The View From My Beer
The view of my beer today is of everyone else’s beer. A pint of Tennant in the Thule Bar. At 1pm on a Saturday it felt like every male in Lerwick of drinking age descends upon the local pubs to meet and plan their activities for the afternoon. It was nice to drink at a bar where almost everyone else was younger than 60. There was a lot of energy, that is often lacking on a Princess cruise.
Lerwick
Stop number seven on my 14-day cruise around Britain. Lerwick is the northern most town in both Scotland and UK, with a population of about 7,000 perople. So yes, when a cruise ship with 4,000+ people onboard arrives in town, it gets noticed! Lerwick is the main town and port of the Shetland archipelago, located about half-way between mainland Scotland and Norway.
My Walk
When I peered out the windows of our gym at 7:30am it was not possible to see more than a few metres in front as there was a very thick fog. Fortunately about an hour later it cleared and we were presented ith the most beautiful sunny day imaginable. Clear blue skies and the fresh air that comes from being by the sea and a long way from anywhere else.
Today, my research had found a popular 6km trail that circled the town and took in some of the outlying sites.
Town of Lerwick
Our ship was able to dock about 500 metres from the centre of town, so it was quick a short water taxi ride to town. Like so many of the ports of call we visit, there is often a charming waterfront. In this case, the town occupied the first couple of streets running parallel to the water. Clearly the town was very old, with many of the building being made from stone. The water was remarkably clear and there we a couple of small beaches in the town. Many of the building had steps leading down to the water, providing access to the buildings via boat.
The Knab
After walking through town, the path wound its way along a rugged coastline towards a promontory known as The Knab. The path is lined with brick walls, something that seems very common in both Scotland and Wales. Along the way we say lots of evidence of the importance placed on ships, including Viking longboats that were used here many years ago.
Clickmin
The path then continued on to an area known as Clickmin. Here were the remains of a very old building known as Clickmin Broch. The building dates back to the Iron Age, having been built between 1000 and 500 BC. It was most likely built to as a refuge for the local community when they came under attack from Vikings. There are 120 Brochs identified in The Shetlands. Next to the broch was the picturesque Clickmin Loch.
That concluded the scenic part of the walk. From Clickman it was a matter of following fottpaths beside the local streets back into town. I encountered a jogger wearing a Richmond Tigers jersey. He kept going even though I begrudgingly gave him a “Go Tiges” greeting. He had airpods, or no idea what the jersey was he was wearing. The Richmond Essendon game was on at the moment. Maybe he was listening to the match.
Up Helly Aa
At the start of each year, the (male) locals dress up in traditional viking gear and have their photo taken. I decided to drop by the local museum, Up Helly Aa to take a look at the exhibits of the town’s viking heritage. Clearly this was not Disneyland. It was a smallish building and the exhibits were only open for a few months, on a few days of the week, and only for a few hours each day. It wasn’t open when I visited, but it would be open later today. I wasn’t sufficiently inpired to make the trip back, but I was impressed by the photos they took each year!
Fort Charlotte
On the edge of the central business area was Fort Charlotte. The original fort was built during the period of Dutch occupation around 1652. The current structure was built on the same site a few years later by Charles II in 1665.
Return to Town
Having made it back into town, I had plenty of time to take a more detailed look around and scout a suitable pub for today’s view. A local’s goat was being taken for a walk and was creatring quite a bit of attention. The town had many narrow streets with cobblestones and no footpaths. Fortunately there was not a lot of cars traveling through these streets and so the people largely meandered their way down the street, stopping to peer into the shops.
The weather was quite warm and a few people decided to venture into the water. I am guessing most of these were fellow passengers from the cruise ship. I later found out my favorite barman from the pool bar had been one of the people to take a dip.
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