House on 01595 695705. The youth hostel is a cheaper option, and you can contact them direct on 01595 692114 (open April to September). There are plenty of shops, bars and restaurants in Lerwick.
Heading North A very comfortable hotel on the road to North Mavine is the Busta House Hotel – Joe and Veronica Rocks are very welcoming, the food is excellent, and it is also a good option for some local Valhalla Brewery beer! Busta House is at Busta, near Brae, and you can make a reservation on 01806 522506, or e-mail [email protected] (website www.bustahouse.com).
North Mavine In North Mavine I would always opt for a night at Almara Guest House in Upper Urafirth – very comfortable rooms and huge breakfasts. Contact Marcia Williamson at Almara on 01595 503261, or e-mail [email protected] (website www.users.zetnet.co.uk/almara). There is also a bar selling food in Hillswick, and a small shop.
Overnight Options
Either camp discreetly, or try Johnnie Notions’ Camping Böd at Hamnavoe, open from April until September and bookable through Lerwick tourist information centre, or contact 01595 694688, www.camping-bods.com.
Escape Routes
At any point during the walk the quickest return route to Hillswick and Urafirth is to head for the B9078, which runs along the Esha Ness peninsula from near Hillswick to the tip of the headland.
Day 1
From the lay-by beneath Urafirth village walk southwestwards along the road towards Hillswick village. Pass the B9078, which heads off to your right – this is the road leading out to the lighthouse at Esha Ness, and is worth remembering as a possible escape route. Continue into Hillswick and pass the St Magnus Hotel on your right, then take a little lane on the left that leads down to the shoreline. Follow this around to the west and along a track to Findlins House, from where you can go down onto the shore and pick a way between the rocky platforms and sandy bays.
This is a great place to see otters. They prefer to come out hunting on a rising tide, and so are not necessarily nocturnal, as many people believe. We only have one species of otter in Britain, the Eurasian otter, Lutra lutra. On the rivers of England and Wales it is pretty much completely nocturnal, but by the coast in Scotland can be seen at any time of day.
Continue around the little headland of Tur Ness, which juts into Ura Firth, then on into the bay known as the Bight of Niddister.
Watch for fulmars as you walk along towards Baa Taing. These graceful birds are a joy to watch as they skim close to the waves out at sea. They look not unlike seagulls, but are in fact members of the shearwater family. They fly with very stiff wings, whereas gulls are much more flappy.
Continue around the Quilse and into Queen Geos, then on to the lighthouse at Baa Taing, the headland of the Ness of Hillswick.
From Baa Taing turn northwestwards and go along the coast, passing the finger-like pinnacle of Gordi Stack and Windy Geo, before climbing to the 70m cliff top of Oris Field. Out to sea across Houlma Sound you can see the famous rock pinnacles of the Isle of Westerhouse and the Drongs. Continue around the cliff top to the summit of Ber Dale, then onwards and downhill to the Quey and the lovely bay of Sand Wick.
The island of Dore Holm, with its huge natural arch
Follow the coast round, climbing again until you are high above the bay, then drop down to cross Twart Burn where it enters the sea. A short hop around rough ground below the B9078 and you are soon heading southwest again, towards the Grey Face and Harry’s Pund. Another short climb up to the Heads of Grocken, then a traverse around under Watch Hill to Stoura Pund and the Neap, bring you out above the big bay of Brae Wick. Walking out along the cliff top of the Neap you soon descend to cross a couple of small streams, then head out towards the distant headland of No Ness above the rocky flats of Scarf Skerry. Just around the bay from here lies the hamlet of Tangwick, with a superb museum that is well worth a visit.
Tangwick Haa Museum has a fascinating display of local artefacts and photographs, part of which is changed every year. All aspects of life in this remote part of Shetland are depicted here. The haa itself was built in the 17th century as a home for the Cheyne family, and is one of the oldest buildings in this part of Shetland. The Cheynes were lairds of the Tangwick estate and other parts of Shetland.
From the museum drop down the lane around the back that leads westwards to the beach at the Houb, then continue along the low cliffs to Gro Taing and onwards to the natural coastal arches of Fiorda Taing.
Offshore lies the spectacular island of Dore Holm, with its huge natural arch. It is quite often referred to as ‘Horse and Man Rock’, or ‘Drinking Horse Rock’ – the latter name seems much more fitting.
Go around the bay to Utstabi, then the cliffs begin to rise again as you near Stenness, with the Isle of Stenness and Skerry of Esha Ness lying just offshore. Continuing towards Esha Ness itself, the way leads across broken, rocky ground around the Bruddens and the Cannon before you reach the lighthouse at the end of the B9078.
The name Esha Ness comes from the Old Norse for ‘Headland of Volcanic Rock’. Black basalts and purple andesites make up the geology, and agates and amethysts can be found within these hard volcanic rocks.
Backpacking at the Holes of Scraada
Johnny Notions’ Böd
Walk around the seaward side of the lighthouse and along the top of Calder’s Geo, where many seabirds will be nesting below your feet.
Calder’s Geo is a huge void cutting into the cliffs at Esha Ness. Kittiwakes (known locally as ‘waegs’) and fulmars (‘maalies’) nest here, while razorbills (‘sea craas’) and guillemots (‘looms’) can also be seen. Everyone’s favourite seabird, the puffin (‘tammy norrie’) is also present, and shags (‘scarfs’) nest at the bottom of the cliffs.
John Williamson of Hamnavoe is one of many great characters remembered by all in the North Mavine area. Always known locally as Johnnie Notions because of his inventive mind, in the 18th century he designed his own inoculation against smallpox, saving thousands of local Shetlanders from this terrible disease without losing a single patient – and all without the benefit of any kind of education! The Böd, which is now a small bunkhouse, stands where his house once was, and is a great place to spend the night.
Walk around Calder’s Geo and continue along what must surely be some of Britain’s most dramatic coastline. In two places the sea has found weaknesses in the rocks of the cliffs and forced subterranean passages through to blow-holes set well back from the cliff edge. One of the best examples of this is at the Holes of Scraada near the Loch of Houlland.
The Loch of Houlland is a good place to see breeding arctic terns (known hereabouts as ‘scooty aalins’) and great skuas (‘bonxies’). These birds can be very aggressive if you approach their nests or young, so be warned!
The cliffs continue, taking you past the Grind of the Navir as you approach the Head of Stanshi along the Villians of Ure, a fantastic name for a cliff top if ever there was one! Continue walking around the Geo of Ure and the Dale of Ure until you enter the delightful bay of Hamna Voe. Stroll into Braehoulland and walk around to the pier. If you are staying at Johnnie Notions’ Böd you should continue around the bay past Scarff to the hamlet of Hamnavoe itself.
The Holes of Scraada
Day 2
Begin the day by heading out westwards from Johnnie Notions’ to the sea. Turn north and