The Orkney & Shetland Islands |
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Click for a detailed map of |
The
Shetland Islands are the most northerly point of Scotland.For thousands of years the
Shetlands and there neighbors, the Orkney islands, have been welcoming friendly visitors,
and all too often repelling the not so friendly. Before 4000BC, people had begun to grow
wheat and barley in Britain. Farmers reached the islands before 3500BC and over the next
1000 years built many tombs and settlements. In the winter |
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 Boat trips are available to the Island of Mousa to
visit the
 famous Pictish Broch and see the wildlife. From
827 AD, a Viking earldom was established in Orkney. Not only warriors but farmers and
their families came and stayed, bringing with them a new and enduring culture.Today
tourists can enjoy the culture and history of these magnificent islands and explore the
miles of beautiful sandy beaches. |
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Orkney & Shetland Links
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of 1850 a wild storm stripped the grass from the high dune known
as Skara Brae and what came to light proved to be the best preserved prehistoric village
in Northern Europe.From about
500 BC the inhabitants of Shetland and Orkney began to build
strong circular builds as there main dwellings. These Brochs are imposing dry-stone
structures, standing from 5m to 13m high were erected for defense by the Iron Age tribes
of northern Britain.