, Mirek, did in constructing the top half of our kitchen dresser. Has achieved a really good match with the bottom unit.
August 2019
9th August – We’ve just said farewell to Gilly and Ian as they prepared to board the southbound ferry back to Scrabster. They arrived on Monday to spend a few days with us. They visited all the usual sites, Skara Brae, Maeshowe, etc and enjoyed (I hope) some nice meals out. Here they are at the Skerries Bistro.
Apologies for the crudely edited pic but there was an extravagantly moustachioed German sitting behind and he dominated the shot.
They are off to Pitlochry now so we hope the weather is kind to them.
Had my first appointment at the orthopaedic department in the new Balfour hospital in Kirkwall this afternoon. An impressive building, well laid out and lots of parking.
13th August – An interesting article on the BBC this morning on the uptake of electric vehicles in Orkney. I’m very tempted but, with the increasing use of hydrogen vehicles here, should we wait and see how that develops?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-49319120
20th August – We’ve just enjoyed a short visit with H’s former Loakes colleague Gina and her partner, Paul.
They managed to see most of sights including Maeshowe and the Italian Chapel. The only fly in the ointment was Gina’s thumb getting trapped in the car door and badly bruised, hence the arm in a sling (see pic above).
25th August – Watched these guys struggling to de-rig their yole on a windy afternoon. A lovely day otherwise.
30th August – A lovely evening, we sat and watched this little crab boat setting his creels along the shoreline.
July 2019
8th July
A sad day for us all, H’s father, Ron, passed away in Kettering General Hospital this evening.
Ron was a man of many talents, a great bowler, watercolourist and model railway enthusiast. The latter fuelling his love for steam trains (the real thing). Before his health deteriorated he enjoyed the great outdoors and did a lot of walking combined with a bit of bird spotting. His binoculars and Ordnance Survey map were always close to hand.
Ron will be greatly missed by his four children, four grandchildren and four great grandchildren.
10th July – With H travelling south to be with her Dad, I’ve been left to my own devices. Did a bit of walking up around Birsay this afternoon and bumped into this pair enjoying some quiet time.
11th June – We had a couple of tickets to see Jack Dee in Kirkwall this evening but, for obvious reasons, H was unable to go. Rather than waste the ticket, I took Jeanne Rose. Although unfamiliar with the comedian, she enjoyed the evening. Coincidentally, sitting behind us was Rev. Tom Miller, another ex pat American, who knew Jack Dee from I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue, the Radio 4 panel show. A very funny show, I think Jack’s dour persona appeals to the Scots sense of humour.
21st July – The 2019 Shopping Week Hack rode past the house this afternoon. Shopping Week is an annual carnival held in Stromness, there are various events throughout the week and it culminates on Saturday with music, dancing and fireworks at the pierhead.
23rd July – The Museum’s new website has been launched today. I think it looks pretty good. Congratulations to the Collections Development Team for their hard work.
https://www.stromnessmuseum.org.uk/
Once the Scrabster ferry arrived this evening, it was time for the Shopping Week Raft Race. A series of teams build their rafts on various themes, this year we saw Vikings, Mexicans, OAPs amongst others.
It’s a long course from the south end slipway up to the harbour and the field is soon spread out. We get a great view of the proceedings from the house.
24th July – Recreational diving is big business in Stromness, so I thought I’d give it a go.
The Shopping Week fun always includes a scarecrow competition, these are a few examples from around the town.
25th July – The Museum had a surprise royal visitor today. The Stromness Shopping Week Queen arrived with her entourage this afternoon.
They do a lot of good work throughout a busy week, today they were en route to deliver some fruit and choccies to the residents of a sheltered housing complex.
31st July – Just dropped H’s brother, Colin, off at the airport. He came up last Friday and had a little break with us. The weather was pretty good, except for a bit of fog this morning. I think he enjoyed himself ( we certainly did ). We spent the week sightseeing and enjoying the local produce, as the Stromness bottle bank will testify!
