Cryptic Meg

Six years ago, Nicholas and I got married. The day after the wedding we set off on honeymoon, and Nicholas finally told me the surprise holiday he had in store: we would take the train north, then an overnight ferry, and then arrive at our destination of the Shetland Islands.

We had an absolutely gorgeous time that week after getting married. It was the perfect destination to escape to after the stress and busyness of planning a wedding. We were staying at a remote Airbnb cottage – away from civilisation, with no TV or phone signal or internet, and next to a tiny island covered in seals. As soon as we left, we wanted to return.

Shetland, however, is very far away from where we live now in deepest Devon. We long planned to go back for our fifth wedding anniversary. But at the beginning of last year, when we looked at the cost of accommodation and the many forms of transport we would need, we turned to each other in wide-eyed horror. This was going to require some saving! So instead we went on a very affordable camping holiday in nearby Cornwall, and put Shetland on hold until this year.

At the beginning of this year, armed with a savings account set aside for the purpose, we booked our long-awaited Shetland holiday. We have some friends who have family on Shetland, so they were able to recommend a guest-house to us – a place that had also been recommended to us by our otter-spotting guide the last time we were on the islands!

Friday

The morning we were due to leave started with a little drama. Our dear cat, Pebble, staggered in at 5:30am with a hugely swollen foot that she wasn’t putting any weight on. So we rushed her off to the emergency vet, who thankfully decreed that there wasn’t any major damage. We were sent home with anti-inflammatory medication, which we passed on to our lovely neighbour and very capable cat-sitter.

Satisfied that Pebble was in the safest of hands, we got our train into London in the afternoon. Incredibly, on the train we bumped into my sister’s boyfriend, who was off to a concert! So we had some good company on the train, which was delightful. Then it was onto Euston for us, and the Caledonian sleeper. We’ve done the Night Riviera before, so knew we were fans of sleeper trains. This was perhaps even better, because it goes further: you get longer on the train, more ground covered, and more sleep possible! Plus the (very Scottish) evening meal in the club car was amazing – I had macaroni cheese with a haggis crumb, and Nicholas had haggis with neeps and tatties. Then we had Scottish whiskeys! After that it was back to the cabin and to sleep. Nicholas woke me up at about 4am as we went over the Forth Bridge (worth it), and we arrived in Aberdeen at about 7:30am.

Saturday

After we had disembarked, we dropped our bags off at the ferry terminal so that we would be unencumbered, and set about exploring Aberdeen. We walked through Union Terrace Gardens, down Union Street, and went to the Maritime Museum. After that we found the beach. Nicholas had a paddle (of course), and then we made our way back to the ferry.

We settled into our cabin, and then the ferry set off at 5pm. I was a little worried about feeling seasick (especially as we had an inner cabin this time, with no window!), but I was fine. We had a meal, then went up on deck to enjoy the evening sea air, after which we went back to the cabin and were gently rocked to sleep by the motion of the boat.

Sunday

We arrived in Lerwick at about 7am. We went and claimed our hire car, and then joined some friendly faces for breakfast. A few months prior we had discovered that our friends with family on Shetland were actually due to be there at the same time as us! So we arranged a rendezvous. They supplied us with an excellent breakfast, including “butteries” – which are as gloriously rich as they sound. After that, we left them in peace and reacquainted ourselves with Lerwick.

After lunch at a cafe by the dock, we headed over to the other side of the mainland to our guest-house. We were welcomed by our hosts Pierre and Han, who were both extremely lovely. We took our time making ourselves at home, before we headed out for dinner at Frankie’s in Brae. Frankie’s is a fish and chip shop which we visited twice last time, because it was so good. I had particularly loved their (takeaway!) mussels which they did in a variety of sauces. I was therefore utterly heartbroken to discover that they didn’t have mussels on this day. I made the best of it with scampi, and we ate overlooking the harbour – which was very pleasant, if not quite what I had been dreaming of!

Monday

Monday started with full Scottish breakfasts for both of us – our first taste of Pierre’s cooking, which was unfailingly sublime. Then we walked from the guest-house to “seal lagoon”, using a map drawn by an artist staying at a nearby cottage. We were delighted to see 18 seals, even though a haar (sea fog) had rolled in!

