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Issue No 5 | Spring 2013 www..org

EXPLORE JIMMY PEREZ’S SHETLAND BBC Drama of Ann Cleeves novel starring Dougie Henshall comes to Shetland

A Crofter’s Life For Me! Olivia Abbot reflects on the changing nature of indigenous agriculture

Forty Years of Thoughtful Design The work of Richard Gibson Architects

Plus Tracking Rare Breeds Geocaching Shetland’s Otters Christmas With Brydon Thomason Shetland Books in 2012 Henry and The Waxwings www.SHETLAND.org Contents Editor: Misa Hay Cover image: Brydon Thomason, Shetland Nature Contributions and suggestions are more than welcome. Submissions can be made directly to the Editor by email to [email protected] 4. Discover Ann Cleeves’s Shetland Ann Cleeves talks about her special relationship with Shetland. Disclaimer: Although Promote Shetland has taken reasonable steps to confirm the information contained in the magazine at the time of publishing, it cannot guarantee that the information published is and remains accurate. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Promote Shetland. Events can be subject to change, we recommend you check details before travelling. 7. Mystery of Wartime Plane Crash Like Shetland on www.facebook.com/promoteshetland Paul Riddell tells the story of the unfortunate loss of two airmen.

Follow us on Twitter @promoteshetland 9. Reform Lane Elements of design.

12. Forty Years of Thoughtful Design The partners let Alastair Hamilton into some of the secrets of their success.

17. A Crofter’s Life for Me Olivia Abbot reflects on the changing nature of indigenous agriculture.

20. Shetland’s Unique Breeds Alastair Hamilton is impressed by the non-human natives.

24. Tracking Shetland’s Otters There’s nowhere better to see this adorable mammal, says Brydon Thomason.

26. Henry and the Waxwings How feeding the birds had some unexpected results.

29. 10 Questions With Jon Dunn The naturalist and guide on his favourites, from bird to kit.

31. Frightful Weather, Fair Isle Christmas Liz Musser reflects on “The Holidays” and the rhythm of island life.

34. The Sites GeoTour Lauren Doughton points the way towards a new history-related treasure hunt.

36. Shetland Books in 2012 Twelve of the Best Jordan Ogg looks back on the year past’s most notable books.

38. My Shetland Wishlist A selection of inspirational contemporary and traditional hand crafted finds.

Photograph by Sarah Laurenson, Reform Lane. Drama in Shetland!

Welcome to the first edition of 60 North in 2013. There’s been a great deal of excitement over the new BBC crime drama Shetland, based on Ann Cleeves’ book Red Bones which stars Scottish actor Dougie Henshall. This was heightened by her arrival for the launch of her fifth Shetland book Dead Water in January. With Ann’s support and input, we have produced a map of some of the real locations in the books (and other places that were the inspiration for fictional locations), which we have reproduced here.

Elsewhere, Alastair Hamilton hears some of the secrets of the success of award-winning Richard Gibson Architects. Brydon Thomason argues that there is no better place to see otters than in Shetland. Hungry Waxwings also feature in this issue, as do rare Shetland breeds and the best 12 books of 2012.

All in all, a plentiful supply of gripping reads to get you in the mood for the lighter nights and better weather (we hope!).

Happy reading!

“I always Misa Hay, thought of Shetland as being a Promote Shetland place that was so remote it was [email protected] | www.facebook.com/promoteshetland always in a wee box during the weather. Sometimes I wonder if people really know where it is or what it’s like, what the people are like and what goes on there. As a curiosity it’s worth taking a look at Shetland and you’ll discover it’s a truly beautiful place.” Dougie Henshall who plays Jimmy Perez in the BBC Drama Shetland.

60 North | Spring 2013 www.SHETLAND.org 3 Explore Jimmy Perez’s Shetland Ann Cleeves talks about her special relationship with Shetland

first came to Shetland in the mid-1970s. crew. I writing about the islands just Jimmy Perez lives in The Lodeberrie, I’d dropped out of university and quite because they’re dynamic, changing and en- a house right on the water in . I I by chance I was offered the job of as- ergetic. Don’t come to Shetland imagining love the texture of rock and weed, and sistant cook at the Bird Observatory in a place fixed in the past. History is impor- chain on the beach below it and wish I was Fair Isle, the most remote of Shetland’s tant here, but the community looks to the an artist. Lots of other places and events in islands. I arrived in the wake of gale force future, to developing sustainable energy the town appear in the books, including winds, very seasick and wondering quite and to producing even more wonderful Monty’s Bistro and of course the magnifi- what I was doing there; after all I couldn’t food. It encourages artists and crafts peo- cent Up-Helly-Aa, which takes place on the cook and I knew nothing about birds. But ple to take the traditions of knitting and last Tuesday of January. Walk up the street it was spring, the cliffs were raucous with spinning to create magnificent new textile (as Commercial Street is known) and have a seabirds and with thrift, and from the designs. Young musicians play old tunes coffee in the Peerie Shop Cafe to follow in moment I stepped ashore I was enchanted. and write their own music. The islands are Jimmy’s footsteps. I met my husband in Fair Isle. He was one of bleak and beautiful and very alive. Duncan Hunter’s house is based on the visiting birdwatchers who arrive with the Busta House Hotel in . This stun- the migrants in the autumn. He returned Raven Black ning building is a former laird’s house the following year to camp and to work Raven Black was written after a mid- and stands right on the water at . on a friend’s in return for food and trip to Shetland, a time of long There are stories of a ghost there, and sit- homebrew. He proposed while we were rid- nights and the famous Up-Helly-Aa fire fes- ting in the long room with a dram or a ing back to the croft on a trailer of hay after tival. When a teenage girl’s body is found in glass of beer it’s easy to convince your- a day in the fields. the , it’s a difficult and emotional case self that she’ll appear. All very idyllic. But it was a time of for Inspector Jimmy Perez. dramatic change in Shetland. Oil had been Ravenswick, where Catherine’s body White Nights discovered and on my rare visits to Lerwick is found and where Perez’s girlfriend Fran White Nights is a mid-summer book, a it felt like a gold rush town. There was an Hunter lives, is on the east side of Shetland time of flowers and seabirds and long, light influx of people, executives and workers Mainland, somewhere between Sandwick days. Locals speak of the “simmer dim”, the on the rigs and people who saw the chance and Levenwick. I imagine the pier at Lee- summer dusk, because in June it never real- to make money quickly. Shetland has a bitten, Sandwick, where the is ly gets dark. A stranger gate crashes a party history of strangers arriving from outside moored, but I picture the community and in The House, an art gallery. Later though, and it managed the time of tran- the fabulous beach at Levenwick. In my the man is found hanged in a shed on sition well. You have little sense of the oil mind Fran’s house is on higher land, next the beach. Murder is too close to home for industry now unless you come across the to Magnus Jimmy Perez, because his girlfriend Fran is terminal at Voe. And Shetland still Tait’s croft. So the place is a fictional one of the exhibiting artists. welcomes visitors with grace and hospital- mixture of both places and my own imagi- Most of the settings in White Nights ity, whether they’re tourists or a BBC film nation. are in – . Bid-

4 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 dista could be , though in fact it’s the there. fictitious Field Centre. Fair Isle has fantas- completely fictitious. The cliffs and the In the novel Jimmy is assisted by Shet- tic walks, a small museum and a creative Hole of Biddista are based on the breathtak- land archaeologist Val Turner – a real per- population of knitters, musicians, boat ing scenery at Eshaness. Drive to the light- son who helped both with the book and builders and poets. house and then take a very bracing walk. the BBC film. In one scene in the book, she Travel to Fair Isle, either by the mail This is a great place to watch seabirds. I’ve meets Jimmy in the Hay’s Dock Restaurant, boat, the Good Shepherd, from seen a raven’s nest on the cliff, and an otter which is in the new Shetland Museum. I at the south of Shetland Mainland, or by here too. visit the museum every time I come to Shet- small plane from Tingwall airstrip. When Peter Wilding decides to buy a land and always find something new to see place in Shetland, he finds a derelict house – and the food in the restaurant is pretty Dead Water to renovate and I was thinking of the south- spectacular too. Dead Water is the first novel in a new west of Mainland around Maywick. There The background to the book is the quartet. While the first books had colours in are beautiful places to explore in this part , the of small the titles, these will be named after the four of the island. Go a little further south to see that carried resistance fighters to oc- elements. Here journalist Jerry Markham is Spiggie Loch and the beach at Scousburgh. cupied during the war. To find out found dead drifting in a traditional in Then south again to visit the water mill at more about these brave Norwegians visit marina. A Shetlander by birth, he now Quendale. the museum at . works on a national newspaper. Has he re- The Herring House, the art gallery in turned to the islands to follow a story – per- Biddista, is loosely based on the Bonhoga, Blue Lightning haps about the development of renewable a converted mill near Weisdale. There The fourth Shetland book takes place energy – or is his reason more personal? are touring exhibitions and you’ll have a in the autumn, a time of dramatic storms. There are lots of real places in Dead chance to see and to buy local art too. The Jimmy Perez has returned to Fair Isle, the Water. You can visit the marina at Aith and Bonhoga is also a great place to stop for cof- island of his birth, to introduce his fian- a lot of the action takes place in the oil and fee or lunch if you’re visiting the area. cée Fran to his friends and family. He has a gas terminal at . The regatta in strange name and dark colouring because which the fiscal Rhona Laing takes part is Red Bones his ancestors were shipwrecked from the at St Ninian’s Isle, a beautiful and unusual Red Bones is my spring book. It’s about Spanish Armada boat, El Gran Grifon. The tombolo on the west side of the Mainland. a new birth and family secrets, hidden in wreck is still there and legend has it that There really are ferocious currents around the ground. I’m interested in digging into Fair Isle knitting derives from the bright the island of , between Shetland the past, a kind of psychological archaeol- colours and Catholic images that were seen Mainland and Yell. The island of , ogy that reveals tensions and feuds of the onboard. where Francis and Mary Watt live, is very present. The novel starts with the appar- In the novel the warden of the Field much worth a visit, especially if you’re a ently accidental death of Sandy’s grand- Centre is murdered at the height of bird birdwatcher hoping to catch a glimpse of mother, Mima, and much of the action is migration. For ornithologists Fair Isle is the red-necked phalaropes. But allow plenty seen from the young police officer’s point famous because it attracts rare migrants of time, because you’ll need to take two fer- of view. from east and west depending on the ries! Red Bones is set mostly in the friendly wind, and because of the research studies There are some fictional places too. island of . Take the ferry from- into seabirds. In the spring it’s a wonder- Hvidahus is made-up but I picture it some- Laxo or to find out where Sandy ful place to get close to puffins. Visitors are where close to in the north main- Wilson grew up and visit the graveyard welcome to stay at the grand new Fair Isle land. The crofting museum at Vatnagarth at the Houb, where Mima was buried. See Bird Observatory near to the North Haven – is based on the one at Boddam, but moved a the Hanseatic Booth at and find you don’t have to be a birder – or you could long way north. In fact the North Mainland out about the trade between the Hanseatic rent , the self-catering cottage is one of my favourite areas of Shetland League countries around the and that was the model for Jimmy’s parents’ and I’d certainly recommend a day spent the Baltic. History provides a background house in the book. It’s possible to get B&B exploring in the area. You’ll find your own to the novel and to the TV adaptation and in the South Lighthouse, which provided beaches and bays, and your own models for Shetland is famous for its archaeology. the image for the jacket of the novel, and Evie Watt’s croft, and John Henderson’s Check out and the settlement at from the observatory it’s an easy walk to house. And you probably won’t see any or take a trip to Mousa, to climb the North Lighthouse, the setting for the other visitors. THE OF MYSTERY SHETLAND DISCOVER Mystery of Wartime Plane Crash

