Random April photos......

 

The weather over the last couple of weeks can best be described as "changeable".  Regular British weather then!  I'm trying to venture forth once a week to the Orkney Mainland - weather permitting.  Orkney is currently in Level 3 and likely to remain so for some weeks to come.  However from this coming Friday we can meet outdoors with up to 6 people from 6 different households (a change from one other household with a number limit).  From 26th April travel will be allowed across Scotland (at the moment to and from Orkney is "essential travel" only).  And from 16th May then folk can travel to and from the rest of the UK AND we can meet a limited number of people indoors.  It's all a bit complicated but mostly won't affect what I am doing.  I get my second vaccination on 6th May (also polling day for Scottish elections).  I will mostly meet folk outdoors for the summer and just see how things go as everything opens up and visitors start arriving......

Anyway back to photos.... Blue sky over Hoy and Graemsay

Hoy High light and Sandside

Leaving Graemsay and heading to Stromness

A lovely sky over these small islands called The Holms which are linked by a causeway at low tide to Stromness.  The house  on the island was up for sale a while ago.  Not sure if it has been sold yet or not....

Over Winter boats are taken out of the water and given a lick of paint.  This one is now ready to be taken back into the water...

And a chance for takeaway coffee and cake at Julia's cafe with a pal!

And a run into Kirkwall to meet up with another pal for a picnic in Tankerness House Gardens (behind the Orkney Museum which is shown in the photo below).  

The gardens are a lovely quiet place to sit just off the main street (Broad Street) in Kirkwall.  It was a bit chilly this particular day but we had flasks and rugs!

The spire of St Magnus Cathedral between the rooves of the town....

The garden looks a bit sparse at this time of year.... still well maintained though!

In the garden is the relocated "Groatie Hoose".  This was moved from its original location in another part of Kirkwall.  It was a former summer house of one of the wealthier inhabitants of Kirkwall!  The "Hoose" was made from ballast from a notorious pirate's ship that was Pirate Gow when he was captured in 1725.  The roof was originally covered with tiny cowrie shells found on local beaches and known in Orkney as "groatie buckies".

Back at home the hens have been delighted to get out and about again after their own "flockdown".

They just love sunbathing, stretching out wings and legs to soak up the warmth....

And Spring brings new growth and flowers - some of which managed to weather the - er - weather...

Most of these catkins ended up on the grass in the wind and snow.  But new green leaves are coming through regardless....

Winter gales and snow showers - in April....

 

In Orkney it is called "lambing snow" - just as the lambs are due the weather seems to turn foul.  And this weekend we have gales (56mph average) and sleet, hail and snow.  The snow isn't settling on Graemsay or in the West but have heard it is drifting onto roads on some parts of the Orkney Mainland.

There are some lambs in the field in front of the house.  They seem to be doing OK.  Sheep have a knack of finding sheltered spots.  These (above) are sheltering in a dip which was for the old mill dam that used to be at Sandside.  The ewes get plenty of food and as long as the lambs get milk they are generally OK. There are hay bales around the field, plus a huge muck heap for the lambs to find shelter in.  Other neighbours are also getting lambs now, though some can lamb indoors or at least keep them in for a day or two.

Morning view - the snow showers come over the landscape in swathes, and then clear to blue skies and sunshine for a few minutes, then repeat.

Cat flap battened!  And a mini snow drift for her to wade through were she foolhardy enough to go out...

Incoming showers for Hoy High.....

Looking across to Stromness..... I should point out the windows are covered in salt etc.... not just dirty - hee hee.

Yup that's about it....

And a friend sent me this photo of a street in Kirkwall in the early hours of the morning! Sheet ice....

Along the Stromness waterfront

 

Along the waterfront

I love the Stromness waterfront.  Many of the old houses are built on piers, and have slipways tinto the water.  This is similar to Norwegian fishing villages apparently.

Some building work going on along the pier to one of the houses....

