The Great Crossing

Scotland day #6
Date: 9/15/2012
Starting location: Aviemore
Ending location: Kirkwall, Orkney

Lunch: cafe at John O’Groat . Leek and Chicken soup, a cheese scone and poppy seed roll.
Dinner: Ayre hotel: Highland Chicken stuffed with cranberries and cheese and lamb cutlets with haggis mashed potatoes.
Spiffiest thing seen/done today: The catamaran ferry ride across to Orkney
General notes:
Today was a driving day. We made the trek from Aviemore to Kirkwall in the Orkneys. It was a long day’s ride filled with many naps and few stops. The country side was beautiful though and we were driving along the coast for most of the day so there were sweeping ocean views added to the heather clad mountains we had been enjoying in the Cairngorms.
We did get to drive through a small town well known for its traffic accidents. The town lies at the bottom of a steep crevice-like valley. The main road that runs through town has 13% grade going both ways in and out of town. Every year they have several accidents due to burnt out brake and overheated engines. From there we proceeded to John O’Groat the northern-most point on mainland Scotland and had the most disappointing soup we’ve had so far this trip. I wish we had notices the fish and chip shack behind the cafe before we waded through the soup.
After killing a few minutes taking pictures and staring at the sea, we made our way over to the ferry landing. There we got to sea seals sunning themselves on the rocks and hunting in the surf while we waited for the ferry to arrive and unload. It is the first time we have ever seen seals in the wild so it was a pretty nifty experience. We also got to watch a surfer paddle out into the north sea, but he was still waiting for his wave when we rode out of site.
The ferry and ferry were awesome. The ferry is a two year old catamaran and held dozens of cars and made good speed through the islands. We were fortunate that the sun came out for the first time in days because the wilnd was cold and insistent. I supposed that we could have ridden in the lounge area instead of on deck, but that would just be crazy talk. Crazy talk I tell you. It was by far the best part of the day. We saw even more seals on the shores of the various island, birds by the dozen, several light houses, and old military lookout posts.
After making out landing, we drove across several sections of the Churchill Barriers. Look them up if you get the chance. The story of their construction by Italian prisoners of war in WWII was an interesting tale. We stopped along the way at the Italian Chapel. It is a tiny chapel that the prisoner built in their prisoner of war camp. Two of the prisoners were responsible for the decoration of the chapel. One was a stone carver and the other a painter. So they built a beautiful stone front to the chapel and painted the shabby huts they were given with floor to ceiling murals. It was truly amazing to the beauty they created under such unpleasant conditions.
From there the rest of the day was spent walking around downtown Kirkwall and then eating dinner. Not a lot of grand site, but we are all excited to start our adventures on Orkney. This is he first big section where we have never been before. It should be an adventure.