Paul Riddell tells the story of the unfortunate loss of two airmen

o one knows precisely why an RAF land of Shetland, but his radio failed. He identified as one which would have been twin-engine De Havilland Mosqui- was accompanied to within radio range presented to an RAF navigator. The watch N to plane crashed into a hill in the of Airport by the other two air- was handed to Lylie and Douglas at a reun- South Mainland of Shetland towards the craft, which then left for Peterhead. ion of 627 Squadron in 1991. end of World War II with the loss of its pilot DZ642 never arrived at Sumburgh. With the assistance of the Cunnings- and navigator. The wreck of the Mosquito and the bodies burgh History Group, FO Irwin’s grand- But the scattered remains of the air- of its crew were found two weeks later by daughter Catherine, with her cousin Louise craft – and a memorial to Flight Lieuten- three men driving on Royl Field. The Hazard, the navigator’s grand-niece, visited ant John Alexander Reid and Flying Officer fuel tanks were empty, but it will never be the site several years ago. She told Shetland Wesley Douglas Irwin – can still be seen on known whether they had run out of fuel Times reporter Louise Thomason that her Royl Field, one of the Clift Hills overlooking and attempted an emergency landing or grandmother, who died in 2003, wore her Burra between Cunningsburgh and Sand- tried to fly beneath the clouds and crashed late husband’s medal on a chain every day. wick. The route to the site is signposted into the hillside. They were later buried in from Sandwick. Winchester and London. “She would have been thrilled to bits that The plane, DZ642 of H/627 Squadron, Poignantly, just six weeks earlier FO I’d been [to Shetland], really pleased.” had been one of three sent from Woodhill Irwin and his wife Eliza had a son, Douglas Spa in November 1944 to mark German David Irwin. Father and son had only met She added: U-boat pens at Trondheim in Norway for once and the family never had a photo- a subsequent Lancaster bombing raid. In- graph taken together. “The memorial was really nice to see, too. explicably, when the aircraft stopped off After her husband’s death Eliza, We grew up with stories in the family, so to see for refuelling at Lossiemouth on the way known as Lylie, took their son to Canada how much interest people have here is quite north, DZ642 was not topped up. to meet his paternal relatives, returning 18 touching.” The Germans, clearly aware of the months later after the war had ended. mission, put up a smokescreen over Trond- FO Irwin’s watch was found in the heim, which meant the aircraft were forced wreckage by one of the three crofters who to turn for home without completing their discovered the plane, George Mann. He left task. it to his nephew John and tasked him with Running low on fuel, the pilot tried to tracing relatives of the dead men. Through land at Scatsta Airport in the North Main- the British Horological Institute, it was

60 North | Spring 2013 www.SHETLAND.org 7 Scattered remains of WW II RAF twin-engine De Havilland Mosquito aircraft. Reform Lane Sarah Laurenson Elements of Design

Wedding Gown Sun on beach Ruby

eform Lane is a clothing and acces- throwing seaweed for Ruby, I thought photos I absent-mindedly took on the sories label that captures the light, about how amazing it would be to run my beach that day would become a geometric R mood and movement of Shetland’s own business. That thought had been nig- print design which kick-started the first coastal landscapes in beautiful printed, gling at me for a few months, since a trip to Reform Lane collection. I shuffled the im- dyed and draped textiles. Owner and de- Paris to buy fabric and trims for a bespoke ages around on my computer and had the signer Sarah Laurenson tells us how the sea wedding dress I was making in my spare results digitally printed on silk, cotton and influences everything she designs. time. At this point I was working in a full- linen. From there, I started pulling fabrics The first Reform Lane design was an time marketing job for the wool industry, out of my stash and messing around with accident. I was on the Sands of Sound beach which I loved. But I just couldn’t shake off paints and dyes. After about a month of in Lerwick walking Ruby, my mum’s dog, the idea of starting out on my own, creat- thinking and designing, full of optimism in early April. A series of incidents that day ing beautiful pieces every day. I wanted to and creative fervour, I quit my job. Every- meant that I was out in the late afternoon, be able to take the colours and light that I one around me had a miniature heart at- just as the sun was starting to slip away. I saw around me on my walks, and harness tack – not least my boyfriend, Jordan. We was relaxed. Ruby was happy. The light was them in fabrics for other people to wear had bought a house in Lerwick’s old town, beautiful, like it was piercing the sea. and treasure. in Reform Lane, the year before and here As I wandered, taking pictures and I didn’t know it at the time, but the I was, giving up my job. I didn’t have any

60 North | Spring 2013 www.SHETLAND.org 9 products yet, or even a proper plan. I just stuff it throws up, how light bends and professional weep. It’s early days, but if knew I had to do it. bounces on its surface and how it distorts there’s anything I’ve learned from the last It would be a couple of months before the landscape and fragments colour in its six months, it’s to follow your instincts to I set up the business, finished up at my day reflections. the point that you terrify yourself. I also job and launched the first collection. Dur- Since launching Collection #1, a line learned to fully appreciate the beauty of ing that time several things happened: I of scarves and home accessories, Reform my home, and how infectious it can be. I got a freelance contract to edit a book on Lane pieces have found their way all over still have moments where I realise how the history and culture of Shetland textiles the world: mostly to Canada and USA, but lucky I am to be able to share Shetland, the (due to be launched later this year) and also to Sweden, Japan, Russia and through- way I see it, with other people through Re- we moved from our little house in Reform out the UK. I love hearing from customers form Lane. Lane after Jordan was offered a new job in about how they connect with the pieces Edinburgh. Needless to say, life was a bit (especially the hand-dyed silk scarves) as Collection #1 is available from the Re- crazy for a while. Everything changed. little slivers of Shetland’s waves, and how form Lane online shop: The one thing that has remained con- they think of them as timeless treasures or www.reformlane.co.uk stant throughout all the upheaval is the in- pieces of jewellery imbued with a sense of fluence of the sea. The constantly changing place. The Sands of Sound print, which fea- See behind the scenes at Reform Lane on colour and texture of the water is always on tures the photos I took on the beach that af- the blog: my mind; even more so when I’m far away ternoon last April, is the best selling line so www.reformlane.blogspot.com from it. The experience of the city makes far. It twinkles, just like the sun on the sea. the ocean seem larger in my head, a pull- Reform Lane will continue on a path of Contact: ing force with an influence that’s impossi- happy accidents, with planning that would [email protected] ble to avoid – the way it moves, the weird have made my former self as a marketing

Sands of Sound Print Sands of Sound Circle Seaward Scarf

Navir Mantle Legeron Silk Wrap Ruby

10 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 White Horses

Owner and designer Sarah Laurenson tells how the sea influences everything she designs Da Vadill and Grodians by Phatsheep Photography

Forty Years of Thoughtful Design The Work of Richard Gibson Architects The directors let Alastair Hamilton into some of the secrets of their success

What makes a place? The obvious in- tectural Association along with his friend onic proposal to develop what was known gredients include the landscape and the Richard Rogers who went on to establish as “Nordport” oil terminal in the North buildings, both of which are influenced by an international reputation. Richard Gib- Mainland, another was Hudson’s offshore climate, culture and tradition. People make son chose a different, northerly path. He service base at Sandwick, a job which places too, of course, altering them physi- worked as an architect in London for a few turned up “out of the blue” while he was cally to meet their needs and filling them years but, in 1968, was tempted to Shetland still working out his notice at the council. with life and personality. to work for the Shetland Islands Council. Richard recalls with amusement that this Buildings help define the identity of a He had seen an opportunity to tackle a firm “didn’t take any advice, ever”, not place, whether it’s a planned city, a float- range of projects, some of them quite ambi- least about the chosen location, which lo- ing oriental market or a Shetland crofting tious given the size of the design team. As cal knowledge clearly indicated was unsuit- township. Buildings may convey an impres- he recalls, able. sion of power or poverty, welcome or hostil- He designed a new knitwear factory, ity, sensitivity or arrogance. They’re a living “They were building the library and muse- too. A little later, the first of many council record of the lives, needs and tastes of the um, the swimming pool and Bell’s Brae Primary projects came along, in the form of a new people who created them. They certainly School.” primary school in the village of Hamnavoe. help to shape a visitor’s first impression of All of these larger projects were leavened any community. It was a chance to gain a wide range of by some smaller scale work, for example Here in Shetland Richard Gibson Ar- experience in an interesting place. the restoration of houses in the Lerwick chitects have been creating new buildings Richard set up on his own in 1972 tak- lanes, an Outstanding Conservation Area. and breathing new life into old ones for ing on a range of work for private clients. Housing and schools formed an im- many years. His decision to establish his own firm in portant part of the firm’s workload, with Richard was born in London and de- Shetland coincided with the arrival of the the number of houses designed for the cided to study architecture after being oil industry and he soon became involved Scottish Airports Housing Association and inspired as a lad by a visit to the Festival in the excitement of speculative oil-related its successor, the Hjaltland Housing As- of Britain in 1951. He trained at the Archi- projects. One of these was a rather embry- sociation, running well into the hundreds

12 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 of homes. Richard remembers them as “re- Adrian, Nick and Richard clearly gain ally interesting projects”. However, at the a great deal of satisfaction from their work government’s insistence, the very early and running a practice in Shetland brings developments had to be built on very tight some interesting challenges and opportu- budgets. “Everything was cut right down nities. Nick points to the importance, for a to the bone.” Subsequently, the funding of Shetland firm, of understanding the logis- such projects has been put on a better foot- tics of building in the islands and the im- ing and developments such as the award- pact of logistics on running contracts. winning 34-house Grodians in Lerwick at- tain excellent standards within the homes “It’s significant in terms of getting jobs and with the care in designing the external done on time. Some Contractors and Architects environment. from outside Shetland have faced difficulties be- Among these projects was a housing cause they didn’t understand how these logistical The firm takes time to analyse and development in the Lerwick Lanes, at John issues might affect large and complex buildings.” understand the client’s requirements, then Jamieson’s Closs. That job was made more suggests some options which would meet challenging, says Richard, because some- Adrian likes the variety of work that’s those needs and wants. Adrian makes the one from the housing association available. “As an architect,” he says, point that getting the design right is “a journey”. Talking with the client, ideas “had used the wrong scale when he meas- “you can specialise, but I feel that, in Shet- are considered and rejected, refined and ured up the site and said how many houses he land, you get a shot at every kind of job, which I improved, until there’s an agreed solution. wanted! So it is very, dense!” think is a good thing for any practice.” “You often find that they get something be- Fitting the required number of homes He adds that achieving durability is yond what they thought they would get; but it is onto the site was, challenging, however essential: a joint effort.” the development was accomplished so suc- cessfully that the scheme won one of the “Quite often, what we’re doing up here is Nick adds that they can sometimes four Saltire Society Awards that have so far a bit more belt and braces than what they’re do- have a wider impact on projects. For ex- come to Shetland. ing on the mainland. It’s about specification of ample, they may identify a way in which a materials and sticking to things that you know building can be run with fewer staff, or can work, while cautiously trying out new ideas to be designed in such a way that it doesn’t remain progressive.” need a lift, either of which can reduce costs enormously. The firm explores how the client will Talking with the client, use the building at different times of day, or suggest how a house can be designed so ideas are considered and that it adapts easily to different stages in the family’s life. They have a clear focus on rejected, refined and practical issues. As Adrian says, The firm’s workload gradually ex- improved, until there’s “people are realising that bigger houses cost panded and, at one especially busy period, a lot to heat, and often a great deal to paint”, eight staff were employed. Today, it’s run an agreed solution. by Richard himself and by two co-directors, an issue that has become more promi- Nick Brett and Adrian Wishart, both of Certainly, the firm’s portfolio is im- nent with the use of Scandinavian-style whom have been Architects with the prac- pressively broad, ranging from the resto- timber cladding on many Shetland homes. tice for some time. ration of listed buildings like Lerwick’s In fact, according to Nick, Their work mix has changed in recent Harbour House to innovative, “off-grid” years. Housing remains important with a houses. “we spend a lot of time trying to persuade notable increase with the number of pri- So, what can an architect do for his or people to make their houses smaller”! vate clients looking for well crafted individ- her client? For Nick, the clear benefit is the ually-designed homes. quality of design and the creative thought Adrian adds that it’s often possible to Have buyers been inspired by televi- that goes into every project; his job begins reduce the size, reduce the cost and come sion programmes such as Grand Designs? with up with a design that is better suited to the Nick thinks that such series have been family’s needs and budget. It’s about “quite enlightening” for both clients and “working through what they initially want architects. Adrian adds that it’s re-assuring and helping them develop an understanding of “Good, sensible design, not having acres to see that many of the same issues tend to what they’re going to get. We have ways of look- of corridor space. People sometimes come to us arise in house-building wherever the pro- ing at things that can quite quickly get to some expecting that we’ll produce a design with a cen- ject is located. of the core issues and aspirations”. tral corridor, which is the standard kit house

