Farewell Orkney, Hello Glasgow!

We waved farewell to Orkney on a warm, sunny morning, and got the ferry back to Scrabster. We then went to see John O'Groats, which was just as tacky and horrible as you would expect - a complete contrast to Dunnet Head.
We headed back to Stirling, and then spent a couple of lovely days around Stirling and Glasgow. We went to see the Mackintosh House at the Hunterian Gallery, which was just a delight for a Mackintosh fan, and they had lots of lovely bears for sale in the shop but Bev resisted. There was even a bear wearing a kilt (and no undies)!
We also went to see the Fossil Grove in Glasgow, where they have trees that are 3,500 million years old - it makes your mind boggle. And here were we thinking Paul was really old!
On the Friday Bev and Paul drove round Loch Lomond and took some lovely photographs of the Falls of Falloch, though Bev was tormented by those pesky little beasties called midges - she paid a high price for her photographs, let me tell you!
Then Bev and Paul packed their stuff up and set off for the south. We cried in the car, not just because we were leaving Bonnie Scotland, but also because we made a terrible discovery - Little Ted was missing! He could not be found anywhere! It is my job to supervise the bears, allocate them to the humans as required, schedule their trips to foreign parts (Blackpool, etc), and what does Paul do? He loses Little Ted! I am a failure, I will be demoted and Bill will become the top bear in the house - sob, sob!

Bill & Hamish's holiday to the wilds of Scotland, Part 5

Our day out to South Ronaldsay proved to be one of the highlights of the holiday (with the exception of the fighting talk from Carlos in the back of the car!). We drove from Stromness to Kirwall, then headed down towards South Ronaldsay. Our first stop was at the Italian Chapel, which is absolutely stunning! It was built by the Italian prisoners of war as a place of worship and they decorated it all themselves. The Chapel has now been gifted to the people of Orkney.
We drove over the Churchill Barriers, also built by the Italian prisoners of war, this time to protect Scapa Flow. They are tremendous feats of engineering, linking several of the small islands to the Orkney mainland. Here we are having our photographs taken at the Churchill Barriers with Bev and Paul.

We then drove to the Tomb of the Eagles (see earlier description of our trip there), which was such fun thanks to the brilliant talk at the museum, the guided tour round the bronze age site by Ronald Simpson and visiting the Tomb of the Eagles itself.
We then drove to St Margaret's Hope, a lovely little village with a tiny ferry port (the local ferry runs from Gills Bay on the mainland to St Margaret's Hope in Orkney, and according to the locals, does the best bacon butty in the northern hemisphere!).
Anyway, we travelled back to Stromness along the road to Orphir with stunning views over Scapa Flow. All in all, a wonderful day out. And after that exciting day out, what did we travel-weary bears want? A bacon butty and a comfy bed back at the B&B!

Bill & Hamish's holiday to the wilds of Scotland, Part 4

Hi, it's Hamish here with an update on what we got up to in Orkney. Here we are at the start of the walk to the Kitchner Memorial and Marwick Head. In the first photograph we are sitting on the Kitchner Memorial plaque, and in the second photograph we are sitting on a gun recovered from the HMS Hampshire.

Don't you think we look rather good sitting on the gun? We thought it might impress the girls :-)
Anyway, from the plaque and gun there is a gentle walk up the slope to the top of the hill, then you find yourself at the summit of very impressive and high cliffs (Marwick Head - see our previous posting and photographs on Marwick Head). On the top of the hill is the Kitchner Memorial itself, also very impressive and high. Bev and Paul headed off with cameras, while we bears followed behind, stocked up with lots of Orkney fudge in case we got stranded. You can never be too careful - always take food supplies and a few cans of cider with you on your adventures (Bear Survival Tip No 1)!
Not only is there a lovely walk across the cliffs, but this is an excellent place to see all sorts of sea birds. But DON'T GET TOO CLOSE TO THE EDGE AS IT IS A VERY LONG WAY DOWN!

