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Orkney Ferries
Orkney Ferries is a Scottish company operating inter-island ferry services in the Orkney Islands. The company operates ferry services across 15 islands. History The company is owned by the Orkney Islands Council and was established in 1960 as the Orkney Islands Shipping Company. In 1991, the Orkney Islands Shipping Company acquired a private sector ferry company also called Orkney Ferries, which had been established to compete on the short sea crossing from the Scottish mainland to the Orkney Islands, but which had not succeeded in establishing the route. This company's ferry was assimilated into the inter-island fleet, and in 1995 the Orkney Islands Shipping Company adopted the name Orkney Ferries. Despite this acquisition and change of name, the current Orkney Ferries does not operate services to and from the Scottish mainland, leaving this to other operators such as NorthLink Ferries and Pentland Ferries. Services Orkney Ferries operate between the Orkney mainland and four ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Orkney (), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago off the north coast of mainland Scotland. The plural name the Orkneys is also sometimes used, but locals now consider it outdated. Part of the Northern Isles along with Shetland, Orkney is 10 miles (16 km) north of Caithness and has about 70 islands, of which 20 are inhabited.Haswell-Smith (2004) pp. 336–403. The largest island, the Mainland, has an area of , making it the sixth-largest Scottish island and the tenth-largest island in the British Isles. Orkney's largest settlement, and also its administrative centre, is Kirkwall. Orkney is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a constituency of the Scottish Parliament, a lieutenancy area, and an historic county. The local council is Orkney Islands Council. The islands have been inhabited for at least years, originally occupied by Mesolithic and Neolithic tribes and then by the Picts. Orkney was colonised and later annexed by the Kingdom of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sanday, Orkney
Sanday (, ) is one of the inhabited islands of Orkney that lies off the north coast of mainland Scotland. With an area of , it is the third largest of the Orkney Islands.Haswell-Smith (2004) p. 334. The main centres of population are Lady Village and Kettletoft. Sanday can be reached by Orkney Ferries or by plane ( Sanday Airport) from Kirkwall on the Orkney Mainland. On Sanday, an on-demand public minibus service allows connecting to the ferry. Etymology The Picts were the pre-Norse inhabitants of Sanday but very few placenames remain from this period. The Norse named the island or because of the predominance of sandy beaches and this became "Sanday" during the Scots- and English-speaking periods. The similarly named Sandoy is in the Faroe Islands. Many names of places and natural features derive from Old Norse. According to Dorward (1995), the placename ''Kettletoft'' means ' Kettil's croft' although ''toft'' in this context may mean 'abandoned site of house' from the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flotta
Flotta () is a small island in Orkney, Scotland, lying in Scapa Flow. The island is known for its large oil terminal and is linked by Orkney Ferries to Houton on the Orkney Mainland, Lyness on Hoy and Longhope on South Walls. The island has a population of 80. History At the turn of the 20th century, the island was a quiet rural community like many other small islands of Orkney, but its sheltered location led to three major upheavals in the island in the century. Until 1914, Flotta was a quiet farming community. In 1910, a population of 431 included two blacksmiths, four carpenters and three dressmakers. World Wars Everything changed with the arrival of the Royal Navy in Scapa Flow at the start of the First World War. There is a photograph held by the Imperial War Museum in London that shows a boxing match taking place on Flotta in front of a wartime audience of 10,000 people. During the First World War, the island was home to a naval base. The dreadnought HMS ''Vangu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South Walls
