#visitshetland

The Viking Unst Project, Shetland

The Viking Unst Project consists of a reconstructed Viking longhouse based on the nearby archaeological site at Hamar and the ship ‘Skidbladner’. The design of Skidbladner is based on the Norwegian Gokstad ship, which would have been used to travel from Norway to Shetland. It is near Haroldswick, which was named after Harald Fairhair, the first king of Norway according to the sagas. He probably was one of the first to come to Shetland from Norway. The Viking Unst Project is out in the open, but in the Summer there is additional reenactment.

Shetland September 2019 

These are some general impressions and a few of my highlights of my Shetland holiday, which I enjoyed very much. 

St Ninian’s Isle, Shetland

This island can be reached via a 'tombolo’, which forms this interesting X-shape. (A ‘tombolo’ is a strip of land, often created through deposited material over time, which attaches an island to the mainland, creating a ‘tied island’.) There you find the remains of a 12th Century chapel, dedicated to St Ninian. On the 4th of July 1958 a local schoolboy by the name of Douglas Coutts discovered treasure under a slab marked with a cross on the chapel site. It turned out to be 28 pieces of Pictish silver artefacts, many of them jewellery, and the jawbone of a porpoise. This treasure was likely hidden during a Viking raid around 800 AD. The original items can be seen in the National Museum of Scotland.  

Shetland Museum & Archives, Lerwick

This is a very enjoyable museum with just the right amount of things to see without being too over or underwhelming. Also, it’s free to visit! It spans from prehistory to modernity. I included some of my favourites here, but I also filmed plenty more.  

Northmavine Peninsula coastline, Shetland

After going up Ronas Hill we wanted to explore some more of the area that we could see from the top of the hill. The day was ending and we were quite tired, so we only saw a glimpse of the rock formations and sea stacks, but what we saw was very impressive, especially bathed in the light of the setting sun. The stretch between Hillswick and Tangwick is particularly beautiful, which is what you see in the first four pictures, including the peculiar pointy rocks known as ‘The Drongs’ (4th photo, also visible from the top of Ronas Hill). Then we drove over to the Eshaness area and stopped at Tangwick to watch the seals relax among the rocky shore. 

Shetland Day 5 

Ronas Hill, Shetland

This is Shetland’s highest hill. At only 450 m (1,480 ft) it doesn’t seem like much, but it turned out to be a long, challenging walk. Not only is the climate here perfect for Arctic plants, the wind was also howling like there was no tomorrow. It felt like walking on the moon in this barren landscape. There is a Neolithic chambered cairn on top of Ronas Hill, which can be entered. It actually gives some good shelter from the wind. You could probably spend the night in there if you really needed to. We got a good view across the Northmavine Peninsula, although the low sun was creating a hazy effect. Just as the rest of Shetland the landscape here is beautifully rugged with a special character. 

Shetland Day 5

Celebrating Shetland Food and Drink