60 North | Spring 2013 www.SHETLAND.org 13 Shetlanders have a strong interest in scale of these new houses in the landscape local history and the islands have a remark- appears relatively modest, yet they offer a able network of very active local history surprising amount of accommodation and groups. These groups operate a number of storage, with spacious, open-plan layouts, local museums, one of which, in Scalloway, often partly double-height. Insulation lev- had long outgrown its cramped accommo- els are high and heating and hot water may dation. It has always drawn many visitors, well be provided by heat pumps or other not least because it tells the heroic story of modern means. These houses are designed solution, but the “Shetland Bus”, the service which used to offer flexibility in the use of space over there are many other ways, small fishing vessels to sustain the resist- the long term. often more efficient ways, of arranging things”. ance in occupied Norway during the Sec- ond World War. Cost control is an essential part of any A former knitwear factory next door project. Clients may come from well be- to became available and yond the shores of Shetland, in which case Richard Gibson Architects was appointed jobs are managed for them remotely. They to design and oversee the conversion, might make only a couple of visits to the which has been very successfully achieved. islands during the design and building pro- Steel cladding was replaced with unpaint- cess. At present, Richard Gibson Architects ed larch, which echoes the grey walls of are working on Shetland projects with cli- the castle. A striking new glazed entrance ents based in Aberdeen and Glasgow. opens up the view of the castle and its sur- Another client, a Shetlander now roundings. Inside, underfloor heating op- Richard Gibson, Nick Brett and Adrian working in Houston, Texas, is developing erated using heat pumps and a very high Wishart can look back on a very impressive an ambitious project on the uninhabited is- level of insulation have created the right track record of successful design, based on land of near Walls, in Shetland’s West environment for the exhibits, which are a commitment to quality and a desire – as Mainland. It involves the restoration of var- now very effectively displayed. Adrian puts it ious old buildings to form high-quality, en- vironmentally-sound self-catering accom- “to be sure that clients will still be happy modation. Energy will come entirely from in Shetland, you get a many years down the line”. sources in the island, via wind and heat Nick sums up the approach: pump technology. Energy conservation will shot at every kind of be a priority, so there will be exceptionally job, which I think is a “I think we try to deliver good buildings high levels of insulation. Water will need that are interesting and thoughtful and well de- to be captured from rain and drawn from good thing. veloped; and I think we do that.” a well. A new loch will be created, too, and the development also requires a new jetty Sometimes, a building needs to be This small rural practice has repeat- and breakwater. For Richard, Adrian and discreet. In the public park in the centre of edly won national design awards through Nick, it’s a fascinating project, not least Lerwick, the main feature is the wonderful creating good new buildings in which in dealing with the logistics of running a floral displays which the ground staff cre- people live, learn and work, conserving project in a small island where there are no ate for much of the year. The old park shed the heritage and strengthening the sense existing services of any kind. needed to be replaced and the chosen so- of place. It was thoroughly fitting that, in A very different set of challenges was lution was a larger pavilion offering space 2010, Richard Gibson was presented with involved in Da Vadill, a development of for equipment storage and hire, a meeting Scottish architecture’s highest accolade, a housing for Hjaltland Housing Association. room and public toilets. Users include the Lifetime Award from the Roy- The site, formerly occupied by a fish fac- bowling club, whose green is immediately al Incorporation of Architects in tory, is located at a busy road junction, ex- adjacent. The resulting building is an el- (RIAS). There’s no doubt that the practice posed both to heavy traffic and a potential egant response to those diverse needs; the continues to make a very positive impact risk of tidal flooding. The solution involved carefully-chosen shade of green manages to on Shetland. raising the development well above road look just right at every season of the year. level and taking access from the higher lev- Adrian and Nick explain that the ap- el to the rear. Small garden areas were used proach of their private housing is evolving, to soften the frontage and the development but they always take full account of the achieves good levels of privacy. Overall, it’s qualities of the site and pay particular at- a particularly thoughtful design, making tention to getting the proportions of the excellent use of a difficult site. The de- house right. Sometimes, a client may be a velopment won the Saltire Society’s 2012 self-builder; others prefer to employ a build- Award for new building and also picked up ing firm to undertake the whole job. Either an award from the Inverness Architectural way, Richard Gibson Architects work close- Association. ly with the client to develop the design. The

14 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 1 4

2 3

1 Scalloway Museum Interior, RGA 2 Interior of the Tresta House Under Construction, RGA 3 Harbour House, RGA 4 The new Scalloway Museum, Promote Shetland 5 Da Vadill (overleaf), Phatsheep Photography Da Vadill, Lerwick

5 A Crofter’s Life for Me! Olivia Abbot reflects on the changing nature of indigenous agriculture

rofting is as much a part of Shet- are given over to sheep, and very few croft- Bringing it all together to get 10 al- land’s history, landscape and cul- ers depend entirely on the land for their pacas to Shetland and find land and some- C ture as are the land and people living. But there are some out there who where to live required some juggling, but themselves. Of course, things have changed are doing things a little bit differently. after a temporary stay in the south of the a lot since the bad old days before the Croft- island, Shetland Alpacas now has a perma- ing Act of 1886 when people rented their Woolly-headed ideas nent home in . houses and bits of land from the laird with- Colin and Philly Arnot had been think- out any security. ing about moving north for some time, so Crofter and amateur historian James when Colin was offered a post in Shetland Tait explains: “People had a few sheep, a – although “it was a bit more north than cow – maybe two if your land could sustain we’d intended!” – they decided to take it – you might have had a to eat, and a leap of faith. The only proviso was that basically what you had was what you had Philly’s beloved alpacas had to make the to feed yourself.” journey up from too. It was very much a subsistence life- style. It was very much a “People grew various crops for themselves subsistence lifestyle. and their animals – Shetland oats, bere (an old kind of barley), potatoes, turnips and cabbage, Was it a daunting prospect, bringing When they arrived three-and-a-half a variety of things – and then there was the an animal more at home in the Andes to years ago, Philly was surprised to discover sea,” continues James. “Folk here could not have Shetland? that she was the only person with alpacas survived without the sea in the old days – the in Shetland, but soon turned this to her land couldn’t have sustained everybody. And, of “Well, we’d been having some terrible advantage, trading on her uniqueness. course, they had to pay rent in some form or an- snowy winters down in Dorset, so the weather’s Finding herself in an established textile- other to the laird.” not really that different,” says Philly. “Daylight producing community has been a great levels are just as much an issue down south, so boon – always a knitter, she now spins, and Nowadays, of course, it’s a different we were already giving them vitamins for that, makes felt accessories from the alpaca fibre picture – the majority of crofts in Shetland and they’ve been very fit and healthy.” to sell at shows and through the website.

60 North | Spring 2013 www.SHETLAND.org 17

5 “I’m deliberately doing things that are a Living off the land as well in order to make ends meet). bit different,” she says, “because it’s not Shetland Alan Robertson and Penny Armstrong “We want to be self-sufficient off the wool, I don’t do Fair Isle patterns or anything have been at their croft on Turriefield land by making a living off it rather than like that.” since 2008, and to say they are rooted and eating off it, I suppose,” says Alan, who grounded in the soil there is not entirely a originally comes from Lerwick. Colin and Philly feel they’ve been poetic exaggeration. The couple came – in “We believe everybody should have ac- welcomed into the community in North- Alan’s case, back – to Shetland from Edin- cess to fresh veg,” says Penny, which is why mavine and have no regrets about their burgh intent on expanding their already the couple established “Transition Turrie- move a bit further north than planned. pretty self-sufficient lifestyle. field” as a community interest company Philly balances caring for the alpacas with Not many crofters these days can live – meaning all money made goes back into her work as a nurse, but ultimately plans entirely off the land they own, but this is the business or into the community – with to concentrate full time on the animals. what Alan and Penny plan as part of their the aim of providing the local community Ideas for the future include working with unique vision for the croft (although at the with organically grown fresh vegetables. autistic children – there is evidence to sug- moment both are having to work part-time The couple set up a veg box scheme gest that spending time with alpacas can – something more familiar to the middle be very beneficial – and offering “Paca Pic- classes in genteel Edinburgh than to croft- nics”, where you take an alpaca on a walk, ers and mill workers in Shetland, but they stopping for a picnic on the way. were confident that, using all their own They are also planning to breed alpac- produce, it could work. as to sell, and have already had some inter- est from crofters and craftspeople. “We knew the market in locally produced goods was strong,” says Alan. “Shetlanders are “They’re so easy to look after compared very loyal to locally produced stuff!” with sheep, for instance,” says Philly. So it may Indeed, the couple’s main be that she is not the only alpaca farmer in Shet- has been keeping up with demand – they land for much longer. have a waiting list of customers for the box scheme and the honesty box at the end of www.shetlandalpacas.co.uk the road where passers-by can help them-