The Puffin Search at Yesnaby 
Dining at The Hamnavoe
The only clouds on the week were the lack of puffins and Loganair’s poor performance on both northbound and southbound flights.
June 2019
5th June – Took the ferry over to Thurso this morning to meet up with cousin Jane and her family. The day started rather drizzly but brightened up through the afternoon. We did a tour along the north coast, taking in Dunnet Head, the Castle of Mey and (of course) John O’ Groats.
8th June – Saturday evening in Stromness Town Hall and we were entertained by the Budapest Cafe Orchestra from Haringey ( geddit? Haringey/Hungary! ).
We’ve seen these guys a few times now and they never fail to entertain. Their mixture of traditional folk and gypsy music is always delivered with great style and panache.
11th June – A cultural evening for H and her friends Kate and Cary. They went to see a performance of the ballet, Romeo and Juliet, broadcast live from the Royal Opera House. I’m told it was excellent. If only I could’ve gone too….!
13th June – Just been to see a terrifically quirky Icelandic film, “Woman at War”. We both thoroughly enjoyed it and would definitely recommend it.
14th June – H took tonights ferry to Aberdeen, en route to see her Dad in Kettering. She booked one of the sleeping pods for the overnighter but didn’t find it very comfortable.
18th June – Still discovering what’s in the garden here. I thought this was an ornamental grass, then it produced lots of white flowers. After a bit of research, I found it’s called New Zealand Satin Flower (Libertia Grandiflora). It seems very hardy and salt tolerant and I’m now seeing it in many gardens.
20th June – A very busy day in Stromness Museum. On the eve of the anniversary of the German scuttling, we had two TV news teams in to film some of our exhibits, one from ARD in Germany and the other from the BBC.
Stromness is buzzing and the town is packed with visitors. It’s so busy that the ARD crew could only get accomodation in a caravan!
21st June – Today marks the 100th anniversary of the scuttling of the German High Seas Fleet in Scapa Flow. At the end of the First World War seventy four German warships were interned in Scapa Flow awaiting the resolution of the Treaty of Versailles.
Not wanting his ships shared amongst the allies as spoils of war, at 10:00am on this day in 1919, the German admiral in charge ordered the entire fleet to be scuttled. Out of the 74 ships interned, 52 went to the bottom, 22 were beached and divided amongst the allied navies. The majority were susequently salvaged but seven remain and are visited by recreational divers.
May 2019
4th May – H spent the morning at the local supermarket, manning a table for the Red Cross. Raising funds and awareness of the services that the Red Cross provide locally. It’s not all overseas emergencies and disasters but includes comfort and support nearer home. That reminds me, we need loo roll!
On the way home we popped into the Northlight to see the latest exhibition by Ralph Robinson. Entitled The Anthropocene and the Orkney Diner Scene, it is a thought provoking display, assembled using items salvaged from derelict buildings and an old army midden.
5th May – After a visit to the Fernvalley Wildlife Centre we went puffin spotting at Birsay this afternoon. Didn’t see any puffins but there were plenty of razorbills. This pair heading out to sea, just feet above the crashing waves, completely unfazed by the turbulent waters below.
10th May – The first cruise ship of the 2019 season to visit Stromness. Hanseatic Nature lying at anchor in Cairston Roads, just behind the Outer Holm. The visitors are transferred into the town using the ships tenders. Unfortunately there was a fleet of buses waiting to take the passengers to see the sights around the island and the the town didn’t get much business from them.
14th May – 210 here today, a lovely day. We were in Kirkwall this morning buying paint for the kitchen. Afternoon saw the usual stroll around the Ness Point, there’s a lot of visitors about now, all enjoying the weather.
It’s warm enough now to encourage some daring water sports including this surfboard water skiing.
The Museums and Galleries of Scotland held a reception this evening at the Parliament in Edinburgh. Stromness Museum was well represented, this is a pic of our team, Norna, Janette (our Curator) and Katy with our Scapa 100 display. Katy is holding the VR headset which gives an amazing underwater experience.
