St Ninian's Isle
Jun. 17th, 2019 10:36 amYesterday morning here at Sandwick was hazy but bright, and we set off to visit St Ninian's Isle, a little way south of here and off the west coast of Mainland - that is, across the long peninsula that is south Mainland. As soon as we wre up on the main north-south road, we were in low cloud, as if someone had unrolled a sheet of cotton wool across the landscape. This was worrying, not so much for our expedition as because ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
valydiarosada was due to join us on an afternoon flight, and fog might disrupt her journey.
We persevered over the spine of Mainland and down to the sea, where the sun was still shining gently. St Ninian's Isle is connected to Mainland by a tombolo, a long beach of fine pale sand (I decline to enter into arguments about whether this means it isn't really an island):
We scrambled up the sandy track onto the island, and here,for comparison, is how that sequence of islets looks from above (like the neck and head of a recumbent dragon, I thought):
The mist is visible, too, over the distant mainland, and as the morning went on it came closer. We wandered around the edge of the island, following paths that were sometimes closer to the edge than we would have liked. Those of us with distance vision (and binoculars) looked at birds; those of us without peered at flowers: great drifts of thrift! squill! one tiny boggy patch of purple butterwort! a few scraggy orchids... On a clear day, allegedly, you can see Foula, but even today there were ever-changing arrangements of rocky inlets and islands, sheep and dry stone walls shaggy with lichen. Eventually, by our separate ways, we all came to the ruined chapel, the sun emerged once more and we sat on the seat and enjoyed these things until we were ready to return to the car and (after a detour to the Spiggie Hotel, which appeared to be completely abandoned) home to lunch.
Air travel being what it is,valydiarosada's flight into Glasgow was delayed, and we were briefly anxious that the plane for Shetland would not be deterred by fog, but that she would miss it. It waited for her, though, and she arrived only a little later than scheduled. Now our party is complete, and we all dined together.
I woke this morning to heavy rain, but that has stopped, and been replaced by boisterous winds. D. has gone for a walk down to Hoswick, as I did on Saturday evening. Time to make plans for today.
valydiarosada was due to join us on an afternoon flight, and fog might disrupt her journey.We persevered over the spine of Mainland and down to the sea, where the sun was still shining gently. St Ninian's Isle is connected to Mainland by a tombolo, a long beach of fine pale sand (I decline to enter into arguments about whether this means it isn't really an island):
We scrambled up the sandy track onto the island, and here,for comparison, is how that sequence of islets looks from above (like the neck and head of a recumbent dragon, I thought):
The mist is visible, too, over the distant mainland, and as the morning went on it came closer. We wandered around the edge of the island, following paths that were sometimes closer to the edge than we would have liked. Those of us with distance vision (and binoculars) looked at birds; those of us without peered at flowers: great drifts of thrift! squill! one tiny boggy patch of purple butterwort! a few scraggy orchids... On a clear day, allegedly, you can see Foula, but even today there were ever-changing arrangements of rocky inlets and islands, sheep and dry stone walls shaggy with lichen. Eventually, by our separate ways, we all came to the ruined chapel, the sun emerged once more and we sat on the seat and enjoyed these things until we were ready to return to the car and (after a detour to the Spiggie Hotel, which appeared to be completely abandoned) home to lunch.
Air travel being what it is,
valydiarosada's flight into Glasgow was delayed, and we were briefly anxious that the plane for Shetland would not be deterred by fog, but that she would miss it. It waited for her, though, and she arrived only a little later than scheduled. Now our party is complete, and we all dined together.I woke this morning to heavy rain, but that has stopped, and been replaced by boisterous winds. D. has gone for a walk down to Hoswick, as I did on Saturday evening. Time to make plans for today.