18 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 selves to produce is always emptied almost bers the “hoose coo” that they kept for milk as soon as it is filled. long after the rest of the herd had gone. But they are working hard to keep up James and his brother, though, cannot with demand, while at the same time stick- rely on the sheep entirely for their income ing to one of their main principles: to be as and so both have other interests. Cecil, the fuel-free as possible. “All the land out younger of the two, makes furniture in there has been cleared by or by hand,” Scalloway, while James has thrown himself says Alan. The croft also has sheep, turkeys, wholeheartedly into that most modern of geese, ducks and hens, for meat and eggs. industries – tourism. And once the pigs have done their job, they become bacon, sausages and pork chops to “It wasn’t something I planned,” he ex- feed the workers. plains. “I knew Elma Johnson, who ran Island Trails – she was my dad’s second cousin – and I “We’ve now got twice as much ground started taking people on walks round St Ninian’s cleared as we had last year, so we’ve more room Isle for her, and things just grew from there.” for planting,” says Alan. “Each year we try to ex- pand what we’re doing.” James was soon doing lots more walks James Tait There’s no doubt Alan and Penny work and tours and also taking part in Elma’s “In hard, but they clearly love it. Aboot Da Night” evenings, giving him the opportunity to demonstrate his knowledge “We have volunteers – local people and visi- of the history and culture of the islands. tors who come from all around the world to help “And I loved it,” he says. So much so that, out – who would love to change the way they live, when Elma sadly died early last year, James but they have no way to start,” says Penny. “We took on Island Trails as his own business. feel very lucky.” Fitting running a croft around a busy summertime tourism business isn’t neces- www.turriefieldveg.co.uk sarily easy, but James shares the work with his dad and brother. “The proportion of Juggling sheep and tourists time I spend on the croft and Island Trails James Tait is the sixth generation of varies from month to month, depending his family to farm the croft at in on the needs of the different things,” he the south of Shetland. Born and brought says. up there, he remembers “as peerie boys my Looking to the future, James has plans brother and I always helping my dad out” for Island Trails but it has to fit in around and now the croft is run as a business by the sheep. his father, his brother and himself. Like most crofters these days, the Taits “I’d like to be able to broaden out the season keep sheep, though rather than native a bit,” he says. “Of course, I can’t do much earlier , they keep a hardy Welsh – in April or May – because of the lambing, but Alan & Penny breed called Lleyns crossed with a Suffolk I’d like to do more in September and October!” ram. Gone are the days when James’s dad kept , though James himself remem- www.island-trails.co.uk

James was soon doing lots more walks and tours

60 North | Spring 2013 www.SHETLAND.org 19 From cattle to bumblebees Shetland’s Unique Breeds Alastair Hamilton is impressed by the non-human natives

s Charles Darwin realised during It was their small size and strength Several breeders are active in the islands, the voyage of the Beagle, islands of- that led to Shetland ponies being exten- though prices for ponies tend to be quite A ten harbour rare species or sub-spe- sively used in coal mines. In 1842, it became low. The breed today is su- cies. In the Galapagos and elsewhere, his illegal to employ boys under the age of 10, pervised by the Shetland Pony Stud-Book analysis of the indigenous animal and bird or women, for underground work in British Society. life led him to develop his theory of natu- pits. The pony was the ideal replacement These days, Shetland ponies are kept ral selection, the foundation for all subse- and, during the latter part of the 19th cen- mostly as riding animals for children and quent scientific thinking about evolution. tury, pony studs were established in Shet- they often feature at gymkhanas. One of Shetland is, of course, far less remote land for the purpose of breeding suitable the high points of the year is the Shetland than the Galapagos, but there are island animals. At the Marquis of Londonderry’s Pony Grand National, held every December variations in both domestic and wild spe- stud, established in the adjoining Shet- during the London International Horse cies of plants and animals. Around the Show at London’s Olympia. Their popular- world, children have been captivated by ity ensures that the breed, probably the is- Shetland ponies, and the Shetland sheep- the Shetland cow very lands’ most potent symbol, will be around dog is probably commoner outside Shet- for many generations to come. land than in the islands. However, the is- nearly didn’t survive. lands host a whole range of other unique numbers recover breeds, some of them very rare indeed. land islands of and Noss, the aim Ronnie Eunson, who farms near Scal- of breeding was to produce ponies with “as loway and has patiently promoted native The iconic pony much weight as possible and as near to the breeds, explains that the Shetland cow There’s no question that the best- ground as can be got”, an instruction which was “the dominant domesticated animal” known of the islands’ special breeds is the may well have had some influence on the in Shetland until 19th century landown- Shetland pony. It’s been present in the is- breed up to the present day, no doubt ac- ers began to realise the profits that could lands from prehistoric times and may have centuating the animal’s stocky character. be made from introducing large numbers distant cousins in . In Shetland, Today, it’s still possible to see groups of sheep. There would once have been tens it was typically used for carrying peats of ponies all over Shetland and, in summer, of thousands of cattle in Shetland, he says, home from the hill or for pulling a plough. the presence of a coach by the roadside of- yet today there are probably no more than The ponies are remarkably strong for their ten indicates that the driver has found a 2,000 of all breeds. Of those, only 200-300 size and they are, of course, very hardy. herd which his passengers can photograph. are of the Shetland breed, which – as Ron-

20 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 nie points out – is about half the world pop- they would probably look very similar to them ulation. That makes them, he says, rarer as well. Descendants of wild cattle were domesti- than “endangered” Bengal tigers. Shetland cated and then several strains were maintained cattle are classified by the Rare Breeds Sur- over the years, because they happened to be the vival Trust as “at risk”, with between 450 best for whatever the conditions were”. and 750 animals in existence. In fact, the Shetland cow very nearly Ronnie says that analysis has shown didn’t survive. At one point, there were that the animals here are ‘fundamentally only a couple of dozen left and Ronnie different, inasmuch as their profiles are explains that “agricultural fashion, and more characteristic of wild animals rather demands from the markets and from gov- than domesticated or modern commercial ernment, dictated that the cows were too breeds, which tend to have a very narrow small and weren’t suitable for modern ag- genetic base based on some aspect of pro- riculture”. duction, whereas the Shetland breeds’ ge- netic base is founded on survival”.

Shetland native lamb The fine wool, too, is highly prized for its softness. As discerning customers focus is recognised by the more and more on provenance and integ- rity, there has been increasing interest in European Union as a exactly the kinds of high-quality products – like native lamb, native wool and artisan unique regional product. products made from wool – which Shet- land can offer. The efficient Shetland sheep In Shetland, Ronnie continues, that Like Shetland cattle, the native Shet- Ducks and hens almost disap- was the position land sheep almost certainly has close rela- peared tives elsewhere around the Atlantic periph- Over centuries, Shetland crofters have “Right up until the opening of the slaugh- ery. Ronnie says that on the Scandinavian kept many kinds of poultry. However, like terhouse, and it’s only now that folk are able to edge, Iceland, Faroe and the , “the the cattle, the species most closely associ- see any value back from them again. We’ve been short-tailed sheep breeds all exhibit similar ated with Shetland had begun to disap- selling them down in London this past season for characteristics”. Again, it’s a breed that has pear. On their croft in the island of Tron- the first time and as far as we can tell the reports become hardy through surviving in a hard dra, Mary and Tommy Isbister have been are very good”. climate and subsisting on rough vegeta- involved, for more than three decades, in tion, even on seaweed. That has made it, in trying to ensure the survival not only of But, as he explains, the smaller car- Ronnie’s view, poultry but also of the Shetland cow. They case isn’t something that butchers are used keep sheep and ponies, too. to working with, and very few shops so far “Probably the most efficient herbivore that Mary thinks the Shetland duck prob- sell Shetland native , despite its excel- exists in Britain, because of their capacity to cope ably has Norwegian ancestors, but in any lent flavour. with the environment and the weather. If they’re event the number left in Shetland had now seen as the basis of several cross breeds, it’s dwindled into single figures by the 1980s. because of their ability to survive”. She and Tommy have been breeding them for many years, having rescued them from The number of Shetland native sheep extinction. They tracked one down in hasn’t varied as much as the number of cat- and found two others in Nesting and Muck- tle. There was a peak in total sheep num- le Roe, so that all the Shetland ducks now bers in response to high levels of govern- alive have come from that original, tiny ment or European subsidy, but recent years group. have seen a decline to a more realistic level. The jury is still out on whether the Shetland lamb and mutton enjoy an Shetland hen is or is not a unique breed. excellent reputation and Shetland native However, older people recall these small, lamb is recognised by the European Union black, pigeon-like birds being kept on The Shetland cow resembles breeds in as a unique regional product in the same crofts and farms early in the 20th century. Norway, Faroe and Iceland and may well be way as Melton Mowbray pies, Champagne As with the ducks, Mary and Tommy had quite close to them, genetically. There was or Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. Analysis to put a great deal of effort into locating once an breed, too, but it has disap- of Shetland lamb has indicated that it has surviving birds and building up a breeding peared. Indeed, says Ronnie, noticeably greater amounts of omega 3 and flock. “I suppose if you go back far enough, and omega 6 – the healthy fatty acids – than There have been suggestions that the you shave some of the hair off the Highland cow, other breeds. Shetland hen is closely related to South

60 North | Spring 2013 www.SHETLAND.org 21 American birds, the theory being that they the sun. One example is the Shetland “I don’t think you can ever have a future were brought back to Spain by the conquis- Wren, which is slightly larger than its with rare breeds. They have to have a place in tadors and that they were then carried southern relatives, perhaps also to help the marketplace. And I tend to disagree with the aboard the that found their way conserve warmth; it has a different, slight- idea that something is only special if it’s rare.” to Shetland after the defeat of the Armada ly louder, song, too. There is also a further in 1588. Mary says: sub-species of wren in Fair Isle, a little more like the European Wren but still distinct. “It may be a fairy story, but I know that Young Starlings are also a little darker in old folk on the west side of Shetland called them colour than their counterparts elsewhere. ‘ hens’ and that story goes around a lot. Shetland also has at least three sub- Caithness has similar stories. It would be inter- species of Field Mouse, found in Fair Isle, esting to go to Spain and see if there are any de- Foula and Yell, each of which differs in tails of what the galleons did carry to Shetland.” small ways from their British or European cousins. There are unique sub-species of moths, bumblebees and other insects, too. Ronnie emphasises the appropriate- ness of the native breeds. The future of Shetland’s rare “If you’re a crofter and you want to keep breeds some cattle, to feed you and your family, or to As the Rare Breeds Survival Trust sell a few, then you have a breed that doesn’t un- points out, the lost 26 rare dergo the same degree of stress when it’s facing breeds of farm animal between 1900 and the same rigours. I see it as a potential way of 1973, a decline which the trust and many increasing the cattle numbers in Shetland.” farmers such as the Isbisters and Ronnie Unique varieties of plants, animals Eunson have succeeded in halting. The loss These days, people increasingly ques- and birds of more rare breeds would diminish the tion the standardisation, centralisation It’s not only in its domestic animals gene pool and we’d lose breeds which, like and over-processing that have become so that Shetland has unique species or sub- the Shetland cow and sheep, are perfectly closely associated with food production. species. Among plants, Edmondston’s adapted to their environment and are That opens up an opportunity for the farm- Chickweed is unique not just to Shetland outstandingly efficient. Indeed, Shetland er or community offering produce that has but to the island of Unst, and several spe- used to have a distinctive pig, the reput- authenticity, integrity and great flavour. cies of hawkweed are unique to the islands. edly quite fierce , but it disappeared If the Shetland farming community can The Shetland Red Campion is also recog- during the 19th century and all that now seize that opportunity and give the cus- nised as a distinct sub-species. exists is a reconstruction in the Shetland tomer beef and lamb that comes with those Some Shetland sub-species are darker Museum. guarantees, the future of Shetland’s native in colour than those found elsewhere, a Mary Isbister and Ronnie Eunson breeds of cattle and sheep will be that tendency known as melanism. This may would agree that the future of rare breeds much more secure. At the same time, the stem from an evolutionary trend towards lies in their gaining greater commercial islands’ identity as a source of first-class a shade which absorbs more warmth from popularity. As Mary says, food will be greatly strengthened.