South Walls is a tidal island or peninsula at the southern end of Hoy in Orkney, Scotland. It is connected to the main body of Hoy, and to the district of North Walls, by a thin neck of land known as the Ayre. Its largest settlement is Longhope, which lies on a long natural harbour of the same name. Both North and South Walls belong to the civil parish of Walls and Flotta. South Walls is a popular stopping off place for barnacle geese. Etymology The Norse name of Vágaland, meaning "land of bays" applied to both what is now South Walls and the southern portion of nearby Hoy. Over time this became (variously spelled) for the whole area and meaning "southern bays" for the island. As for Kirkwall, early cartographers assumed "waa" was a local pronunciation of "wall", hence the modern name. Geography and geology South Walls, like most of the Orkney archipelago, is made up of old red sandstone, with the Rousay flagstone group predominating. It is more or less oval in shape, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hoy, Orkney
Hoy (from Old Norse language, Old Norse , meaning "high island") is an island in Orkney, Scotland, measuring – the second largest in the archipelago, after Orkney Mainland, Mainland. A natural causeway, ''the Ayre'', links the island to the smaller South Walls; the two islands are treated as one entity by the UK census. Hoy is also the name of a hamlet in the northwest of the island. Geography At in extent, Hoy is the 12th largest of List of islands of Scotland, Scotland's islands. It is also the "highest and wildest and wettest ( of annual rainfall) of all the Orkney islands". The Old Man of Hoy, a sea stack formed from Old Red Sandstone, can be found in the northwest on the Rackwick coast. It is one of the tallest stacks in the United Kingdom at a height of . The Old Man is popular with climbers, and was first climbed in 1966. Created by the erosion of a cliff through hydraulic action sometime after 1750, the stack is no more than a few hundred years old, and a painting ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Houton
Houton is a settlement southeast of Stromness on the island of Mainland, Orkney, Scotland. The settlement is within the parish of Orphir, and is situated on a minor road off the A964. From here, a ferry sails to Lyness on Hoy, Longhope on South Walls, and the island of Flotta, as well as a smaller ferry for workers of the Flotta oil terminal. Nearby are the remains of the Orphir Round Church, dedicated to St Nicholas (the only medieval round church in Scotland) and the Earl's Bu, the ruins of a former manor house of the Earldom of Orkney. These sites are in the care of Historic Environment Scotland. The Holm of Houton is nearby. RAF Houton RAF Houton was situated nearby and was home to the following units: * No. 306 (Flying Boat) Flight. * No. 430 (Seaplane) Flight. * 'F' Boat Seaplane Training Flight was formed on 15 August 1918 and operated the Felixstowe F.3 and the Curtiss H.16 before being disbanded on 25 November 1918. * Orkney Wing. References ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wyre, Orkney
Wyre (historically known as Viera and Veira) is one of the Orkney, Orkney Islands, lying south-east of Rousay. It is and at its highest point. It is one of the smallest inhabited islands in the archipelago. Orkney Ferries sail from the island to Tingwall, Orkney, Tingwall on the Mainland, Orkney, Orkney Mainland, Egilsay and Rousay. History Wyre's history is still very apparent, and it has two ancient monuments maintained by Historic Scotland, Cubbie Roo's Castle and St. Mary's Chapel. Bishop Bjarni grew up on Wyre, and was the son of Kolbeinn hrúga, Kolbein Hruga (see Cubbie Roo's Castle below.) ''Collins Encyclopaedia of Scotland'' says that he: :"composed the only significant work of Norse poetry to have survived in the [Orkney] islands, his ''Jómsvíkingadrápa, Lay of the Jomsvikings''. He also played an important part in securing the canonisation of Rognvald Eysteinsson, Earl Rognvald."Keay, J. & Keay, J. (1994) ''Collins Encyclopaedia of Scotland''. London. Harpe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Egilsay
Egilsay (, ) is one of the Orkney Islands in Scotland, lying east of Rousay. The anglicized name of Eagleshay was used in past centuries. The island is largely farmland and is known for St Magnus Church, Egilsay, St Magnus Church, dedicated or re-dedicated to Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney, Saint Magnus, who was killed on the island in 1117 by an axe blow to the head. For hundreds of years the story of St Magnus, part of the Orkneyinga saga, was considered just a legend until a skull with a large crack in it, such as it had been stricken by an axe, was found in the walls of St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall. Etymology Unusually for the Northern Isles, it has been suggested that Egilsay may have a partly Gaelic name. While at first sight, it appears to be Egil's island, "Egil" being a Norse personal name, the Gaelic ''eaglais'' (Celtic "eccles") meaning church, may be part of the root, as the island is dominated by a church of pre-Norse foundation. The island of Kili Holm just ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rousay