A boathouse at the end of a pier, and a former church is now a venue for community events including plays and concerts (the Town Hall)

Orkney Harbours have brought two new tugs into commission recently.  These are the two older ones - not sure what their fate is...

And this is the Golden Marianna.  It usually sails between the tiny island of Papay Westray and the larger island of Westray.  It's in Stromness going for an annual check.  It will then come on service for Graemsay while our  ferry goes for annual checks.  It's never popular on Graemsay as the vessel isn't that easily accessible, particularly if you are trying to carry shopping.  No cargo requiring havy lift crane can be delivered either - though we are given fair warning so we can get things delivered before or wait until our "proper" ferry returns.  With Covid-19 regulations this vessel can also take few passengers and has little outside space.  However it should only be on for a couple of weeks so we will make the best of it.

I loved watching the waves as the ferry cut through the water....

Spring ploughing along the Stromness coast....

Home again - a rainbow over Graemsay.....

View from Sandside over the bay on a sunny day.

More water problems on the island.....

 

So about 3 weeks ago we had an interruption to our mains water supply on the island.  Bottled water was shipped over, and then a large bowser was placed at the pier so ships could bring over water to fill it, which was then temporarily linked to our mains water supply and at least we had water coming out of taps and into cisterns!  Four days with no mains water makes you realise just how much we depend on it!  It took several days to locate the leak, which turned out to be below the tide line over on the island of Hoy.  Eventually it was fixed and we had another few days with a "Boil your water" notice.  Two weeks later we are still experiencing some problems with lots of air in the system, but apparently the water is safe to drink.  Anyway here are a few photos of the equipment brought to the island!

Above a local farmer is transporting one of the mini-diggers that were brought over to the island to investigate the leak.  Our island ferry doesn't have the lifting capacity for anything large so Scottish Water chartered some work boats (largely from the renewable energy sector that work in these waters) to bring over anything heavy as they have much bigger cranes.

Plenty of water was brought over in bottles on pallets.  It was a foul night when this arrived with water over the pier, and neighbours collecting it on trailers to put at the top of the pier.  Folk were expected to go and collect themselves but as usual, neighbours delivered to those of us unable to manage heavy packs of water (including me!)

And the bowser and pump with pipes to connect to the mains water system on the island....

As well as household there are a number of farms on the island and it was crucial to be able to get water to the farms, particularly where in-calf cows were in sheds.  So Scottish Water did move swiftly to try and resolve the water shortage.  

Unfortunately the water is still very cloudy (air in the system) two weeks later, so although it is fit to drink, we are battling to get the engineers to come out again and vent the system.  It still comes out of taps spitting and snorting, and is very cloudy. Hopefully this can be resolved soon too!

As well as equipment for the water mains, the pier is quite crowded with containers as workmen from Orkney Harbours are out replacing railings and fenders around the pier and a new system of livestock gates are being installed.  As I've mentioned previously, there is no roll on-roll off ferry serving the island so everything has to be lifted on and off by crane.  Including sheep and cattle as well as anything else that cannot be carried up the steps by hand.  

Hope you enjoyed this wee snapshot of life on Graemsay!

Along the shore....

 

The scale of the cloud is only fully appreciated when you look at the farm buildings at the base!  

Low cloud drifting over the hoy hills.  All calm in Sandside Bay

A wren who was quite cross that we were invading his/her territory.  Hopefully NOT nesting in these creels or they will get a nasty surprise once fishing starts again!

Button likes life on the edge....

I can't wait for the land to start to green up again....

And a very low flying RAF Hercules (they are often on training flights over Orkney).  OK it looks like a bird - top left hand side...

Middle on this one...

Small white blob bottom middle - is a seal.... yes I know my camera skills leave a lot to the imagination!

Low cloud/mist over the hills of Orphir on the Orkney Mainland

Bejewelled leaves 

These stones are laid by the doors of the old house/byre.  Much less slippery when wet than the traditional flagstones.  They may have been a later addition when the old house was turned into a stable for the farm horses and byre for the cattle.

And later in the afternoon the sky cleared.....