22 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 Ducks and hens almost disappeared In Shetland Tracking Shetland’s Otters There’s nowhere better to see this adorable mammal, says Brydon Thomason

here has been much focus on special places for them. But nowhere else of coastline they inhabit and the fact that otters in the media over recent in Britain (and indeed most probably the they hunt during daylight hours that make T months, and very rightly so. entire range of the Eurasian otter) has so the islands the best place to see otters in Thankfully this is built around the very much study been done of these captivating the wild. wonderful success story of the gradual and semi-aquatic mammals. Though killer whales are a very close ongoing recovery of otter populations in contender for the status of ultimate icon Britain today. All across the nation animals to attract visitors to Shetland, they are re- are being seen once again where they had So what makes Shetland alistically a “pot luck” or “stroke of luck” all but disappeared. spectacle for visitors. To be in with a chance Here in the Shetland Islands a similar so special for otters? you cross your fingers and hope that you success story for otters was being told some are in the right place at the right time and 40 to 50 years ago when, after many genera- From the legendary and some might that you get connected to the local grape- tions during which otters were hunted for even say revolutionary TV documentary, vine. With otters, however, with planning their highly prized pelts, the population Track of The Wild Otter by wildlife camera- and making the right choices and often a slowly started to grow. By the early 1980s, man Hugh Miles way back in the late 1980s, great deal of patience, encounters can be when they became protected by law un- to The Springwatch Guide To Otters just a predicted when you know when, how and der the Wildlife and Countryside Act, the matter of weeks ago, Shetland’s otters have where to look. Of course one would be Shetland otter population was stable. Since featured in countless TV documentaries hard-pressed to compare the two. If you are then Shetland has been the place that otter and tantalised viewers across the globe. lucky enough to enjoy either or perhaps enthusiasts and experts alike either return So what makes Shetland so special both, your life will never be the same again! to again and again or dream of someday for otters? Here they adapted and evolved Few experiences can compare to the travelling to so they can be alone with wild to be much more at home along the salt- thrill of tracking an otter family along a otters. water shores where their daily routine es- beautiful and remote Shetland shoreline. Of course the west coast of Scotland sentially revolves around the rhythm of the Watching a mother and her cubs go about and Western Isles are also renowned for tides. It is a combination of this high den- their daily routine in the undisturbed nat- otters, and most certainly these are very sity, the geography of the remote stretches ural environment is a very special, exhila-

24 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 rating and often emotive experience. There holts. Nearly 30 years on the thrill has nev- ing below the skyline so as to avoid making are few creatures that have the ability to er left me, and I consider myself extremely a silhouette. encapsulate both the “aw” and the “wow” fortunate to have built a career around my Of course there are exceptions to this factors like otters do. They have many quali- passion for them. and many often learn to tolerate human ties which make them attractive and popu- By nature otters are known to be shy activity such as in and around ferry termi- lar to us, from their stealthy hunting and and complex animals, and to enjoy good nals and fishing ports. Often visitors and is- predatory abilities to the intimate, ador- and unintrusive encounters with them landers alike may enjoy an encounter while able and playful antics of a mother and in their natural environment much care, waiting for a ferry to arrive or depart as an her cubs. For a mammal to be so supremely caution and consideration is needed. Gen- otter fishes close by, or perhaps crosses the adapted to be such a master of its aquatic erally speaking knowledge and awareness terminal car park seemingly unaware or environment further enhances our awe of when, where and how you search will unperturbed by human activity. It should and appreciation. usually affect how good your encounters always be remembered however that even My story with otters began before I are. As is the case with tracking most elu- in such circumstances these animals are had ever seen one. My fascination for them sive carnivores, common sense is perhaps still wild and should be treated with the had a hold of me even before I first recall the most valuable commodity, and smell, same sensitivity as they would be in a re- seeing them at just seven years old. Grow- sound and sight should always be consid- mote location far from the daily presence ing up, I was tantalised and enthralled by ered. Wind direction is the most important of man. tales of otters and their superior wits and as their sense of smell is remarkably sensi- abilities as hunters – and of course hunted! tive; making as little noise as possible, even If you would like to see otters in Shet- Before I was 10 years old I was exploring by choosing every footstep tentatively, es- land you may be interested in Brydon’s ot- their world by reading their signs, finding pecially on pebbly beaches or wet ground; ter watching and/or photography trips at spraints and following runs and locating wearing earth-coloured clothing and keep- www.shetlandnature.net/otters/

There are few creatures that have the ability to encapsulate both the “aw” and the “wow” factors like otters do.

60 North | Spring 2013 www.SHETLAND.org 25 Henry and the Waxwings How feeding the birds had some unexpected results

he sun rose to blue skies with scat- our on their wings and tails; I’ve been told ed. He used a stick I had recently found on tered light clouds. It was a nice these are the older, more dominant birds. the beach, because Fair Isle has no trees. It T sunny morning, almost warm The Waxwings also wear a black mask over wasn’t very long, in fact it was short, consid- and with no wind. I’ll always remember their eyes, a black beard under their beaks ering. The stick had two places to poke half 25th October 2010 as the day I hand-fed and a tuft of feathers on top of their heads an apple on. The plan was to open the door Waxwings. The past few days had been grey, like a shark’s fin. A beautiful brick red can near the window and hold it out the door- windy, rainy, and there had even been some be seen on the forehead and under the way and wait for the birds to come to feed hail. It was often blowing a gale. Though I bird’s tail. Now when you see a mob of 12 on it so dad could take a photo not through was amazed, I had also felt sorry for the 12 hungry birds all wrestle and flap for one the glass window. I thought it wouldn’t to 16 Waxwings that had been feeding in bit of apple, it is hard to tell one bird from work. Dad opened the door and I could hear our garden for the past few days. Waxwings another. all the birds fly away ... But soon the hun- are not seed eaters, they eat bugs, but rely One of the reasons I think the Wax- gry birds came back to mob the apple in the on fruit and berries in the winter months. wings are so hungry is because of where I window. It didn’t take long for the first bird So dad and I kept putting old fruit out on live, Fair Isle, the most remote inhabited who couldn’t find room to feed at the other bushes in the garden. island in the UK. The birds must have just apple to land on the stick I was holding in The Waxwings were very hungry and flown in across the North Sea from Norway my hands, and then four more! It was like would eat any type of fruit we would put or Scandinavia because of lack of food. I fishing for birds! They quickly got used to out for them. They ate apples, oranges, have since learned this is called a Wax- us and I moved out the door and into the plums, strawberries, cranberries, grapes, wing invasion or an eruption. Whatever garden. Dad took photos as they fed. I was raisins, currants, even a nectarine and a you call it, these birds were hungry! They very excited watching them so close, but I pomegranate. They ate every piece of fruit didn’t mind dad and I watching and taking had to move slowly and whisper at first as we had in the house! The Waxwings acted photos just two feet away on the other side the birds came and went freely. It looked to like they were starving. We bought more of the window. Dad would even tap on the me as if the young, less colourful birds took apples every time we went to the shop, glass but they wouldn’t fly away or even the greater risk of feeding on my apples. feeding four to six apples a day. We put turn their heads or look up from the food I laughed when a Waxwing land- them on a stick just outside our window for a good photo. ed on dad’s outstretched arm while he and it would be mobbed and cause a fight, Dad remembered seeing a photo of a tried to take my photo. I totally cracked exploding in flashes of bright red, yellow friend with a really long branch with orang- up when dad was lying on the ground and white from these mostly grey birds. es on it feeding Waxwings and thought may- so he could get the blue sky behind The bullies looked bigger and had more col- be we could do it too. That is how it all start- me and one landed on his belly and

26 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 Henry Feeding The Birds have a lot of personality and seem fear- is called a chorus. People say they sound less. Hand feeding the Waxwings only hap- like bells, but there is really nothing quite pened that one day, though we fed them like it. You should have heard them sing or in our garden for a few weeks. That night shrill the one evening that we had over 50 dad put some of our photos on Facebook Waxwings flying about devouring our ap- and his Fair Isle blog. They went viral! No ples. Luckily for me we had school holidays one had ever seen anyone hand feeding a so I could see it all. One day we had calm Waxwing before. Soon we had thousands wind with sun. The weather was just right, and thousands of views from all around so dad and I were able to do it again. Hand the world. Our photos have been published feeding Waxwings! The same way as before in newspapers and magazines and featured on the BBC’s Autumnwatch. For me, it is something I’ll never forget. I thought it was if you see a waxwing a once in a lifetime event. searched him for food. I started giggling Waxwings are not that common here. put some fruit out, it’s and tried not to scare the birds. I let dad We had a few come back again that Christ- hold the stick for a while and I started tak- mas and during the winter of 2011. They probably hungry and has ing some photos of him too. The birds ate must have been the same ones we had fed till the apples fell from the branch. Dad before because we found them in our win- a long way to go. replaced the apples on my stick and the dow box looking for apples and we had not birds soon came back. Then dad picked up put any out for a while. We even had one but this time mom was home and she took the remaining apple skin and core from eating from the stick again, but no hand some video, which was good because last the ground and held it out at arm’s length. feeding. In autumn 2011 all of Fair Isle saw time some people thought our photos were Already totally amazed, I couldn’t believe only two or three Waxwings, but I hardly photoshopped or faked. I guess I can un- it … a Waxwing was now feeding out of got a look. None of them found the food we derstand that because it really does seem Dad’s hand! “I want to do that too!” I said, put out for them before the starlings and unbelievable when I think about it. The last but I didn’t have much luck at first. Not to blackbirds gobbled it up. In spring 2012 of the Waxwings left our garden by mid-De- be outdone, I went into the house and cut dad and I hand fed a siskin some peanuts! cember. There are still occasional sightings the last apple in half and went back outside When dad went out to refill the feeder this in Shetland and Fair Isle but most have now double-handed. Soon I had more birds than bird didn’t fly away. So we held out our gone further south for the winter. Mom’s I could handle. It was like juggling Wax- hands full of nuts! Also that spring dad saw video was shown on the BBC’s Winterwatch wings. Some of the birds nipped my finger one Waxwing briefly in our garden while and I got congratulated by people all over tips thinking they might be berries. I cried I was in school. I was disappointed as that and told it takes a special person to win the with laughter, more surprised than hurt. was the only Fair Isle sighting till mid-Oc- confidence of wildlife. Dad says it creates At one point we had to drive to the shop to tober. awareness, but all the fuss? I sort of like it, buy more apples. Dad and I spent the whole In early November 2012 I heard some but it also makes me embarrassed. I now day feeding the birds, it was awesome! The Waxwings fly over! Could this be a start of know that it is very important to feed the most I hand fed was eight or nine at a time. another eruption? Dad and I gathered fall- birds, because we live in a special place on The most we saw in our garden at one time en grapes from the floor of my neighbour’s the migration route where there is very lit- was 39 a few days later. greenhouse and poked them on the leafless tle natural food for them, and that many Waxwings are really beautiful birds. shrubs out in the garden and put a couple birds would have died on the way to main- They get their name from the red bits on of apples out. The starlings ate most of it at land Britain while crossing the North Sea. the end of their feathers that look like old- first but after two days of redeploying fruit So, if you see a Waxwing put some fruit time red sealing wax melted onto letters a Waxwing finally found it. Soon a small out, it’s probably hungry and has a long with a family crest stamped in them, but flock of 10 to 12 birds followed, eating eve- way to go. Plus, I want to see them again! it’s not really wax on their feathers. They rything they could. A flock of Waxwings