15th May – A regular visitor to Stromness, the Dutch ketch Tecla does cruises around northern waters, sailing as far as Greenland.
17th May – Happy Norway Constitution Day! Orkney celebates the day to mark the historic ties with Norway, which are reflected in the Orcadian flag.
18th May – After a week of cloudless skies, it’s a bit overcast today. The local sailing club are undeterred and are out in force. It’s a busy harbour this morning with their dinghies, the Graemsay ferry and Hanseatic Nature back for a second visit.
19th May – A pod of Risso’s Dolphins at Birsay this afternoon. The pic is a bit blurry, I think the camera focussed on the ruins of the Earl’s Palace in the background. Today was the 2019 Orkney Nature Cruise, the ferry MV Hamnavoe took us up the west coast to Rousay and back again. A nice afternoon all round.
23th May – The first day of the 37th Orkney Folk Festival. Six concerts were held around the Stromness area this evening, with over twenty acts performing. We went to the concert at Sandwick, to see four of the bands, headlined by the excellent Còig from Nova Scotia.
25th May -Muriel and Leo are visiting us. It’s a grey day so we stayed in Stromness and looked around the town, taking in the Museum and the Pier Art Centre. In the evening, after dinner at the Hamnavoe, we went to the Folk Festival concert in the Town Hall. Local bands Banyan and Gnoss were on great form, as were headliners, Irish band, Four Men and a Dog.
Four Men and a Dog 
Gnoss
26th May – Headed down through the South Isles today. Calling in at the Italian Chapel. Just so happened that, as we were there, The Peter Wood Shetland Dance Band arrived and played a couple of tunes in the Chapel. A stroke of luck for us. H and I saw the band on Thursday but it was a bonus for Muriel and Leo.
The Peter Wood Shetland Dance Band in the Italian Chapel
After that it was down to the tip of South Ronaldsay and an excellent seafood lunch at the Skerries Bistro.
27th May – Into Kirkwall today to look around the town and the Cathedral. In the evening we went for a meal at the Foveran, a really nice restaurant with views out over Scapa Bay.
28th May – Early start for Muriel and Leo, check in at Kirkwall at 10:00am for the flight to Edinburgh and then onward to Stansted. I think the visit was a success.
After a quiet afternoon, we went to see the comedian, Phil Jupitus, in Stromness Town Hall. We managed to get front row seats, which comes with its own perils, i.e. having to have a selfie with the man himself!
31st May – The Museum team received dementia training a few weeks ago. I forgot to post the photo! No, actually, it just appeared on Twitter today, so I thought I would post it here.
April 2019
6th April – Today sees the opening of the Museum’s new summer exhibition. 2019 marks the centenary of the scuttling of the German High Seas Fleet in Scapa Flow and the museum is displaying items salvaged from the ships. For this exhibition many of the pieces have been loaned from private individuals and may never be brought together again.
Over time the wrecks have become home to a myriad of sea creatures and the second part of the exhibition shows examples of the rare and unusual sea life that now flourishes on these rusting reefs.
I’m on duty tomorrow for the first Sunday opening of the season.
10th April – There’s nothing worse than ordering the crab for lunch and some hooligans arrive and try and pinch it from you.
This little drama played out in front of the house and lasted some time.
16th April – Just found this letter posted on the internet. It’s from George Mackay Brown to the writer, Ernest Marwick. It appears that in 1946, GMB was living at 6 Well Park.
19th April – A glorious day, it’s been dry for about a week. As the roads are gridlocked with Easter traffic, what better than getting out and painting the shed.
It has now been refelted and given a new coat of paint, so it should survive another winter.
20th April – Hurray! Our tickets for the Folk Festival have arrived. Really looking forward to it this year, especially as Muriel and Leo will coming to one of the shows.
28th April -A first for me and H, a pair of Red Throated Divers passing by the house this afternoon. It’s unusual to see them in the harbour here.
Scapa Views 