Sunday Weathers

Looking back from the Nab

Lerwick, Commercial St.

Muckle Roe from Vementry

Nibbon

Nibbon Delight

Foula at Sunset from Whiteness

Whiteness Sunset

Near Night Colours

Sunday 18 September 2011

Another day with threatening weather after a night of wind and clattering rain.  It was still stormy and the trick for the day would be to seek out the best of the weather.  I wanted Aileen to see the best of Shetland during her short stay and my work was almost finished so there would be no opportunity for further visits. The dark clouds were congregating over South Mainland.  So after the rains stopped we made a circuit of Lerwick starting with a walk to the Knab as I had done every day this week and then to the harbour to see the Norwegian fishing boats that were here for the mackerel season. As the winds dropped at lunchtime we headed for the brighter skies in the west and ended up having a coastal walk overlooking the island of Vementry beyond Aith with its splendid views over Swarbacks Minn to Muckle Roe.

The best blue skies were in the north so we drove to Brae and stopped for an afternoon tea of mussels and Victoria sponge at Frankie's.  It was the early evening but I had heard a lot about Nibbon from friends and the evening looked perfect for the short trip from Brae.  It was tranquil and a perfect place to amble about and absorb the seascapes and gentle wildness. We were slightly surprised when a canoe paddled past in this most remote of locations trailing a mackerel line, this looked the perfect antidote to fears of a collapsing economy.

We headed south and decided to divert via Weisdale and Whiteness in the hope of catching a sunset and we were rewarded with the most spectacular light show looking out to Foula in the west.  As the sun dipped below the horizon the blue sky became tinged in pink and then took on hues of orange and red that were reflected in a canopy of cloud.  It was the best 15 minutes of sunset I have ever witnessed and in complete contrast to the miserable daybreak that had lowered the spirits. In Shetland, despite the predominant grey skies, blues and reds are never far away.