28 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 10 Questions for Jon Dunn The naturalist and guide on his favourites, from bird to kit

So Jon – what is your favourite Your favourite Shetland mam- What is the best wildlife encoun- Shetland bird? mal? ter you’ve ever had in Shetland? My favourite Shetland bird is defi- That would be Risso’s Dolphin. I re- This is a hard one … there are so many nitely the Great Skua, or Bonxie as they’re member seeing my first Risso’s back in to choose from! The rollercoaster emotions locally known. Unloved by many – they’re 1994, and since then I have had many of being the first to hear about an ultra-rare certainly not the prettiest birds we have memorable encounters with them in Shet- North American Veery found by my friends here (one of my guests once described land waters. They seem to exhibit a greater on Whalsay when I was leading an Autumn them as having a face only a mother could range of activities than most other British Gold tour would be hard to beat for sheer love!) and they have some fairly unsavoury dolphin species – I have even seen them drama – we were looking for migrants in habits – but for all that, they’ve got masses playing with pieces of Sea Lettuce, bringing Walls out in the west of Mainland Shetland of attitude and character. Whether they’re when I took the call. The next hour or so mugging seabirds for their sand eels, dive- was a bit of a blur – getting the news out bombing sheep foolish enough to wander better to live for to the other Shetland Wildlife groups, the too close to their nests, or waiting patiently run back to our vehicle, the dash across outside Puffin burrows to get an easy meal the moment, and look Shetland to catch the next available ferry … – they always seem like adaptable, charis- and then the heartbreak of the bird going matic and intelligent birds. Seeing them at forward to all the good missing for 30 minutes. Woe! And finally with their wings outstretched the joy of all of our guests seeing the bird and barking that aggressive “ag-ag-ag!” call things that are going to well, and the kindness of the householders is always a thrill. whose gardens it frequented in allowing happen in the future. us access to watch the bird. Then again, And your favourite Shetland wild watching a party of four Killer Whales flower? it to the surface in their mouths, and flick- from the comfort of the Dunter III while It’s got to be the Frog Orchids at ing it through the air with their flukes. they hunted seals along the shore of Bres- Keen of Hamar for me. As a self-confessed They’re often really photogenic too, so they say was an incredible experience – especial- orchid fan, I love how different they are do it for me on several levels. ly when they came to check us out on the in pretty much every respect to the Frog boat, swimming straight towards us before Orchids I used to see down in the south What is your favourite part of diving beneath us, circling underwater of . They’re so much smaller, their Shetland? and looking up at us, and then surfacing flowers have a stunning deep burgundy Easy! That’d be Whalsay. It’s a great again to head across towards Gulberwick. cast, and they’re growing in the “wrong” place to live, and I can’t imagine anywhere It was hard to know who was more curious habitat. Awesome. I’d rather be. about whom!

60 North | Spring 2013 www.SHETLAND.org 29 1 2 3

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1 Risso’s Dolphin What is your favourite music and might. It’s far better to live for the mo- 2 Frog Orchid band? ment, and look forward to all the good 3 Veery My CD collection defies categorisa- things that are going to happen in the fu- 4 Great Skua tion! There’s everything from Hank Wil- ture. There are no second chances! All Photography by Hugh Harrop, liams to PJ Harvey there, via Aphex Twin Shetland Wildlife and our very own local Fiddlers’ Bid. I am Which Shetland Wildlife trip do currently listening to Die Antwoord – a you like to guide the most? slightly scary mix of Afrikaans, Xhosa and I love guiding all of the Shetland tours English rap with a kind of techno flavour. as I always get such a buzz out of seeing I’ve had them, mine have been dropped The video for “I Fink U Freeky” is strange people enjoying the wildlife I am lucky onto granite rocks, immersed in seawater, but rather beautiful. enough to live among every day of the covered in mud, and run over by a car ... year. But perhaps selfishly, the one I enjoy and have travelled the world with me from What is your favourite sport and guiding the most in Shetland is my annual Cuba to Iceland, Hungary to Mexico, and team? to Fair Isle to lead the Fair Isle many points in between. And they still Tempting as it is to say “the English Autumn Migration Tour. It was Fair Isle work perfectly. rugby union team” just to wind up Shet- that first drew me to visit Shetland 21 years land Wildlife boss and Welsh rugby aficio- Name one thing that travels with nado Hugh Harrop, the truth is that I’m a you everywhere. lifelong Arsenal football fan. The trophies life’s too short! That’d be my Leicas again. I get a little might have been a little thin on the ground panicky when I don’t have them with me! in recent years, but short of adding a new ago, and it’s got a very special place in my bird species to my house list there’s noth- heart to this day. The people there are won- ing else more likely to get me punching derful, our hosts Tommy and Liz Hyndman To keep up to date with wildlife the air with delight than seeing Arsenal are good friends and fabulous cooks, the news and sightings as they happen, beating Spurs. (Come to think of it, the last island itself is stunning, and the birding follow Shetland Wildlife on Facebook time they won a trophy was back in 2005 can be absolutely remarkable – the island www.facebook.com/shetlandwildlife – the FA Cup final against Man Utd – and has a magnetism for migrating birds that just as the game went to penalties my wife is unrivalled. Only last autumn, on our way For more information on dedicated wild- called me from the TV to see “a big brown to the airstrip to leave the island and while life holidays in Shetland, visit Shetland bird outside”. I tore myself away from the watching the Bird Observatory team trap- Wildlife unfolding drama, rushed to the window ping and ringing an Arctic Warbler, I heard www.shetlandwildlife.co.uk and saw my first – and to date, only – Marsh a familiar call and found a Citrine Wagtail Harrier in Shetland, and then returned to dropping down from high overhead to land The company has been running wildlife the game to see Arsenal take the laurels. on a nearby dry-stone dyke. As they say, and birding holidays in Shetland for Happy days!) only on Fair Isle! nearly 20 years and offers week-long fully guided trips to all corners of Shetland. What’s your biggest regret? What is your favourite bit of kit? As well as offering organised group I don’t have any, not really. I think This would be my old pair of Leica holidays, Shetland Wildlife also offers a life’s too short to look back and feel sorry 10x42 Trinovid binoculars. Not the light- bespoke guide service for individuals and because you didn’t do something, or things est model, but they’re optically superb, small private groups. Fully bonded with didn’t work out the way you hoped they and built like a brick privy – in the 19 years the CAA: ATOL 9151.

30 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 1

Frightful Weather, Fair Isle Christmas Liz Musser reflects on “The Holidays” and the rhythm of island life

enry plays at the piano, practising Just beyond the North Haven harbour, brek, Skerryholm, Busta, Schoolton ...” Like the first several bars over and over the lights on the Good Shepherd’s tilt generations before us, our home is part H again, the tune familiar, “Oh, the hard left then hard right; it couldn’t have of our name – Haa Liz, Busta Barry, Quoy weather outside is frightful ...” been a very nice day at sea. On the pier, Stewart. We form a chain – passing milk, Winter storms were in Gale Force – about 30 people, nearly half the island’s cheese, canned goods, wine and spirits, ba- wind ripping at slate roofs, sending shin- population, waits as the boat rounds the nanas, lettuce, jars of mincemeat for pies gles whirling through the air, gripping the breakwater; anticipation builds. – from one set of hands to another, filling sea so tightly that our ferry the Good Shep- two vans and a lorry. herd hadn’t slipped into the raging waters Fair Isle’s ferry is our Laughter and good cheer carry us for 14 days. Stockpiles of frozen milk have down isle to Stackhoull Stores, where Sue run out at our house and at Stackhoull lifeline, once a week finishes the joke she started on the pier. We Stores, our only shop. This morning, the unload the vans, collect our fresh fish and wind and the sea have settled, so while carrying mail and milk; then the morn’s morn, we’ll be back the sun and most of the island still slept, emptying the shop’s shelves, to replenish our four-man crew set out to cross the no- bringing in vital supplies our own, making sure we’ve stored enough toriously challenging two-and-a-half hour food for holiday dinners and parties. stretch of water between Fair Isle and Sum- like food, fuel and coal. Threatening winds kick up. “It doesn’t burgh. Fair Isle’s ferry is our lifeline, once look good for planes at the end of the a week carrying mail and bringing in vital The of the boat opens, port to week,” our teacher says; he’s going to leave supplies like food, fuel and coal. starboard, completely full of boxes, food tomorrow morning to be sure of catching “The fire is so delightful ...” Henry con- and, “Oh my gosh, Christmas trees,” Henry connecting flights back to his native Can- tinues playing, but we gotta get going. So, rejoices. Kenny, the Good Shepherd’s engi- ada. The Children’s Panto will go ahead as in utter darkness, at 3.45 in the afternoon, neer, hoists the platform of trees and sev- scheduled tonight, a week before Christ- my husband Tommy, 11-year-old son Henry eral open top cargo boxes onto to the pier. mas. I give Henry an amateur haircut, and I jump into our car and head north to “Auld Haa,” Darren shouts and hands sharp scissors gliding across his neck, “you meet the returning Good Shepherd. Along me a cardboard box concealing a Christmas better sing loudly in Love Me Do. I mean it the way other cars join us, like a string of present. Different voices reach in, pulling Henry, the whole island looks forward to red and white Christmas lights. out house names, “Setter, Barkland, Stoney- this night”. He is the oldest of the six stu-

60 North | Spring 2013 www.SHETLAND.org 31 dents in Fair Isle’s primary school, still he in Fair Isle is the high school student and east and west, us and them, but war and finds any kind of love song “embarrassing”. some of the other family and friends will measles do not discriminate. Most of the I’m certainly not gonna show him his new be stranded in the Shetland Mainland for “island sons” called up for service during haircut. Christmas. The weekend passes with nei- WWI lost their lives. The last thing the few Top hat, pressed shirt and trousers, he ther a plane nor the boat able to travel; returning young men and island families takes his place in front of the audience, no visiting friends and family from afar can’t wanted was conflict. Chapel and Kirk el- sign of nerves. Wasn’t he listening to my make the last and most important part of ders proposed worshipping together, meet- bit about island expectations? But what their journey. What’s needed is a weather ing at the Chapel one Sunday and the Kirk Henry sees is a Community Hall filled with window to open on Christmas Eve before the next, a practice that continues to this familiar faces – Stewart who takes him fish- noon, because after that even if the weath- day. This year Christmas at the Kirk, Easter ing, Nick who helps him correctly identify er is perfect, there won’t be any planes. at the Chapel. insects, Anne, Ruth, Iain, Florrie, Jimmy, Weather defies tradition and time. Mom, Dad ... He doesn’t let us down. We This year the island Christmas Party has cheer, laugh, clap, appreciate. This is his Christmas Day, the sky is been moved from 27th December to after last Children’s Panto. Next year, he’s at the New Year’s Eve. “That’s the way of it.” A say- Anderson High School in Lerwick, boarding as clear as the ringing ing I picked up from old Stewart, having at the Janet Courtney Hostel on campus. No two meanings – there is nothing to be done family claims the separation is easy, bairns Kirk bell’s call. about it, and this is how it’s done. flying home only every third weekend and Five roving bands of guizers plot their holidays. Up at Field, Dave Wheeler our weath- route, visiting 14 houses all before mid- The eight-seat Islander plane ap- erman and airstrip manager, is busy on his night, an amazing feat even in a 3km by proaches the gravel runway, leading with phone all morning. Over the two-way radio, 5km island. Kenny and Sue, from Brecks, its right wing; a fluorescent orange wind- the voice of the pilot can be heard, “nine race our first performers into the Auld Haa, sock blows horizontally against a grey sky souls on board”. After he drops off the first taking their seats next to us on the couch. indicating a strong south-east wind. It’s an eight, he heads back to pick up the remain- Faces hidden behind photo masks of island- ok direction for the returning high school ing passengers. At choir practice on Christ- ers, the guizers launch into a skit about students, bringing them home a few days mas Eve, the soprano and alto sections have the Olympics. Team Fair Isle – in earlier than expected, no doubt happy to their missing voices. I look over at Henry represented by our best fishermen, in fenc- be home, but still disappointed at missing singing soprano, and I feel the music he ing hard working crofters, etc. We guess their Beanfeast, the biggest event of the will remember when he’s my age. the identity of the college and university high school year. One student, however, de- Christmas Day, the sky is as clear as students, share a chat over reested mutton cided to stay in Lerwick, hoping the weath- the ringing Kirk bell’s call. We don’t all soup and a dram. Then they’re off. More er forecasters’ hint at a possible short break share the same faith or beliefs, not all wor- drams, more guizers: they get funnier as on Friday will allow flights. shippers or islanders; but on this morn- the night moves toward midnight. By that Tuesday afternoon, the wind ing we come together guided by a nearly “That’s Myres Jimmy, Annie, Anne. I direction and speed have picked up. There 100-year-old tradition. At one time, Fair Isle canna mind who the man is.” The photog- are no more planes that day, or Wednesday, was sharply divided between the Methodist rapher captured the movement of the Lanc- or Thursday, or Friday. The general fear families and Church of Scotland families, er’s dance, the women spinning so fast they

