Scotland - Day 7 - The Orkney Islands

So today was another reason why I selected this particular itinerary; crossing the Pentland Firth to the Orkney Islands.  To be completely honest I had never heard of the Orkney Islands until my friend, Lynn Frock, started talking about how much he wanted to go there and see the ancient sites.  The more he talked about it the more interested I became.  Also, I knew I wanted to see as much of Scotland as possible, and the Orkneys are almost as far north as you can go in Scotland (the Shetland Islands are just a bit further north).

Orkney comprises a group of some 67 islands lying off the north coast of Scotland.  Travel to the Orkney Islands is evidenced as far back as 330 BC when the Greek traveler Pytheas of Marseilles claimed that from Orkney you could see th edge of the world.

Our journey there started early this morning with a 1 hour ferry trip across the Firth.

Our ferry over the Firth

Crossing through the Atlantic Ocean

Luckily we had another gorgeous day and the crossing was very calm.  After lunch our first stop once on the island was at the Ring of Brodgar.

The Ring of Brodgar is a Neolithic henge and stone circle about 6 miles north-east of Stromness on the Mainland, which is the largest island in Orkney.  These are the northernmost examples of circle henges in Britan.  It is generally thought they were  erected between 2500-2000 BC.

From there we headed down the road to Skara Brae.  To get there you have to cross over a couple of islands.  When Simone said this I wondered how that was going to happen because I assumed there were no bridges.  Well, a very interesting story evolved from this travel.  

Turns out that during WWI there was little attempt to defend the great harbor of Scapa Flow, beyond sinking  a few blockships at the entrances.  However, during WWII the war had taken a new turn  and now the Fleet was supplemented by air power.  Four airfields were built in Orkney and they needed to be defended.  An ambitious plan was devised  to link 4 islands.  Barriers would prevent ships from entering the Flow and they could also be used as a road system between the islands.  Those Barriers are still in existence and used today.

A Churchill Barrier

You can't tell it from the photo above, but the Barriers are built of large cement blocks put in place by Italian prisoners of war.  The Churchill Barriers, as they are known, form an important link among the southern islands and have had a great impact on the life of the islands.

Shortly we arrived at Skara Brae.  The site predates Stonehenge and the pyramids of Giza.  It one of the world's most evocative prehistoric sites and is northern Europe's best-preserved prehistoric village.  Even the stone furniture - beds, boxes and dressers - have survived the 5000 years since a community lived here.  It was hidden until 1850 when waves whipped up by a severe storm eroded the sand and grass exposing the houses underneath.

Our final stop of the day was back in Kirkwall, the magnificant St. Magnus Cathedral.  The Cathedral was founded in 1137.  When first built, the cathedral was part of the Archdiocese of Nidaros in Norway.  Orkney became part of Scotland in 1468 (as part of a dowry) and a few years later the cathedral was given to the people of Kirkwall by the Scots king, James III.  

Tomorrow will be a travel day, luckily cause the weather is supposed to turn on us.  We are headed west, to the Isle of Skye.