Another quiet one...

It would seem we're all still very much struggling from the flu/lurgy cold that had Clare and beren off ill the other week so we've not been up to much.


Despite the grotty weather though there's always plenty to get up to, if you have the energy. It was South Mainland Up Helly Aa on Friday night, which I gather went down great; Clare was out at a concert Saturday night and there were plenty of other things on if you were out and about. 


Me, I've been mainly sleeping and reading, trying to do something and then giving in to sleeping and reading. Jo Nesbo is the latest author I'm enjoying, Norwegian crime and great, it's just tormenting the thoughts of all those mountains and lakes!

However, I did get out up to a friend's at Vidlin briefly today. Stopped on the way back to watch the Risso's Dolphns that are still at Catfrith one week later, watched a pair of red breasted mergansers along with some other more common water birds. 


Not my photo of a merganser...

But then it was a few hours unplanned sleep, before tea and more reading!


Soon it will be more sleeping before work tomorrow so I'd better get on with the end of the book!

Risso's Dolphins at Catfirth...

Sunday was the first day I heard that the Risso's Dolphins were back up at Catfirth in South nesting, but I was far to ill with man flu to go up there. Then again Monday, but there was no chance due to work. Same again Tuesday, they were still enticing the boys with the big lenses out to take their photos.


Today my lucky number was obviously drawn because not only did I have a chance to head up that way, but they were also still there, three of them cruising around the voe.


There were a few cars pulled up with their occupants sporting telephoto lenses and tripods I dream of, but it was a fresh and sunny day and to have the chance to watch them at all was great.


Slightly embarrassed with my lack of length I leaned in the shelter of the car and tried to get the best I could with my limited 18-55mm kit lens. The photos were nice, but obviously the dolphins were not so obvious in them. I cropped them to the extreme to make anything of the dolphins as you can see below.


 Here's two of them as they cruised past the old catalina base. We went over to that side to watch them but the wave action from that angle totally obscured any view...

Two again with The Ward of Bressay in the far distance...

The three of them here...

A few more that I used neat image on to try to clear them up...

These photos don't give any idea of how lovely and graceful they were as they looped round and round the bay. They even got a bit excited at one point with a couple of jumps, but I missed the action on camera and just caught the splashes. Wonderful to watch.


Now if you have super duper telephoto lenses and tripods (and a lot of skill) you may get something like these which Hugh Harrop posted on facebook...

Or this one posted on facebook by George Graham (sorry can't find a link to you, but let me know and I'll add it)

Tonight there are forecasts of fantastic solar activity at a level that would mean a great aurora that should be dancing in the sky. Earlier there was a definite green glow all over, but now as I type I can hear sleet on the window. You never know though, it might clear before bedtime...

Hard day at the office...

Well what an amazing day it's been in Shetland today, spring or may be even summer has definitely sprung.


Today was a toughy at work though. It really was as we've been all full of cold here for the last week. Beren has even been off school for a week and is still struggling. However I managed to struggle through the best part of a day on Scat Ness and Ness of Burgi at the south end. Sadly we had to cook our lunch on a fire and then eat the mountains of bacon butties  and fried onions we'd made. Life is some times tough eh? 


Well my chest and throat didn't appreciate the smoke, I had the trouble of sun burn and I got my feet wet too. Truly awful day!


We stopped at a cove at the end of Scat Ness just before the chain gangway to the Ness of Burgi. There's always a good sea to admire here and it obviously comes right through to the eastern side at times as the storm beach of boulders testifies.

We discovered a great rock pool to come back and may be even swim in at some point, but not today!

Our drift wood fire slow go going, but it did eventually and in no time we were frying bacon and onions in Shetland butter, all washed down with erm... strawberry ribena! Not my choice, I think we need a camp kettle.

A lovely spot on a sunny spring day. A lonely fishing boat was heading round to the east coast of Shetland, the birds were in flight and the waves were mesmerising.

All to soon we had to get moving and head along the chain gangway on to the Ness of Burgi and on wards towards the Burgi Block House.

Looking back to Fitful head...

 And forwards to the block house with the fishing boat now passing the headland...

And after the final holm next stop is Fair Isle...

Looking back past Fitful Head, Foula was showing itself. A wonderful clear day...

Then it was back to the office to stink them out with camp fire reek and then home to find out I'd missed the Risso's Dolphins up at Catfirth for a second day in a row! See them here. Yesterday I was too ill to get up there and today, well as you can see I was having a hard day in the office...

Northern Lights...

Here's a couple of pictures of the northern lights tonight from Maa Ness, Scalloway, looking north west. A beautiful night out there, just a pity I'm a light weight when it comes to staying up as there's no wind, it's fairly mild and the stars are amazing!

These are both 2 minute exposures, hence the stretched stars, anything over about 20/25 seconds and the stars  start to leave trails. I'm planning to do a really long exposure of  say 20 minutes or more looking at the pole star some time then you'll see the starts circling around it . The only problem is a 20 minute exposure with noise reduction on means 40 minutes to take one photos; time to meditate! The other option is to take lots of shorter exposures and stack them, that's a hassle in other ways, but would probably give a better quality photo.

This is 4 hours

Here's a10 hour exposure!!! 

I'm not sure I have the inclination to do that. 20 minutes looks more like this...

Combined with the northern lights in the background it would be pretty cool!

Out and about...

This morning we had a plan, like most plans it went a little awry, but all for the better really.