32 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 levitate. Their smiles make me smile. Four names. They dig. Myres Jimmy will lie with the gentle sloping hill of the cemetery. The decades of photos, displayed on our hall his grandparents, parents, wife and two men in the family lower Myres Jimmy’s cof- walls, document the island’s Christmas sons. The earth is heavy with rain and hu- fin into the hole. Party. Forgotten photos. While we wait for man remains. It’s a difficult job, but every The January cold numbs my toes. A folk to arrive and the panto to start, I eaves- available man is present. person behind me, not living in the isle, drop on reflections, the misidentification At the North Haven, Kenny lifts Jim- whispers, “they should pay someone with of father for son. I recognise the children’s my’s coffin from the Good Shepherd onto a digger to do this”. We all wait, a collec- games, the traditional dances and the fam- the pier. Three generations of two fami- tive what’s next? Almost without being ily island musicians that will play, when we lies, descendants of early Methodists and noticed, Kenny hands a fist-full of dirt to join hands at the end of the night and sing Church of Scotland, lift the coffin into the Jimmy’s oldest son, who throws it onto the Auld Lang Syne. vehicle which will take Jimmy down to the coffin. Then he picks up a spade, Tommy I wave goodbye, the second plane car- Kirk. His body will stay there until after the and the others join in, moving earth back ries the last holiday visitors away. As I head service. into place until the grass can be rolled over back to my car, I hear the news, Myres Jim- Men carry the wooden box on two the black. This is the way of it. Daughters, my died moments ago at his care home in long sticks, that to me resemble , four grand-daughters and other women lay Shetland, six weeks before his 102nd birth- men in the front, two on each side of the flowers down. day. In a couple of days, the Good Shepherd coffin and four more at the back. It’s a long My thoughts drift. Over the Kirkyard will bring its former skipper home to be walk. There’s time to talk about him, his wall, “the skerries are getting a good wash- buried. playful nature, his love of birds, his 99-year ing,” as Myres Jimmy used to say. And I The men of the island carrying spades presence in the isle. Different men move in think to myself I wouldn’t want to be on meet at the Kirkyard, the cemetery where helping to shoulder the burden; one set of the sea today; I wouldn’t want to be any- the Kirk once stood. In front of a head- hands passing to another. The community where but here. stone carved a decade ago and another follows in procession, croft land on one where wind, salt and water have erased the side, the sea on the other, until we reach

60 North | Spring 2013 www.SHETLAND.org 33 Follow in the Footsteps of the The Thing Sites GeoTour Lauren Doughton points the way towards a new history-related treasure hunt

alkers in Shetland may already and beyond. com, and then seek out hidden locations be familiar with GPS (Global Po- We know from early documentary evi- within the landscape. There are currently W sitioning Service) devices as a dence that Shetland’s main thing once met over 100 caches hidden in various places means of finding their way around some in Tingwall, on the small promontory at around Shetland. Once you’ve located the of the islands’ spectacular scenery, but the end of Tingwall Loch known as Tinga- cache you can then log your find online, did you know that they can also help you holm. Parish names such as Aithsting, Delt- and share your experience with other cach- explore some of the secrets of our Viking ing, Lunnasting, Nesting and ers. Geocaches can come in a range of sizes, past? Using geocaching, a high-tech global suggest that there were also smaller local from large containers to small magnetic treasure hunting game, a brand new Geo- things held throughout the islands. For our “nano” caches. They can also be found in Tour has been developed linking thing sites Viking and Norse ancestors the thing sites a variety of locations, from urban settings in Shetland with locations in Norway, Ice- and roadside “park and ” locations to land, the Faroe Islands, Orkney, Highland There are currently wild and isolated landscapes – some “ex- Scotland and the . The trick is, treme” caches even require specialist skills you’ve got to find them first! over 100 caches hidden like scuba diving or rock climbing to find Despite being famous for their fear- them! some reputation and their skills in raiding in various places around Caches often contain “treasure” and looting, the Vikings were also respon- which players can swap for other materi- sible for introducing one of the earliest Shetland. als on finding the cache. They can also forms of parliament or law court, the thing. contain “trackables” – specially produced Things, from the þing, are early would have been a central location within items with a unique code which can also assembly sites, and are found throughout their landscape, but today the only indica- be logged on the website. These can be as- Northern Europe as a result of our shared tion we have that many of them existed signed an individual mission, such as to Norse heritage. When the Vikings and early is through place names. The Thing Sites travel to all caches in a particular area, or Norse settlers arrived in a new place they GeoTour encourages people to head out travel a particular distance, and players can brought with them their customs and le- into the landscape, and rediscover some of track their movements on the website. gal systems. Thing sites were places where these fascinating locations. The Thing Sites GeoTour currently people came together to deliver justice and So what is geocaching? Put simply it contains 29 individual caches, seven of to trade. They are often described as the Vi- is a treasure hunting game played using which can be found in Shetland. Geocach- king cradle of democracy, and their legacy GPS enabled devices. Players download ing is becoming increasingly popular as a can still be seen throughout Scandinavia co-ordinates online at www.geocaching. tourist , and a number of states

34 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 and organisations in the US have set up geocaching and are all really enjoying it, GeoTours in their areas. The Thing Sites even our two-year-old loves looking for GeoTour is the first of its kind to be set up ‘treasure’,” said mum Esther. “on the other side of the pond”, and is the only one to link caches in several countries “I thought I knew Shetland pretty well together. It is already proving to be popu- and am familiar with its archaeology but this lar, with one cache located in Thingvellir has taken us off the beaten track and makes a National Park in Iceland already clocking great little adventure for the kids. They’ve really up 61 finds. enjoyed their time pretending to be Vikings, and Each of the caches has its own page it’s made them think about how people in the on www.geocaching.com, where players past used the landscape in a new way.” can learn about the background of the site, The Thing Sites GeoTour has been and delve deeper into the history of the developed as part of the THING Project, thing sites and their shared cultural links. a three-year EU Northern Periphery Pro- If you’re really lucky, you might even come gramme funded project exploring the links across one of the 100 limited edition Thing between thing sites in Norway, Iceland, the Sites GeoTour trackable tags which have Faroe Islands, Shetland, Orkney, Highland been released into caches throughout the Scotland and the Isle of Man, as a method regions. These special items have individu- for generating awareness, and promoting al missions, such as travelling around each the sites as a focus for sustainable tour- of the caches on the Thing Sites GeoTour, ism. As well as the GeoTour the project has daughters of Nesting, with its very own or journeying to locations even the Vikings produced a website, www.thingsites.com, thing site and Thing Sites GeoTour geo- never dreamed of, and need your help to leaflet and book, where you can find out cache at its centre. You can also keep your speed them on their way. about the history of the sites involved in eye out for a Viking themed geocaching Trying to locate the Shetland caches the project, and explore their links with event, being held this summer – but you’ll will take you out to corners of the islands other thing sites in the Viking world. The need a GPS to find us! you may never have explored before. Many website has a range of resources on the The Thing Sites GeoTour offers the of our thing sites were located on or near topic, including educational materials and chance to explore some of the hidden lo- older settlements, or near parish churches, activities, and a news feed of all the events cations of Shetland, and to follow in the and your search will take you past a num- taking place at sites across the regions. footsteps of our Viking ancestors. With so ber of ancient and historical sites. On your Over the coming year players can look many caches available in a range of loca- journey take time to enjoy the spectacular forward to new geocaches being added to tions, there’s something for everyone, and views, and think about how our ances- the tour, including one at a brand new geocaching makes an excellent day out for tors lived and travelled around. Once you thing site in Nesting, being developed by the family. If you’re feeling adventurous reach the caches it is easy to see why many staff and pupils at Nesting Primary School you could even make it your goal to visit all of these locations were chosen as meeting as part of the Heritage Lottery Fund “All of our locations, and recreate your own Vi- places. Many of them are located near to Our Stories” project “The Thing at Nesting king journey – but just watch out for those sheltered harbours, with excellent access in Nesting Primary School”. Pupils have al- muggles (that’s non geocaching folk to you to the busy sea routes up and down the ready been taking part in the Thing Sites and me)! coast, and clear views across the neighbour- GeoTour, and have logged “First to Finds” ing region. at several of the caches in Shetland and To start your Thing Sites Geocaching We took the Renwick family from Orkney. Inspired by the THING Project, the adventure visit: www.geocaching.com/ Cuckron out to test drive the tour and see school is working to create a story garden adventures/thingsites what they thought. “We have just started celebrating the history of the sons and

Found It! Nesting Primary School Hidden “Treasure”

60 North | Spring 2013 www.SHETLAND.org 35 Shetland books in 2012 Twelve of the Best Jordan Ogg looks back on the year past’s most notable books

Colours of Shetland, Kate Davies Shetland Rambles, Mairi Hedderwick This is an essential book for anyone interested in Shetland’s Throughout her career, artist and writer Mairi Hedderwick iconic craft. Davies is one of the most influential hand-knit design- has demonstrated a keen understanding of place and space in Scot- ers in the world. Not only that, she is a fine writer and talented land’s islands. The same concern is evident in Shetland Rambles, photographer. These qualities are brought together in Colours of both in the author’s characteristic watercolours and through the Shetland, which explores the contemporary possibilities of knitting recalled conversations she shared with local people on her travels. in the distinct shades and hues of the isles, and delves into the rich The result is a presentation of Shetland old and new, in a heritage that makes Shetland one of the top destinations for knit- fine volume that covers the length and breadth of the isles. ters across the world. A Legacy of Shetland Lace, Shetland Guild of Death on a , Marsali Taylor Spinners, Knitters, Weavers and Dyers. The latest home-grown offering in the burgeoning Shetland Shetland lace knitting is known worldwide for its beauty and Noir genre follows the story of troubled heroine Cass Lynch. She’s delicacy; so intricate is the work involved in crafting a Shetland been long estranged from the isles after running away as a child, lace shawl that a successfully made garment can be pulled through but returns to skipper a Viking longship, which is being filmed for something as tiny as a ring. This gorgeous book, with stunning pho- a Hollywood movie. It doesn’t take long before a body turns up on- tographs, brings together 21 knitting projects and covers a range of board and Lynch’s troubled past is wrenched from the deep by the garments, from scarves and stoles to wraps and tops. Each pattern is canny Detective Inspector Macrae. supported by a biography of its designer, charting their individual story with lace and knitting.

