Information Sheets Fetlar Is One of the Shetland Islands, Which Lie to Reaching Fetlar the North East of Mainland Scotland
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Fetlar2013 Travel Information Information Sheets Fetlar is one of the Shetland Islands, which lie to Reaching Fetlar the north east of mainland Scotland. The islands By Car: 2013 can be reached by air or by sea. Travelling to Fetlar by car involves two inter-island ro-ro ferry trips. The first, which takes 15-20 Fetlar By Air minutes, is between Toft on Mainland Shetland Flybe operate daily flights from Aberdeen, and and Ulsta on Yell. After travelling through Yell, the regular flights from Kirkwall, Inverness, Edinburgh next ferry leaves from Gutcher, Yell, for Hamars and Glasgow – with onward connections available Ness on Fetlar – a trip of around 25 minutes. A to London and other major European cities. number of sailings go via Belmont, Unst. During the summer months, flights are also available to Bergen. It is strongly recommended that journeys by ferry are booked in advance. The booking office can Arrivals land at Sumburgh Airport (LSI), which is provide excellent advice on journey times and 25 miles south of Lerwick, Shetland’s capital. through-connections. Taxis and hire cars are available for use, but it is recommended to book in advance. There is also a By Public Transport: scheduled bus service, which allows onward If arriving in Shetland by ferry, there are travel to Fetlar via connections at Lerwick. connecting services right through to Fetlar on most mornings Monday to Saturday, and limited Fetlar also has a small airstrip (FEA), which is services later in the day. There are no through- available for use by chartered aircraft or general services on Sundays. aviation. If arriving in Shetland by air, scheduled buses are By Sea available from Sumburgh to Lerwick, where a Northlink ferries sail from Aberdeen seven nights a change will be needed for onward travel to Yell week, year-round, and arrive in Lerwick the and then Fetlar. Please note that later arrivals in following morning. A Welcome Point may be Sumburgh may mean it is not possible to get to found at Lerwick ferry terminal, and the main Fetlar on the same day. Visitor Information Centre is located at Market Cross. Once in Fetlar, the excellent Dial-a-Ride service can collect you from Hamars Ness if travelling on foot, but please bear in mind that the service must be booked at least one day before travel. Contact Fetlar Dial-a-Ride Tel: 01595 745 745 Shetland Islands Council Ferry Services Ferry Timetable Information Booking office (Tel): 01595 745 804 Email: [email protected] Fetlar Airstrip – Bob Leaper Tel: 01957 733267 ZetTrans Bus Timetable Information Developed by Fetlar Developments Ltd, May 2013 Fetlar2013 Fetlar Developments Ltd Information Sheets Fetlar Developments Ltd., a Projects operational by mid-2013. Also in registered charity, was Fetlar Developments Ltd. has development is a micro wind 2013 established in 2008 by Fetlar’s developed a significant range of powered district heating community in order to counter projects since its inception scheme, which would also Fetlar the depopulation of the island, including the development of charge the minibus; a gateway and address the economic www.fetlar.org, Fetlar’s website, housing scheme; community challenges faced by the and the creation of a free polytunnels; and a scheme to community. guidebook which has been provide mains water to the distributed across Shetland. whole west side of the island, It is a community owned and Latterly, it has secured funding including the pier and Brough managed organisation that aims to employ a part time Fetlar Lodge. to: Tourism Development Officer. FDL continues to work with • Repopulate the island. However, its most significant partners developing • Build a sustainable island success so far has been in opportunities for the residents community and economy. securing the provision of a new of Fetlar by providing • Implement new projects £2.55 million pier and opportunities for job creation, prioritised by the Fetlar breakwater for the island. and providing support for Development Plan. Funding for this development community development • Work towards becoming a came primarily from Shetland projects. self sustaining Islands Council, with the organisation. balance of around £300,000 Contact coming from ERDF. This brought Robert Thomson In 2009, Fetlar Developments an end to an over 90-year Development Worker, FDL drew up the Fetlar Development struggle by islanders to secure Tel: 01957 733 369 Plan and secured funding for a these facilities. Email: [email protected] full-time Development Worker and part-time Financial Fetlar Developments Ltd. has Kyle Sylvester Assistant. 