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A Bicycle Trip to Shetland and Orkney Isles
July 2002
Bay of Firth, Orkney, ©
Ole Jacobi July 2002
Wednesday 17 July 2002
We leave the excellent hotel and cycle east towards Kirkwall. After passing Finstown, we take a break on the beach at Bay of Firth where a low-tide passage through the red seaweed leads to a small island with a few houses. We arrive in Kirkwall at 12 o'clock, and seek shelter out of the rain in the magnificent St. Magnus Cathedral, commenced in 1137 when the islands were still part of Norway. They were later given as security for the dowry of a Danish princess when she married the Scottish King James and never redeemed, thus becoming part of Scotland in 1469.
With time on our hands, we also visit the "Bishop's Palace", a fine ruin and the local museum. There are also several shops that tempt you with examples of the knitted sweaters which are a trademark of the islands.
At 10 p.m. we sail again for Aberdeen on a beautiful summers' night.
Thursday 18 July 2002
After a quiet night on the boat, we wake to a calm sea, arriving in Aberdeen at 7:45 am. There is nothing calm about rush hour in Aberdeen, though. Traffic jams & large lorries abound on the way to the airport, which is always a challenge for bicyclists, but we manage to get there in good time for our flight back to Copenhagen via Heathrow.
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text and watercolour by Susanne and Ole Jacobi