Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary
fuelling that adventure
At 60 degrees North, midway between Iceland, Norway and the mainland of Scotland, you’ll find the wild and remote Shetland Islands. Our archipelago might only be 80 miles from tip to tip and 35 miles at its widest, but there are 640 miles of quiet, well-maintained roads and 1679 miles of wild and rugged coastline …
With the lifting of lockdown restrictions, the Shetland Islands have seen an increase in Britains travelling within the UK and wishing to explore the outer, wild limits of their own country. So, you’ve decided to visit the edge of the world… here are five things we think you should do while you’re here. This travel …
Quench your thirst during your outdoor adventures this Sober October with Budweiser Zero. This post has been written in collaboration with Budweiser Zero, although all thoughts and opinions expressed are our own.
The Shetland Islands has the largest density of otters (draatsi in Shetland dialect) in Europe, possibly even the world. A family of four, a Mum and three cubs, live on the coastline in front of my house. I’ve been filming them during these last few weeks months to help pass the time during the …
During Shetland Boat Week 2019, Agnes Kay Charters ran tours of Lerwick Harbour and Bressay, venturing out to the Noss National Nature Reserve to visit the gannets when the weather permitted. A visit to see the Gannets of Noss with Agnes Kay Charters Shetland Boat Week 2019 has just finished, and what a week …
I had the idea for this post recently while watching the orca videos I’d filmed with my iPhone last year. I was going to research and write my own post about Shetland orca sightings, and I asked my friend Nick of Southspear Media & Surveys Ltd, for a quote to include. He came back with …
On Shetland’s south mainland, park at the Ness Boating Club and follow the coastline north until you reach the red rock pool in Virkie. This pool is coloured red for only a few weeks of the year if the conditions are right. Blog post includes map and directions. We spent a most wonderful two nights …
The Shetland Islands are a remote island archipelago in the North Sea, lying midway between Iceland, Scotland and Norway at the same latitude as the southern tip of Greenland. It boasts dramatic seascapes, captivating wildlife and friendly island hospitality. The Shetland Islands Road Trip Itinerary I’ve gone on many a press trip over these last …
Celebrating the return of the light, Shetland style! Up Helly Aa is Europe’s largest fire festival held annually in the wild and remote Shetland Islands. A Guizer Jarl Squad donned in their finest Viking attire leads a 900+ torch-lit procession through the streets of the town, culminating in a dramatic burning of a replica Viking …
Highlights of our visit to the first Unst Viking Festival. I’ve always had a fascination with Viking history, ever since I was a young girl and first heard stories of their possible exploration of the east coast of Canada; my childhood home. We did a school project on Vikings once, and I created a very …
Our weekend adventure in Yell, Britain’s second most northerly island. We’ve recently had a spell of unseasonable glorious, sunny weather. Nearly two weeks of sun and very little wind (for our standards), and so come the start of the October school holidays I made an executive decision to take my younger two children on a …
I have lived nearly my entire life by the sea, and would you believe I have never been on a sailing boat before? Not properly, anyway. I’ve been on aboard a few while they were berthed, but I had never experienced the thrill of being out on the open sea with the sails down, wind …
Part two of two of my long bank holiday weekend bike ride to the most northerly tip of Britain. I had a very comfortable sleep in Windhouse Lodge, the gatehouse to Shetland’s most haunted house, built in 1707. There were no signs of any ghosts, unfortunately! If you haven’t read Part 1 of this series …
Part one of two of my long bank holiday weekend bike ride to the most northerly tip of Britain. Regular readers will, by now, be well aware that I am planning an epic 250 mile mountain bike cycle from my home on Shetland to Fort William, where I’ll be climbing Ben Nevis – all part …
Yell’s most northerly beach. Nothing beats a beach day, really. Especially when you’re seven and you’ve just spent the last hour sitting on a couch playing on your Mum’s iPad while she tosses battle ropes, swings kettle bells and Spiderman walks up the village hall you’re in. She’s doing some sort of bizarre fitness training …
I had one of those I love my life moments yesterday. That’s me standing on the edge of that cliff you see there. Taking advantage of the predicted fine weather and the long school holiday weekend, DD and I packed a packed lunch, gathered our provisions and met up with a friend for some coastal …
Just imagine it – a grand replica Viking galley, a squad of big burly bearded axe-wielding men and a procession of nearly 1000 individuals with torches parading through the streets of Lerwick, Shetland. This is followed by singing The Norseman’s Home, a dramatic burning of the galley and then an all-night party in the local halls. The …
Old Norse: feitiland – fat land, rich pasture Situated at the most northern tip of the Shetland mainland, Fethaland’s fertile soil has a long history of settlement. There is evidence of an Iron Age prehistoric round house or broch (there is some disagreement on this), the circular wall outlines of a Neolithic house and the …
Hams of Muckle Roe: old Norse for havens (or harbours) of the big red island. I lost the entire month of July to working full time and then August seems to have flown by. The winter weather is going to be starting up again soon, confining us indoors again. This last week has given us …
The Iron Age in Europe occurred between 1200 BCE – 1 BCE. I’ve rekindled my geocaching bug – well, my friend Julia’s rekindled my geocaching bug. In 2010 a crafty friend of mine (Julia – who blogs over at Jaydee’s Ramblings) introduced me to the wonderful world of geocaching. For those of you who don’t …
