Exploring Orkney Part 2
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- Опубліковано 18 січ 2025
- Get the Orkney EP here:
forestjungleco...
The Second part of our Orkney Journey, exploring the mainland, Hoy, Papa Westray & lots of both Norse & Neolithic sites all over.
See the first episode here:
• Exploring Orkney
See our Hoy video here:
• Forest:Jungle Collecti...
I slept in the Dwarfie Stane for 3 nights. The long low stone building in Rackwick Bay is a bothie, where I'd planned to stay until a large group of local fishermen arrived and turned it into a rave centre. So I skulked away and enjoyed solitude and amazing dreams in the Dwarfie Stane.
"Hotel concierge" ahhah! Loved your videos - as much as narration. Tanks for great work!
Definitely hit Rousay when you go back. I grew up on the island, running in and out of Neolithic sites - when we were bored, my mum would take us to Midhowe, and I’ve many happy memories of it. I’m actually heading back up to visit family in couple of weeks - I’ve not set foot on Rousay since my brother’s wedding nine years ago, and I can’t wait to see my 4 year old grandson running around all the places I loved growing up.
def will! hope you have a great trip too!
Loved Rousay when I was there in June (and once in 2005). Maybe you want to take a look at my video about it. Saw Midhowe of course...
Midhowe is a must.
A few hot tips from a local...
1. Pentland Ferries are much better than Northlink. Look them up next time, although its even more of a challenge to get to Gills Bay than it is to Scrabster.
2. Trains north of Inverness are crap. The buses are usually the better option.
3. The pebble-dash nightmare that is Stromness is slowly being corrected. When you return you'll see a tiny bit of progress.
4. Yea, the weather wasn't great. But, its an island in the north Atlantic - do you expect anything else? One those rare summer days when the sun shines and the breeze comes off the Atlantic (midgies dont like a breeze), the meadows are in bloom, the birds are singing - those are the days. But worth remembering, if it wasn't for the rainy days the grass wouldn't be green and the islands fertile.
5. The main street in Kirkwall is actually really vibrant for a town of its size. It is reliant on tourists to push up the income, in non covid times is one of the best shopping streets in Scotland for a town of that size.
6. Northlink are crap. I've covered that, but a story... I was travelling south with friends, booked on Pentland Ferries. The tides and sea combined to make the crossing impossible so a mad dash to get to Northlink. We arrived with many others from Pentland Ferries. The person behind the desk said we were number 6 on the stand-by list. After eventually checking us in after making an arse of it several times she handed us a card with number 12 on it. Turns out she forgot to write our name on the list when we started check-in and the guy beside her had managed to check in 6 more cars... I'd have happily pushed her in the sea...
7. Orcadian taxis are generally crap. I don't know many locals who bother, unless its a late night run to a country pub.
Nice to hear a review from Orkney that isn't the usual glowing reference. I'm an Orcadian living away from the islands and its a pain in the arse getting there, and if the weather is crap its a bit boring. Only so many trips to the Sound Archive are permitted before it becomes uncomfortable...
Hope next time works out better for you.
solid! thks
I should be there again in early summer
Remember there is a ferry from Gills bay (east of Thurso) to St Margarets Hope on Orkney
Love your narrative! Thank you for being honest!
Skara Brae and the Knap of Howar were amazing! My highlights for sure 😊
lived there (Stronsay) 12yrs, you got it just about right. The weather is Omni present, and the travel never gets straightforward. Westray where the other islanders recon that the seagulls fly upside down because they darn't have a Sh-t.
Has about the best of it in terms of the ferry timetable. Flying is the best option if you can get a seat. here is a short example in January
ua-cam.com/video/_flmB6f51cI/v-deo.html
Great work!
Thks! :)
Fantastic stuff! 😀 🌍
thks!
Well, I think you have done a fantastic job of promoting the sights, given the issues! The Orkney taxi driver's attitude was extraordinary, whatever the Covid ('plague') worries! Reality and facts don't seem to have reached there when you filmed at that point in time . (I'm Scottish).
I hope you have the courage to revisit, and trust that your last taxi driver was more typical of the people of Orkney. I've never been able to afford to go there.
Midges are the fallen angels from hell incarnate.
