Kanga And Wombats Adventures

We tentatively peeked out the windows this morning, as Hurricane Agnes had made her presence felt last night and we half expected to find the weather had deteriorated further.

But whilst it was dull and cold, it wasn’t raining and the wind had dropped.

Overnight, 2 cruise ships had arrived in Kirkwall, swelling the population by another 5000. We were told 400 cruise ships had visited the Orkneys this summer, great for the economy!

Before making the drive to Stromness to catch the ferry back to the mainland, we had unfinished business at St Magnus Cathedral.

Completely dominating the town, the cathedral is constructed from distinctive red sandstone and dates from the early 12th century. Earl Rognvald Brusason commissioned the cathedral in 1137 in the name of his martyred uncle, Magnus Erlendsson, who was murdered on Egilsay in 1117. Why was he murdered? Political and family differences, apparently. Magnus’ remains were originally buried at Bursay, where we were yesterday, but were moved to the cathedral and entombed in a pillar.

The cathedral had muted lighting, with soaring vaulted ceilings forming a protective canopy over the congregation. Simple, plain, and understated. Very Nordic!

We took a quick look around Stromness before we departed right on time, thankful the ferry service hadn’t been a victim of the nasty weather. In fact, it was relatively smooth sailing. The Old Man of Hoy stood stoically in his place as we passed.

Once on the mainland again, I was sure I could still see the Old Man……

The 80 miles of winding single lane road from Thurso to Durness is pretty darned impressive. It changes from desolate moorland, sandy white beaches flanked by the greenest hills, to wide expanses of lochs, with the ever-present Assynt mountains as a backdrop. It seems amazing that this one and only road across the top of Scotland is little more than a sheep track in some places, but it really just serves to add charm to the drive and forces you to slow down and give way to oncoming traffic.

The final stretch between Durness and our accommodation for the night at Kinlochverbie was really imposing.

Dominated by Foinaven and Arkle mountains, the landscape is very rocky and bare. In fact, it is the oldest rock in the UK. A geologist’s dream.

Kinlochbervie is about 5 miles off the main road and, as such, could easily be overlooked. We were given the idea to stay here from Christine and Doug, and I can certainly see why. It is really magnificent.

We’d booked dinner at the Old School House several months ago and were so glad we did. It’s the only place to eat within miles and is fully booked every night. We sat smugly eating our meal while a parade of people came through the door with hopeful faces only to be turned away.

To be honest, the meal was average, but we weren’t complaining, given the nearest alternative was a30 minute drive away!