After a long, but calm night sailing in the Atlantic, we reached Fair Isle in the late morning. A large group of Atlantic White-side Dolphins came up to the Endeavour before we arrived.
The island is situated halfway between the Shetlands and Orkney. There are many magical islands in the Atlantic, from Bear Island in the Arctic to South Georgia in the Southern Ocean, that have one thing in common with Lindblad Expeditions, the Endeavour visits this island every year!
It is always a very pleasant feeling to arrive and many of the locals are always on the dock to greet us. The staff from the Bird Observatory is keen to bring us to the breeding site to give us excellent views of the Puffins. Lindblad Expeditions has for many years sponsored the activities and research of the Bird Observatory.
The island is fairly small and perfect for hikes. Still, you have to be careful since the Parasitic Jaegers, Great Skuas and large colonies of Arctic Terns breed on the island. They will all forcefully defend their nests or young and they do this by dive-bombing.
At the Community Center the locals had set up a true British tea with scones, lemon custard… very soon we merged into the Fair Isle feeling. Of course, we could also study how the famous Fair Isle sweaters were made.
Fair Isle is unique by itself, but the people living on this tiny isolated rock in the wind-swept Atlantic really make it more exiting to visit. They know how to make and maintain friendships. Happily for Lindblad Expeditions, we are among them.
By lunchtime it was time to leave this splendid island and move further north, towards Shetland. During the morning, the clouds had been thick and low and sometimes fog covered the island. Now we had a glimpse of sunshine and from the deck we enjoyed dolphins and 1000’s of sea birds.
The late afternoon was dedicated to the best-preserved Broch found anywhere in Scotland, at Moussa Island. The Broch was built about 2000 years ago and several theories have been put forward to explain the use. Still, it is a large disagreement between archeologists!
The encounter with this strange building leaves us to our own speculations, but everyone enjoyed the colorful lichens that covered this old man-made stone structure like a painting in its own right.
As the traditional Philippine dinner was announced, the Endeavour pulled into the harbor of Lerwick, the capital of the Shetlands and again the sun came forward with a blue sky.
Maybe one thing to remember about the day was the tremendous contrast in weather. But, who would go to Scotland to work on their tan? No, instead it is the ever-appearing contrasts, which make Scotland into an adventure!
