Holiday Brochure.

Amazon delivered some holiday brochures this morning including this local map and several books about the attractions of the area.
 
I have had a fascination with Saint Kilda for something over fifty years since a friend (who happened to be a very good photographer) went there on a working holiday restoring the derelict villagers’ cottages. Then a few years ago, an elderly friend had a holiday on a cruise ship that stopped off here for a few hours and so she took advantage of the opportunity; only the fitter members of the ship’s company were allowed to participate, so she hid her walking sticks for the duration in order to qualify. 


The trip sort of went on my bucket list back the first time I saw the pictures of it, and I am becoming aware that if I don’t go soon, I never will. It’s a long term plan with next June being the target date, I’ve reasoned that it’s do-able and that a stay of four or five days should be adequate since the main island, Hirta, is only a couple of miles from stem to stern. The major issue will be the weather, it is quite possible that there will either be torrential rain for the entire visit – or a tropical heat-wave – alternatively, any combination of the two is possible. The weather will, of course, also decide the travel arrangements as there are no guaranteed sailings; although the booking will be quite definite, I may have to wait for several days for conditions to be favourable for me to land there; equally, I could be waiting a week to get off the island at the end of the trip. With, apparently, no food available other than what I carry with me, there could be interesting times.

The remoteness of the archipelago is illustrated in the extra.