Farewell to Shetland - a few more paddles

After the high energy of the Shetland Sea Kayak Symposium, many of the paddlers headed north to The Voter Centre near to Brae. On the Monday morning, after 7 days of paddling I decided to take a day off to go for a few short walks.

I started off by driving to Esha Ness to take a look at the cliffs and stacks. I parked up beside the lighthouse but after a few minutes a thick mist descended. It quickly became cold and drizzly, and the views along the coast became obliterated. Down at Strenness the conditions were much more pleasant and I spotted some paddlers heading for Dore Holm. This 36 metre high rock stack has a spectacular rock arch. When viewed from certain angles it is not surprising that this feature is nick-named 'The Drinking Horse'.

I’d heard all about how the coastal architecture in Ronas Voe is special but I could never have been prepared for what I experienced that day. We started on a small sand beach next to a shingle spit called ‘The Blade’ and followed the rocky shore northwest. After about a kilometre of sparse rock-hopping we paddled round an ordinary looking corner and found a grand looking arch, then a cave another and then more…

I openly declared, “It’s started!”

The coastline grew into labyrinth after labyrinth. Arches, caves, and timeless deep mysterious gullies led from one to the next. It was easy to forget where we were. Occasionally we would emerge into a broad bay with a beach. Just for the novelty we would stop to stretch our legs and grab a bite to eat.

As we approached the northern tip of this stretch we saw the effects of the strong south-westerly winds. There were huge breaking waves crashing past a headland called ‘The Faither’. We braved the intimidating swell and rounded Gatli Stack before running back for cover and winding our way back around, along and beneath the shore that we had already explored. 

After all the excitement in the vote a short easy but fun trip with rock-hopping was on the menu. The rocky coast of Cunningsburgh was an easy choice and it was conveniently close to Lerwick for the boys from Orkney to catch their ferry home later that day.

Evening discussions continued late into the night in the Voxter Centre and as a result, a trip around  Muckle Roe was inevitable. We set off from the marina at Roe Sound. After heading south for the first four kilometres the coastline took on a grand stature so typical of Shetland's exposed shores.

Our exploring took us to a narrow opening that led into a huge cavern. In turn, this led out into a cove, a bay and another place. We later discovered this to be the Hole of Hellier.

Our subterranean adventures continued with passages at Harri Stack and Little Ness giving us moments of complete bewilderment, and quotes like, "How the heck did we end up here?" The final 3 kilometres were a welcome wind down. This had been a day of intense adventure.

I took it easy on the last couple of days. I made a final pilgrimage to Mousa and did some sightseeing around Lerwick. I drove onto the ferry and settled down for a coffee and only half heard the announcement that we would be taking the northern route past the towering cliffs and Gannet colonies of Noss. This was a perfect end to two weeks of adventure on Shetland. I have seen so much but there is still so much to see. I must return soon.