2009 also saw the several ongoing projects. These Tourism Development Officer, establishment of the Fetlar include the provision of an FDL Working Group. electric minibus and vehicle Tel: 07789 888 173 charge points, which should be Email: [email protected] This group was set up by Shetland Islands Council to support the work of Fetlar Developments. It comprised senior representatives from Shetland Islands Council, Highlands & Islands Enterprise, Fetlar Community Council, Fetlar Developments Ltd. and the RSPB, with other bodies invited to participate as appropriate. Its initial tenure was for 2 years, but was extended. In 2010, Fetlar Working group Above: Fetlar’s residents pose was a finalist in the partnership before the Geira - she can now be category of the SURF awards. berthed overnight at Fetlar. The body was dissolved in December 2012 after the Left: Josie Simpson unveils the completion of the new pier, but plaque and the pier officially opens. the links developed between the © Brydon Thomason partner groups remain strong. Developed by Fetlar Developments Ltd, May 2013 With thanks to Robert Thomson Fetlar2013 Fetlar Interpretive Centre Information Sheets The community of Fetlar is justifiably proud of its Recent Projects dynamic community-run heritage and craft centre. In 2012, a craft shop promoting crafts sold under 2013 Located at Houbie, the centre is ideally placed on the label ‘Handmade in Fetlar’ was opened. The the island and can provide visitors with a shop provides an area for residents to sell and Fetlar comprehensive range of maps, brochures, and promote their handmade goods – which are often other information. The Interpretive Centre is also a made using locally sourced materials. Promote Shetland iPoint, and can provide additional support and information for visitors to In early 2012, volunteers combined their efforts to Fetlar. repaint and bring a fresh look to the centre. In addition, new labels and information were The centre contains exhibitions covering produced for the exhibits, which were also archaeology, folklore, wildlife, and the social rearranged. history of the island, and hosts an extensive archive of photographs dating from the 1860s. Starting in 2011, the centre undertook the task of Additionally, there is a range of films dating from transferring audial and visual recordings on tape the 1930s onwards and a collection of recordings to digital formats, starting with recordings of detailing island folklore and music that visitors Jeemsie Laurenson’s storytelling. The project is may access. still ongoing, and most recently a new TV has been installed in the centre in connection with the Fetlar Interpretive Centre also offers the project. opportunity for those with Fetlar ancestors to access information that can be used while Awards undertaking research. In 2000, Fetlar Interpretive Centre was awarded the Scottish Museum of the Year Award in the Educational Initiative category for its exhibition, Sir William Watson Cheyne and antiseptic surgery. In 2002, the centre was a runner-up at the Scottish Thistle Awards, which recognises achievement in tourism development. Fetlar Museum Trust Fetlar Interpretive Centre is run by Fetlar Museum Trust, a group of people on Fetlar who work to preserve, record, interpret and display the social and natural heritage of the island for the benefit of the future. Contact Fetlar Interpretive Centre Tel: 01957 733 206 Email: [email protected] Above: Hnefatafl in play outside the Fetlar Interpretive Centre. © Paul Gill Developed by Fetlar Developments Ltd, May 2013 Fetlar2013 Hnefatafl Information Sheet History 2013 Dating back to over 1600 years ago, Hnefatafl is a Viking board game that has been revived in Fetlar recent years. Older than chess, it is a strategy game that simulates Viking combat. Hnefatafl, pronounced nef-eh- TAH-full, was one of the most common games played by the Vikings. Played in much of Above: The game in play. North-West Europe, the game began to decline in the 11th Left: Players wait to start their century due to the rise in games. popularity of chess, and at one stage disappeared almost Images provided courtesy of Fetlar entirely. Despite its long history, Developments Ltd. a standard set of rules has not survived, and there are many variants throughout the world. Competitive Hnefatafl Gameplay Since 2008, the FHP has hosted Under Fetlar Rules, the board is The Fetlar Hnefatafl Panel a world championship, an 11x11 squares, with 37 pieces Established in 2007, the FHP annual event that has been held in total: 24 attacking pieces, 12 aimed to develop and create a on Fetlar each year with the defending pieces, and 1 King. set of practical rules based on exception of 2012, when the an 11x11 board that could be tournament was played online. The objective of the game is to used and published across the In order to ensure that game capture the central defending world for all players to use. In duration would allow a one-day piece, the King, or for the King order to achieve this, FHP play- tournament event, it was to escape the attacking pieces tested the game to establish decided that for the time being, by reaching one of the four both a standardised rule set and play would be time limited. refuge squares at the corners of board layout for players.