Orkney Islands

Orkney was probably our favourite place we visited In Scotland and not what we were expecting. At the very top of the UK, we were expecting wild weather and rugged landscapes, but it was actually quite a calm, quiet and incredibly friendly place with so much history going back at least 5000 years!
Our first stop was in Stromness on a nice little campsite right on the peninsula. Cheap and cheerful with a nice little common room. Stromness itself is very quiet, but has a number of good pubs with v friendly Orcadians. Madeleine annoyed Andy by singing Peter Maxwell Davies constantly and we can confirm that it is not in fact a nuclear wasteland.
We decided to attempt our week sans car and whilst we managed pretty well with just our packs, Orkney is not that easy to get around on foot. The bus we wanted to catch didn't turn up so we hired bikes and rode to Skara Brae and Marwick Head. The trip eventually ended in disaster when Madeleine got the chain wedged (and I mean really wedged) in the frame. Covered in oil, we knocked on a door, borrowed someone's phone and the nice bike man came to fetch us and take us home...Read more