Rousay (, ; meaning Rolf's Island) is a small, hilly island about north of Mainland, the largest island in the Orkney Islands of Scotland. It has been nicknamed "Egypt of the north", due to its archaeological diversity and importance. Like its neighbours Egilsay and Wyre, it can be reached by ro-ro ferry from Tingwall. This service is operated by Orkney Ferries, and can take up to 95 passengers (reduced to 50 in winter), and 10 cars. The ferry links the islands of Rousay, Egilsay, and Wyre with each other, and with the mainland of Orkney. Demographics In the 2001 census, Rousay had a population of 212. Most employment is in farming, fishing or fish-farming; craft businesses and seasonal tourism-related work are present. Geography It is separated from mainland Orkney by Eynhallow Sound. One road circles the island, about long, and most arable land lies in the few hundred yards between it and the coastline. With an area of , it is the fifth largest of the Orkney Island ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tingwall, Orkney
Tingwall is a farm and ferry terminal that lies on the north-east coast of Orkney's West Mainland on the Gairsay Sound in the parish of Evie and Rendall. There is a ferry connection to the islands of Wyre, Rousay and Egilsay. The harbour was built in the 1980s and is used by fishing vessels. The name is derived from Old Norse. Recorded as in the ''Orkneyinga saga'' and as "Tyngwell" in 1492, the first syllable indicates the site of a legislative or judicial assembly. The second syllable, (at least in the case of similar examples such as Dingwall) may have been meaning field. A ruined broch nearby may have been the place of assembly although there are no written records of meetings at Tingwall. It may have fallen out of use and have been replaced by an assembly at Kirkwall Kirkwall (, , or ; ) is the largest town in Orkney, an archipelago to the north of mainland Scotland. First mentioned in the ''Orkneyinga saga'', it is today the location of the headquarters of the Or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shapinsay
Shapinsay (, ) is one of the Orkney Islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland. With an area of , it is the eighth largest island in the Orkney archipelago. It is low-lying and, with a bedrock formed from Old Red Sandstone overlain by boulder clay, fertile, causing most of the area to be used for farming. Shapinsay has two nature reserves and is notable for its bird life. Balfour Castle, built in the Scottish Baronial style, is one of the island's most prominent features, a reminder of the Balfour family's domination of Shapinsay during the 18th and 19th centuries; the Balfours transformed life on the island by introducing new agricultural techniques. Other landmarks include a standing stone, an Iron Age broch, a souterrain and a salt-water shower. There is one village on the island, Balfour, from which roll-on/roll-off car ferries sail to Kirkwall on the Orkney Mainland. At the 2011 census, Shapinsay had a population of 307. The economy of the island is primarily ba ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
North Ronaldsay
North Ronaldsay (, also , ) is the northernmost island in the Orkney archipelago of Scotland. With an area of , it is the fourteenth-largest.Haswell-Smith (2004) p. 334 It is mentioned in the ''Orkneyinga saga''; in modern times it is known for its historic lighthouse, migratory bird life and unusual breed of sheep. Name The name comes from the Norse ''Rinansey'', meaning the island of St Ninian. By the 1300s the name was being confused with ''Rognvaldsey'', the island of St Ronald, in the south of Orkney that they were named North Ronaldsay and South Ronaldsay to distinguish them from the other. Geography North Ronaldsay lies around north of its nearest neighbour, Sanday, at . It is around long and is defined by two large sandy bays; Linklet Bay on the eastern shoreline and South Bay at the south. The west of the island is very rocky, with many skerries. North Ronaldsay is low-lying and exposed; its climate is extremely changeable and frequently inclement. The surroun ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