After an early start we decide to head out to Westerwick to walk some of the coast heading north. As we headed west up Weisdale it was starting to look grim. The plan was to go to Westerwick and be heading back in time for the Souper Sunday Teas at Bixter Hall and then go in to town to the museum. 

Trying to stick to our plan and rough timetable we carried on vainly hoping for the best. Then I saw an otter feeding in the ebb stones as we whizzed along side of Weisdale Voe, so we turned and headed back down the road, couldn't see it, so turned again heading back the was we had been headed and there it was! Sat on a rock not far from the shore either feeding or eating at that time. My camera was in the boot (grrr!). Beren jumped through to the front seat to see it. I switched on the indicator so we hopefully wouldn't get hit and funnily enough the otter slinked in the sea and that was that. It was great to see it though.

As we got further west the rain came on stronger so we had an idea to head to Micheal's Wood near Aith as Beren likes playing there. Even rain it's not so exposed as the cliffs. So we parked up. Got sorted and went to go for a walk in there only to notice a sign saying it was closed for the winter! Fair enough they wanted to try to stop the paths being damaged with the wet weather, but it's not been closed before. 

What to do now? There was still an hour until the Sunday Teas and we weren't going to just head home. Eventually we decided to go to the Burn Of Lunklet. Good idea, we all like it there. Clare even joked I could have a skinny dip again as no one would be there on a day like this, but I didn't fancy it, it was pretty cold and for a change we did actually see some people. So we had a nice wander up  and beyond the falls and down another nearby burn hopping and skipping over bog, stones and burn until it was time for grub.

We had a great lunch at Bixter Hall; cullen skink, lentil and ham soup all washed down with tea and home bakes. We could even feel good about it as it was to raise money for the Walls Show in the summer! At least one success!

Now... off to town for our final event of the day; the the trowie fun day at  the museum in Lerwick. We hunted the trowies, coloured them in, made trowie masks, listened to some wonderful fiddle musicand trowie stories and finally enjoyed the fantastic needle work exhibition there before heading back home for a rest!

All in all a pretty packed day and to finish it off I headed down to meal beach on Burra as the evening was drawing in to try some long exposure photography of the waves.

Left end of the beach...

Right end of the beach...

I really would like that very expensive wide angle lens so I could fit all the beach in!


Looking across the bay...

Other than 'needing' the landscape lens I'm after I need a better tripod than the second hand cheap one I have that would be no real use as a pea pole never mind a tripod. Cheap neutral density filters off ebay are rubbish (just like cheap tripods). And I really should wait for the right light to take nice photos!


Any how it's been plenty for one day. I think tomorrow we should laze about...  We'll unless the sun's out!

A first venture up Fitful Head

Well today is a bit of a change from yesterday when we had gales that left me wondering if Clare would be stranded on Yell. Today there's a light breeze and for all the day started off misty it's cleared up to a beautiful spring day.

I feel for the folks over on Bressay last night. It was their Up Helly Aa, ferrys were limitted to the island and later on it came in with sleet and hail. My usual walking buddy lives over there and was joining in the celebrations so for all it was looking a great day for a walk I knew he'd not be coming.  So alone I headed south to Quendale Mill with the aim of having a stroll up and round Fitful Head not sure whether I'd actually get to see anything up there today. Atleast I wasn't going to get blown off!

I parked at Quendale Mill (still closed for the winter) and headed North-West up the near by farm track aiming to join the service road for the radar station on the hill top about 1.5km later. 

For all the service road to the radar station is an excellent road it's still a pretty steep pull up there. The benefit is the views that open out as you ascend, when the mist parts that is!

Looking north; St Ninian's to the left and Ward of Scousborugh to the right...

Noss Hill in the mid ground looks like a place to visit some time. I presume there are some old military buildings on it...

South-East over the ness with Sumburgh in the far distance and The Bay of Quendale cutting inland...

One good thing about the mist was the odd rainbow as the sun was breaking through, but I'm not going back down now for the pot of gold!
 

 Sadly as you gain the summit this is the view. Very necessary I'm sure, but not very inpiring...

Luckily a hop skip and a jump around the corner and you get this wonderful view...

It was worth it after all...

 Looking North from The Punds you'd hardly notice the radar station...

Not far along the cliff is this hefty block of granite. It commemorates the crew of a Halifax bomber that crashed in to the cliffs on it's way back to Kinloss after an attack on the German battleship the Tirpitz...

Heading on, Siggar Ness is peeping out of the now clearing fog and the sun is blinding...

It's pretty much all down here from here back to Quendale and with the sun now fully out there's plenty of view to soak in. Scat Ness and Sumburgh stretch out south in to the sea, but I couldn't see Fair Isle in the south due to the sun and glare.

Looking back along Siggar Ness...

The last ankle breaking knee screwing bit of the walk is the very steep descent down from The Noup to Garth Wick. Thankfully it's only short, but it is very steep and on the wet grass I'm grateful for my new boots. 


Looking over Garths Ness to Sumburgh...

I noticed a lovely waterfall spouting out on to the beach below...

After a while pottering here it was just a short splodge across the headland to join the farm road that would lead me back to the mill. The water in The bay of Quendale was looking luscious, but not inviting enough for a swim. One guy was happy to be in there though, sensibly clad in his wet suit he was having shot at some surfing...

By this point it did look like a summer day, but even with the warming gulf stream I doubt many would want to spend long in the Atlantic in February.

Pity I don't have a telephoto.

Fingers crossed for another lovely day tomorrow so we can all get out some where for the day, may be even camp as we're off work until Tuesday!