Land A-Hoy

The weather today started dismal, and just got worse - grey skies, fine drizzle and a brisk north-westerly wind, all interspersed with showers of heavy rain. Fortunately Pete was sampling burns in Orphir parish, to see whether there was any link between the invertebrate communities and their known value for breeding sea-trout, and could continue with his work despite the weather.

I have to admit that most of the time he was working I sat in the car and read 'The Girl who Played with Fire'. I very rarely seem to get an uninterrupted period of reading time at home - as a child I always liked to read a whole book in one go, and this is still my preference. It felt a real luxury to be able to get immersed in the story.

I did pop out of the car inbetween showers to take the occasional photograph. This is the view from the western side of the Mainland, looking towards the cloud-shrouded hills of Hoy. The island with the white lighthouse is Graemsay. The wall in the foreground is very characteristic of orkney, and has a fine growth of polypody fern.

I managed a wander round Orphir Church, the remains of Scotland's only surviving circular medieval church. Built in the late 11th, or early 12th century, the Orphir Round Kirk is thought to have been built by Earl Hakon. Dedicated to Saint Nicholas, its design was inspired by the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. At the time of the kirk's construction, the Great Crusades were in full swing and the circular church had become a popular design with returning crusaders attempting to copy the famous structure in the Holy Land.

Once Pete had finished his burn sampling, we decided to call it a day, as it was too cold and wet to find any terrestrial insects. We headed off to Skara Brae, though when we arrived we were both taken aback by the number of visitors and the level of organisation - very different from the Ring of Brodgar and the Stones of Stenness.

Skara Brae is the best preserved groups of prehistoric houses in Western Europe. Uncovered by a storm in 1850, it has allowed archaeologists to put together a remarkable picture of life around 5,000 years ago. The ancient homes were fitted with stone beds, dressers and seats. I've put a couple of photographs of the site and houses in my Blipfolio (along with one of Orphir Church).

Although it was fascinating to visit, I can definitely say that I've never been so cold in mid-July. The village is located next to the Bay of Skaill, which offered no protection from the very strong, bitter north-westerly, which felt as though it was blowing in straight from the Arctic. I'd really like to go back and have a more leisurely visit on a nicer day!