Then we went to meet our friends again for a walk at the coast. Pierre had made us packed lunch, which we ate sitting on the remains of a broch (more on them later!). On the walk we saw many impressive cliffs, oyster-catchers (anxiously flying around us and peeping, in fear for their chicks), terns, bog cotton, and lots of changes in weather. At the end of the day we all went back to the guest-house for a meal, and had the dining room to ourselves as we were the only people eating in that night. Pierre decides what to cook and then tells you what it is just before the meal: this night it was a smoked fish salad to start, roast lamb for the main, and orange cake for pudding. It was, of course, all perfect.

Tuesday

On Tuesday morning we went for a swim just outside the guest-house. It was VERY cold – even with our wetsuits on! I didn’t last long, but was very pleased I’d gone in.

After that we headed to the south of the mainland and took a boat over to a small island called Mousa. On Mousa is a well-preserved broch, one of the best-preserved prehistoric buildings in Europe. You see the remains of brochs all over Shetland – they were Iron Age drystone structures with hollow walls that contained staircases. The Broch of Mousa is about 2500 years old and 13 metres tall! It is breathtakingly impressive. On the boat over, I bought some gloves knitted by a local old lady which depict the broch.

Returning to the mainland, we headed further south to the very southernmost tip: Sumburgh Head. There we saw hundreds of those most delightful of birds: puffins!

Dinner that night was an aubergine and couscous starter, halibut, and a Basque cheesecake. This was probably my favourite meal of the week!

Wednesday

On Wednesday we headed south once more, aiming for a couple of museums. I was driving down the coastal road, when we noticed a whole load of cars parked higgledy-piggledy on the verge of this fast main road. We thought there must have been a collision, but then we noticed everyone standing around and looking out to sea. I pulled up, and Nicholas looked out through his binoculars. Utterly inconceivably, we had stumbled across a pod of wild orcas! Later Pierre would tell us how lucky we were – he has lived on the islands for 18 years and only seen the orcas three times.

We excitedly followed them down the coast for a bit, and then, having had an excellent sighting, we continued on our way. We went to the Quendale Mill Museum, where I acquired a Fair Isle knitted headband, and then went on to Spiggy Loch where we had our packed lunch. After that we headed to St. Ninian’s Isle. Last time we had visited and seen the marvellous tombolo; this time we explored the island too, including the remains of an old church.

That night at dinner (tomato soup, roast chicken, and profiteroles), we were in the dining room with a lovely local family who were celebrating a 50th birthday. They shared their cake with us, and even gave me one of the two icing cats on it because they spotted the cat on my jumper!

Thursday

On Thursday we headed north-west to Eshaness. Here you can see the most incredible cliffs, and landscape formed by a long-extinct volcano. It was extraordinary! We also sat in the remains of an old broch, again.

After that we headed east to Lerwick, because (by another strange coincidence) an old friend of ours was in the harbour! He’s working as a musician on a cruise ship, and unfortunately couldn’t get off the boat this day – but we could see him through our binoculars as we called him and waved to him!

Dinner that night (our last one!) was a starter of rocket pesto pasta, cod, and then rhubarb tart. We let Pierre know how much we were going to miss his cooking!

Friday

And so, all too quickly, we came to our final day on Shetland. We had our favourite breakfasts (omelette with tomato for me, smoked salmon and scrambled egg for Nicholas), and said goodbye to the wonderful guest-house and our excellent hosts. We headed back to Lerwick via Weisdale, where we had a walk along the voe and looked in a good second-hand bookshop.

Then it was back to Lerwick, where we went to the Textile Museum. I added a row of knitting to “da muckle gravit” (“the big scarf”) there, which is currently 49 metres long! Then we went to the Shetland Museum, which we went to last time but is a brilliant place that was worth revisiting. And finally we visited Jamieson’s wool shop, where I bought a beautiful new Shetland jumper.

Finally, it was back to the ferry port. We returned the keys to the hire car and got on board, settling into our cabin (with a view this time!). We set off at 5:30pm.

Saturday

The crossing was the roughest of the four I’ve experienced so far. The rolling woke me up in the night, though I was absolutely fine until I stood up. Then I felt quite peculiar, so lesson learned – stay down!

We arrived again in Aberdeen, not too much the worse for wear, and headed to the station. This time we didn’t do the sleeper train – we just headed straight down to London and back out to Devon. It was a looooooong journey (28 hours from the ferry setting off to arriving home). I listened to many a podcast on the way! At the end of it we were overjoyed to be reunited with Pebble – well looked after by the neighbours, and looking bright-eyed, bushy-tailed and normal-footed.

Now we are acclimatising the normal life again – but very refreshed by our relived honeymoon!