Mystical mareel, seals and barbed wire accidents | Shetland

Well, you’d of thought after two days of tracking orcas we’d be satisfied, but watching them is like a drug, we always want more. No wildlife encounter is the same and there’s something extra special about orcas, maybe because it’s so nice seeing them roaming free in the wild, unlike the ones who were stolen…

A crazy day tracking wild orcas | The Shetland Islands

We were up at 8am, looking for otters along the shoreline when a message popped up on my phone “orcas, close to shore, heading south” They were about 40km south of us and we had to decide if it was worth the drive. That sounds a bit odd, of course it’s worth driving to see…

Finding paradise in the Shetland Islands

When we arrived in Shetland almost a month ago a local told us it had been cloudy for three weeks solid. Well, that weather pattern continued for us, with just a couple days where the sun made an appearance for a few hours. But today we woke to our first morning of sunshine, what a…

Spectacular cliffs and rock formations along the coast of Shetland

We began today’s hike with a stroll along a stony beach where we came across a dead seal. It had been preserved by the sun, it’s skin pulled tight and leathery, similar to the ancient Egyptians, with an awkward set of teeth protruded out like Austin Powers. Like almost every hike we’ve done in Shetland…

Rescued seals and coastal hikes | Shetland

Eshaness is considered to be a must visit area in Shetland. It sits on the north western tip of the mainland on an area of old volcanic activity. We arrived in the evening so we slept in the carpark with the lighthouse beam sweeping past our window every minute or so. The carpark was high…

Tracking otters on the Shetland Islands

Shetland has the highest population of otters in Europe, and its one of the few places where they’re active during the day time. Seeing as we weren’t having much luck on the orca front (who appear to of vanished for our entire stay) we’re spending a lot of our time looking for otters. We’ve learnt…

Hiking around tropical looking islands in Shetland

The main island of Shetland is quite large and we whizzed through it when we first arrived, so now it’s time to explore the area. Our first stop was a wonderful hike on the small island of Muckle Roe. The hike led us along the western side of the island and the scenery was spectacular….

Hiking and exploring Yell Island | Shetland

Our first stop on the island of Yell was a hike around Breckon Beach, a stunning stretch of white sand and turquoise water nestled in an inlet. We were enjoying watching the gentle waves lapping the shore when we were rudely interrupted by the screeching noise of artic terns. We were attacked by these birds…

Quirky sights on the island of Unst | Shetland

Unst is a quirky little island and one thing it’s famous for is Bobby’s bus shelter. It all started when a 6 year old boy was fed up with the poor state of his local bus shelter and wrote to the council. A new one was promptly erected and then some strange things started happening….

Puffins, gannets and idyllic beaches | Unst Island, Shetland

Hermaness Nature Reserve is situated at the most northern part of Britain on the island of Unst. The sea cliffs are home to thousands of nesting birds including puffins and gannets. A boardwalk led us across the moorland until we arrived on a grassy topped cliff with a huge drop down to the open sea….