Still to come: our trip to South Ronaldsay and photographs with Bev's mum and Carlos at the Churchill Barriers, plus what happened when we left Orkney.

Bill & Hamish's holiday to the wilds of Scotland, Part 3

So, what did we do after our trip to Dunnet Head? Well, we got the ferry to Orkney, which gave us great views of the Old Man of Hoy. Then we landed at Stromness and went to our B&B - Lindisfarne, just outside of Stromness. It was very bear-friendly, with comfy beds and scrummy breakfasts - what more could a bear want? We would definitely recommend it to anyone planning on staying in Orkney.
After that, we went to see the archeological remains on the island (note, all are much older than Paul, Bev and her parents, so really, really old!):

• the Ring of Brodgar, erected around 2500 - 2000 BC
• Skara Brae, inhabited between 3200 BC and 2200 BC
• the chambered tomb of Maeshowe, built 5,000 years ago
• the stunning Tomb of the Eagles, also around 5,000 years old. The entrance to the tomb is low, so is entered by crawling or lying on a skateboard - excellent fun!
• the Broch of Gurness, built sometime before 200BC

As well as the archeological remains, we visited the Italian Chapel, the Earl's Palace and the Bishop's Palace in Kirkwall, and we crossed the Churchill Barriers to South Ronaldsay. We also spent time in Kirkwall and Stromness (Bev wanted to see where George Mackay Brown lived).

Here is a photograph of Bill and myself at the Tomb of the Eagles. Note the sandbag, to stop the skateboard whooshing out of the tunnel, heading off down the hill and over the cliffs, though that might have been kinda exciting!

Bev and Paul also went to photograph some of the scenery round the island and took us bears along (Bev's parents stayed behind at the B&B for an afternoon nap). We went to Marwick Head, which was fascinating but very high, so not very good for little bears with vertigo!

Well, that's all my news for today - my little paws are sore typing all my mad rantings, so I will sign-off for now and either Bill or myself will continue the exciting tale of our trip to the wilds of the Scotland.

To be continued: what else did we get up to in Orkney, did Bev make it to the racing on Saturday, did Frankie qualify for the World Final, and find out the fate of Little Ted, lost in action somewhere in Scotland!

Bill & Hamish's holiday to the wilds of Scotland, Part 2

It’s Hamish again, having recovered at last from my holiday. I was suffering from too many late nights (the sun never sets) and too much Orkney fudge, but at least I am a happy, if fat, little bear.
We are also well-travelled bears, and have been to the most northerly point on the British mainland, Dunnet Head (spot the photographic proof). Dunnet Head has some spectacular sea cliffs and sandy beaches, and from the lighthouse you can see the island of Hoy and the outline of the Old Man of Hoy. Bev and Paul took some nice photographs – it was a sunny and warm (though beastie-infested) evening at Dunnet Head. Thankfully, those pesky midges don’t bother us bears, but Bev got a few big bites – her blood must smell very tasty indeed!

Bill & Hamish's holiday to the wilds of Scotland

Hi, it’s Bill here in my Scottish disguise as Dougall – don’t you think my hat and hair make me look rather dashing?
Hamish is currently resting after his busy holiday (too many late nights and dodgy women), so I am grabbing this opportunity to tell you what we got up to in the wilds of Scotland and Orkney.
We drove up to see Bev’s parents, then went to the racing at Cowdenbeath and Knockhill, which was brilliant fun. We took our Jimmy wigs and reflective vests in case we had to be Scottish track marshals, but they were well organised, so we just watched the racing instead.
We then travelled over to Orkney in a massive ferry, with stunning views of the Old Man of Hoy, and stayed for a week in Stromness.
We had a great time in Orkney, which is a great place for bears with lots of open spaces for running around, lots of wildlife to chase, and lots of Orkney fudge (yummy). Anyway, the humans enjoyed themselves as well, going to see all the archaeological remains and enjoying the scenery. So, all in all, a great holiday for humans and bears!
No doubt Hamish will be back to tell you more about our holiday and share some of his photographs with you, but until then, this is Bill (aka Dougall) signing out.