36 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 Shetland Vernacular Buildings, Ian Tait The Dark of Summer, Erik Linklater If you’ve ever wondered why Shetland’s hills are home to so many First published 1956 and out of print for several years until mounds of old rocks and rubble, then this book is for you. It is the life- appearing under Bloomsbury’s “Readers” series, this is an intense work of Dr Ian Tait, curator of the Shetland Museum and Archives; it thriller set around Shetland, mainland UK, Faroe and Iceland. The is also the only book devoted to the unlikely topic of Shetland archi- story begins at the onset of the Second World War and follows the tecture. Yet, there is plenty to discuss, as Dr Tait does in great detail as journey of an army officer who is sent to Faroe to investigate allega- he uncovers the distinctive qualities of Shetland’s buildings. Dr Tait tions of Nazi collaboration with the Norwegians. Frozen corpses, writes accessibly and deftly entwines Shetland’s social and cultural terrific sea storms and wrought emotions feature heavily in this history throughout his narrative. superbly crafted novel. Small Boats of Shetland, Alison Munro Shetland is known across the world for its seafaring heritage Dead Water, Ann Cleeves and this little book celebrates a small part of that story. Richly il- It only arrived in January 2013 but as the fifth instalment lustrated with old and new photographs, it uncovers the history of in Ann Cleeves’ Shetland series Dead Water is too significant to Shetland’s small boats, from the Norwegian origins of the , leave off the list. Soon to be shown as a BBC1 drama, Cleeves’ the used by Shetland’s herring , Shetland-based mysteries follow the investigations of detective to the distinctive range of modern styles known under the collective Jimmy Perez. Dead Water finds him dragged out of mourning for “Shetland model” name. All profits from sales of the book support his recently deceased fiancee, to help solve the murder of Jerry the Unst Boat Haven. Markham, a Shetland-born journalist. The ensuing tale unearths a deadly web of corruption and subterfuge, making this the must- Alice’s Adventirs in Wonderlaand, Lewis Caroll, read Shetland book of 2013. Laureen Johnson, et al. The Mad Hatter, The White Rabbit, The Cheshire Cat, and of course Alice herself are brought back to life in this playful Shet- land dialect version of Lewis Caroll’s children’s classic. Translated (“owerset”) from the original 1865 text by dialect expert Laureen Johnson, the language may at first be confusing to those unfamiliar with the local tongue. However, after the first few pages, the style is easy to get to grips with. Best read aloud.

Vikings, Neil Oliver Not strictly a Shetland book, this work of popular history by the raven-haired Scots archaeologist and BBC presenter, is neverthe- less close to the heart of Shetland’s real and imagined cultural her- itage. It traces the thousand-year-old story of the Vikings, back from their Scandinavian beginnings, through to the epic voyages that saw the creation of a powerful empire which stretched from Ameri- ca to the Middle East. Plunder, rape and pillage feature throughout, though so do accounts of Viking society and their skills as craft- speople and farmers.

Design for Life, Peter Jamieson This ebook autobiography is a rare account of life on the very edges of Shetland society. Jamieson is a former drug addict and dealer who found salvation during a spell in rehab. The resulting book is big on God and offers an illuminating view on one man’s experience of Shetland’s drink and drug culture.

Shetland Fireside Tales, George Stewart First published in 1892, this reprint is best read not for its liter- ary merits but rather as a cultural artefact of a lost tradition that saw people gather “in aboot da night” by the fire, long before the invention of radio and television. Historians will take issue with Stewart’s rendering of these tales; why, for example, are their sourc- es not identified? Yet whether “true” or not, these stories of love, treachery and supernatural encounters provide plenty of entertain- ment.

60 North | Spring 2013 www.SHETLAND.org 37 Abby’s Shetland Wish List Abby’s Shetland Wish List aims to bring you a selection of inspirational contemporary and traditional hand crafted finds, items you won’t find on the high street, something a little bit different, interspersed with a story or two and a behind the scenes glimpse of Shetland’s thriving creative community. After all, when you go shopping in Shetland – it’s not just a unique keepsake you purchase, but an unforgettable memory too. Priceless. Let’s go shopping!

A stylish off-duty Dead Water – the latest Rising star: Shetland carryall from 60North Shetland spine-tingler knitwear designer: Bag Company from Ann Cleeves Helen Whitham

Will I ever have enough handbags? What were you thinking Misa?! My PS I recently visited Shetland Museum to The answer is a resounding NO! I’m now colleague gave me a copy of Dead Water; view the latest exhibition: New Shetland coveting the perfect off duty carryall from the fifth book in the Shetland series fea- Graduates (on until 17th February). Helen 60North Bag Company. The designs are turing Detective Jimmy Perez, just before Whitham’s range of handcrafted contem- rooted in the traditional and iconic bags a deadline! Was it difficult to put down? porary knitwear, championing Shetland’s used around boat yards, harbours and Absolutely! I’ve been trying to work out tradition, culture and craftsmanship, aboard ship for hauling, lugging, loading who killed journalist Jerry Markham? Why made me stop in my wedge heeled tracks. and storing supplies. There is a select range was he back in Shetland? What is incomer, I predict, after looking deeply into my fash- of Limited Edition bags and Co-Design op- Rhona Laing hiding? So many questions, so ion crystal ball, that Helen’s knitwear will tions (design your own unique bag!) Each many twists and turns, scandals galore and soon be a must have for every style maven’s bag is individually handcrafted from tough long held secrets yet to uncover. Get out wardrobe. Get your order in now, before sailcloth or brightly coloured and is your ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign, curl up in front she gains a loyal following and a long wait- available to purchase online (price range: of the fire – Dead Water is another must- ing list! helenwhitham.com £28.00- £36.00). Every bag is built to last a read from award-winning crime writer Ann lifetime, is spacious enough for all your es- Cleeves sentials and will instantly up the sartorial kudos of any look. Now what colour/style to choose?! www.60n.co.uk

Muckle Flugga

38 www.SHETLAND.org 60 North | Spring 2013 Keep cosy with a My New Year resolution Stunning photographs Jamieson & Smith real – get Seaweed of Northern Lights by Shetland wool rug Sprinkling Ivan Hawick

A Jamieson & Smith rug made from I don’t know about you but I overin- A friend got in touch with me the oth- 100% real Shetland undyed wool was one of dulged during the festive season: ‘just one er day –‘have you seen the Northern Lights the first items I purchased when I relocated more slice of cake?’ ‘Oh go on then’. ‘An- (known locally as the Mirrie Dancers) re- to Shetland from New Zealand. It came in other Quality Street?’ ‘Ummm yes please’. cently?’ I replied I hadn’t. However, when very handy when my oil ran out and the oil I didn’t want to be rude! Anyway, it’s a I am fortunate enough to catch the colour- depot’s rescue mission had yet to reach me! New Year and yup, I have to be honest - my ful sheets of lights transforming the night However, my luxurious rug has been ‘sto- bum does look big in this! It’s time to get skies into natural lava lamps, it’s always an len’ by Mo, the cat, she has decided it’s now healthy. A friend swears by seaweed to keep incredible experience. Ivan Hawick must her rug and not mine! It’s therefore time her glowing and energized and fortunately be one of the Shetland photographers to to buy another limited edition rug just for Böd Ayre, located in Vidlin, produces or- capture the Northern Lights in all their me! There are 4 stunning designs to choose ganically certified edible seaweed. Cited splendour. His breathtaking images are from and all are based on original weavings as a superfood by health gurus, I too have available to purchase online (£12.00). View by renowned Shetland company “T.M. Adies joined the sprinkle movement and started Ivan’s gallery and enjoy a spectacular light of Voe” - a company famed for the produc- to scatter seaweed on my food. Delicious! show. Pure magic. Ivanhawick.com tion, in the early 20th Century, of Everest Choose from Seaweed Sprinkle in a 100g jumpers worn by Sir Edmund Hillary and jar (£11.47), 100g bag (£10.97) or a 200g tub George Mallory. Each rug is named after an (£19.97). Seaweedproducts.co.uk Adie’s weaving shed and is priced at £82.00. Let’s hope Mo doesn’t decide to steal this purrfect rug too! Shetlandwoolbrokers. com

Happy Browsing! Fair Isle Knitting Card Art from the heart at Set Shetland Gallery, Yell P.S. Don’t forget to enter the monthly competition, featured in the Promote Shet- land newsletter – a chance to win a treas- I love to write letters and send post- Often people whizz through Yell to ured keepsake from Shetland. Good luck! cards - snail mail is still my favoured means catch the ferry to Unst. A BIG mistake! Yell of communication to keep in touch with is a fascinating island with plenty to see family and friends and I know the recipi- and do, including a stop-off at The Shetland ent will appreciate receiving a handwritten Gallery, curated by the charming Shona missive, rather than a quick email. Some- Skinner. ‘The concept of the gallery is to times my cards serve a purpose – my mum- showcase the best of contemporary Shet- in-law uses my correspondence to cover up land art and high-end crafts to the world...’ a drafty window! The Fair Isle Knitting Card Shona brings together the best emerging Set (£6.50), printed in Shetland and com- and established artists from across the prising of 6 notelet cards and envelopes, islands and their work and profiles can depicts Fair Isle knitted garments from the be viewed online, including my personal collection of the Shetland Museum and favourites: Ruth Brownlee – her dramatic Archives. Put the heart back into writing and atmospheric landscapes are mesmeris- to loved ones - send a card and make some- ing, Mike McDonnell – his witty imagina- one’s day. Shetlandheritageshop.com tive sculptures are on my arty wish list, and Sophie Whitehead’s jewellery – what’s not to love about her contemporary silver acces- sories (I heart the Butterfly Pendant, simple yet striking £125.00). Visit the gallery and discover Shetland’s creative soul. Shetland- gallery.com

60 North | Spring 2013 www.SHETLAND.org 39 SHETLAND IS ALIVE WITH THE SOUND OF MUSIC. THE RHYTHM OF THE WAVES ECHOES ALONG OUR DESERTED BEACHES & THE CLIFFS RING OUT WITH A CHORUS OF SEABIRD COLONIES. ANCIENT HISTORICAL SITES REVERBERATE WITH THE FOOTSTEPS OF THE PAST. THEN THERE’S OUR LEGENDARY FIDDLE SESSIONS, WHICH OFTEN GO ON TILL THE EARLY HOURS. SOUNDS GREAT.

Visit Shetland at any time of year and you’ll be enchanted by the rugged beauty of the landscape. The place where Scotland meets Scandinavia and the North Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean. Whether arriving for the first time or returning you can be sure of a great welcome. To find out more or to request a FREE copy of our Shetland Pocket Guide visit www.SHETLAND.org

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