2009-07-01 - 03 From St Ninias to Foula

Foula, the most isolated inhabited island in Britain. Around 25 souls lives on this island. It has no shop but a brand new a school for two students. Fishing used to be the main business here but now its mostly crofting.

Foula is situated 20 miles west of Shetland, the small ferry has to cross the open ocean to get there. The island is about three and a half miles long and two and a half miles wide, with a lower-lying coastal strip along the east side. The five hills rise steeply into Foula’s jagged silhouette and drop sharply to the sea on the west side in the highest sheer sea cliffs in Britain.

The harbor, such as it is, is in the middle of the east coast, and the groups of crofts lie in three townships. The private airstrip was built by islanders with voluntary labor in the early 1970’s, and the local fire brigade provide cover at every aircraft landing.

Most of the islanders are crofters and Foula has maintained the colored Foula Shetland sheep, and some keep a few cattle, pigs and Shetland ponies. Transporting them to market is challenging, and the locally based ferry plays an important role. It’s specially fitted out for the unique conditions in the island, and is crewed by islanders.

We were actually planning to go to Scalloway after St Ninias but as the weather was very settled, which is necessary for a trip to Foula we made a sudden chanfge of plans and set of due west for Foula instead. But soon a dense fog surrounded us and even if the island is more than 400 meters high and normally visible fom the mainland we did not see the harbour entrance until it was only about 25 meters left. Without radar and chart plotter this trip would have been impossible. However on the island itself the sun was shining.

Soon after we arrived we had to move out of the tiny harbour to make room for a working boat. We realized that we had arrived at the bussiest day of the year as they wor doing maintenance work on the crane etc. in the harbour.

The Foula ferry boat that is lifted out of the water after each trip. The harbour is not safe but in the calmest days. We were very lucky to arrive a day with hardly any wind and the sun was just blazing down from a blue sky.

A guided tour by one of the friendly locals. He had just received a load of sand from the work boat and offered us a trip to his farm.

The air strip, not for a Jumbo Jet but it works if the wind is not too strong.

The houses and famillies re few and far apart.

Our local guide had a farm with several diffent animals. This type of pig is originally from New Zeeland.

The brand new school with solar panels for electricity.

Peat is still used as the main fuel for providing heat.

Information about services available on the island.

Property for sale.

The old ferry boat.

Sea Wind mored inside the pier again after all the work was done in the harbour.

The workboat on the left, is still inside the harbour waiting for the tide so it will deep enough for him to leav.

The next day we made a long walk to the SW side of the island through an area called the Daal (old Norse language for valley)

A Bonxie (Great Skua) is defending it's territory.

The Daal.

On the SW side

Massive bird cliffs. The nature here is similar to the Faroes.

Words are not enough to decribe the scenery.

On the way back we walked over one of the high hills. Hamne Fjell + 300 meters. Some of the island can be seen below the hill to the right.

A misty evening in the harbour.