Apart from the chambered cairns the main thing i'm itching to get back to see are the Brochs, they slipped off the end of the schedule last time
but yes, def looking forward to seeing the islands again!
As an Orcadian this series has definitely left a bitter taste in my mouth (not your fault), I promise we're not all like that! so to fight that i will say this; Northlink, generally they are a great company with great customer service and in my many years living here i have never had any sort of stress or worry with them, and they do always send you an E-Mail beforehand clarifying that you need to be there 30 minutes before departure (just in case you didn't know), Taxis; I agree it is shocking but there have been cases of tourists coming off the cruise liners who try to get away with not paying their fees, as Kirkwall is the busiest Cruise ship port in the UK. I hope if you come back you have a more pleasant time.
I mean everyone we bumped into in a personal capacity was lovely & open & forthcoming, its just not often we're at the mercy of public transport quite this accutely! In other cases there are more options of the table if there's a problem
but yes - very much looking forward to coming back as soon as we're able! have some friends who were posting pics from there just recently & looks like they caught the heatwave perfectly - nothing but blue skies, was getting very jealous!
You would definitely enjoy it more now everything's opened up again, you should go to Sanday, quoyness tomb, old church with devils claw near the peedie sea, and in town try the storehouse for lunch, definitely see the museum and Kitchener's memorial to see puffins/cliffs. Archive is still best for coffee but stromness deli good too, but understably when it was all closed in stromness for covid it's not got the same good atmosphere as now it's all open.Also go see the gloop. Judith glue cafe is good for coffee too, it's at the back of the shop. Also now it's opened the cathedral is a must see inside. Mostly the best you can do would be to get talking to the folk up here that work in the shops they will cheer you up and tell you the best places, really friendly folk.
Yh i must admit - while i had no side-by-side comparison, 2020 was such a bonkers year for everyone
I hadnt fully appreciated just how much that changes the vibe beyond just the practical of whats open & whats not
& Thanks for the recommendations! Im putting the list together of what to catch next time, only question is when 😊
Re-name your channel to “Adventures of a coffee snob”
not inaccurate 🤔 i'm just not convinced the coffee snobs will have me, they'd probably not consider me snobbish enough
the coffee snobbery well runs pretty deep ☕🔬⚗
I used to go to Dorset every year, it's beautiful but Orkney is better.
Had great fun watching and listening at your brash (hope it's the right word, I don't mean it negatively!) account.
We went there almost a month later (our third time) and loved it. Didn't get into Maes Howe cause we didn't think to prebook about a month before. Took the plane and a rental car and that is the best way even if it's expensive.
Maybe you like my videos about it - completely different style.
thanks! yh i baulked at the flight cost but i'm still split, Scotrail is having the.worst. year & i might have no choice for when we revisit
your vid on it was great! i see you've also done Shetland which i'm impatient to see myself
@@ForestArchaicCollective Yes, it's quite expensive to fly. But as we came in from Germany it didn't make much sense to fly to Scotland, take a train and a ferry. Would've taken a ferry from Shetland to Orkney had the times been better.
Shetland is well worth it though if you're into prehistory, Orkney is the place to be.
Taxi service would not pick up tourists???? Doesn't tourism bring in $$$ for the local economy? I'll be renting a car if I am able to make a trip there in May 2023 -- I was in Scotland (mainland/highlands and Mull) in September 2022 for almost 3 weeks. I would love to visit Orkney for a few days, then spend 2 weeks in Ireland!
Im hoping that was a c*vid thing and not their normal method, but have no way of knowing
(To underline, cab drivers on the scottish mainland: couldnt have been more obliging)
@@ForestArchaicCollective we are planning a trip, but trying to book a rental car months in advance and none show as available. The google reviews for taxis may not go back as far as your trip they don't currently talk about taxis refusing service, just normal missed connections and customer service questions. So hopefully that issue is over with...
You missed the mot fascinating place on Hoy. The loneliest grave in the UK
The story behind it is tragic, The grave of Betty Corrigal
The people of Stromness don't like tourists, they are awful people. Kirkwall is a very different place.
What month did you go fella?
this was August :)
August?! Oh my gosh. I’m going July 2023 and was telling myself ‘it’s fine he went in April or something’
Again with all the islands! stay in your lane