Guided Walks

Your transport will be by mini-bus from Lerwick but to get to some of our wild and wonderful areas we will revert to the more traditional ‘shank’s pony’ giving you a close up and personal experience of Shetland.

Walks range in distance from 2 miles to 11 miles so you can pick the day that suits you. Please be certain that you are physically able to undertake the longer walks and that you have appropriate clothing and footwear.

The departure point will always be Lerwick but pick-ups may be possible en-route. Groups booking can be picked up when and where by arrangement. If you wish on your return from the tour you can be dropped off at your accommodation.

As much as I’d like it to be, our weather isn’t always perfect so you will need to take warm and waterproof clothing with you and stout outdoor footwear is essential. However, if I think the weather is such that it would be too uncomfortable or unsafe to follow the proposed itinerary on the day a more suitable alternative will be offered from our Scenic Tours itineraries.

Tour/walk 1. Shetland’s Volcanic Coast - Fire, Ice and Tempest. (Features on BBC TV Coast Series 3, Spring 2007 - http://www.bbc.co.uk/coast)

Would you like to stand inside a volcanic cone on a lava pond surrounded by huge boulders that were hurled high into the air, or see where a glacier has scraped its way across the landscape then let your mind boggle at the awesome power of the sea?

Calders Geo, Eshaness
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At Eshaness we have the finest section through the side of a volcano in the British Isles with spectacular cliffs showing agglomerate, lava and pyroclastic flows, and a most amazing storm 'beach'. As well as all this we will take in the wildlife, history and archaeology of the area.

A scenic drive to the Eshaness peninsula with a short stop en route to visit Mavis Grind then a 4-mile (7km) walk along relatively flat cliff-tops. The return drive will be via Shetland‘s only fjord, Ronas Voe, which lies in the shadow of our highest hill.

As I cannot guarantee a café stop you should bring a packed lunch.

Tour/walk 2. Shetland’s ‘Castle in the Air’ – Walks on the ‘Sunny Side’.

Ever imagined standing on you own castle wall and being Lord and Master of all you survey? Or being a high priest in your temple? Then this tour will give you that opportunity. Surprisingly for a small land area Shetland’s topography produces ‘micro-climates’ and the Westside benefits from this by often being the sunniest part of Shetland in the summer.

Burn of Kirkhouse
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This tour takes us over a contrasting landscape that has seen 5000 years of continuous settlement so we will visit the homes of the first farmers as well as what may have been their ‘temple’. We shall take a walk to Shetland’s most amazing broch site then return past an array of spectacular cliffs, sea stacks and caves hewn out of 340 million-year-old red granite. In addition there will be many chances to add to your tally of sightings of moorland and sea birds as well as seals and perhaps otters.

A scenic drive through Shetland’s Wild West with mostly short walks to sites of interest and a 3½-mile (6km) walk over track and hillsides.

As I cannot guarantee a café stop you should bring a packed lunch.

Tour/walk 3. Shetland’s Empty Quarter – Visit Shetland’s Oldest ‘Factory’.

Ever wondered how you would carve the Sunday Joint if metal blades hadn’t been invented? Or how ice has carved the landscape? Or how Shetland looked 100,000 years ago?

Braewick Beach, Northmavine
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Our walk will take us to one of the remotest corners of Shetland and it’s wild and wonderful landscapes crossing some of Shetland’s youngest and oldest rocks. We will see where Neolithic man fashioned a tool unique to Shetland and where trees grew beside a lake long before the last ice age.

A scenic drive to North Roe followed by an 11-mile (18km) walk. The walk will be partly over a metalled track but there will be some rough moorland walking as well. Please be sure that you can undertake a walk of this distance before booking.

Since there are no shops, café, or toilet facilities you will have to carry everything you need for the day with you.

Tour/walk 4. Unst; Britain’s most northerly island. Scenic Tour and Guided Walk to Hermaness

Hermaness, Unst
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A two inter island ferry crossings and scenic drive through the island of Yell will take us to the most northerly of the British Isles. The unique geology of the island makes Unst remarkably different from all the other Shetland Islands changing in character from the 'desert' serpentine soils in the east to the rolling moorland in the west.

We will drive through Unst to the dramatic shore of Burrafirth where we commence our 5 mile (8km) walk over moorland of Hermaness Hill. The RSPB bird reserve of Hermaness is home to the third largest colony of flying pirates in the world, these are the bonxies (great skuas) who share the moor with the rare and elegant red-throated divers.

Overlooking Muckle Flugga, Britain's most northerly point, Hermaness provides a wonderful haven for over 100,000 seabirds. Some 16,000 pairs of gannets and more than 50,000 puffins come to nest each year on the dramatic cliffs, offshore arches and stacks.

As I cannot guarantee a café stop you should bring a packed lunch.

Tour/walk 5. Shetland’s Craggy Island – Cliffs, Stacks and Skerries.

Alas, we won’t be meeting Father Ted on this excursion for the island we visit is Papa Stour, although it may have had his equivalent in the past as it was once home to a community of priests in the 6th century. Geologically, Papa Stour is best described as layer cake of volcanic lavas and river and lake sandstones that built up near a large body of water, perhaps the ancient Lake Orcadie.

Lyra Skerry, Papa Stour
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This excursion however, is as much about viewing the island’s stunning geomorphologic features as its geology. The myriad of sheer cliffs, geos, skerries, sea caves, stacks and natural arches have won Papa Stour international recognition as a Special Area of Conservation. Indeed if Slartibartfast (of Hitch-Hikers Guide to the Galaxy fame) got an award for designing the coast of Norway then surely Papa Stour was his apprentice piece! And of course we won’t ignore the history, archaeology and wildlife of the island.

An early morning scenic drive to West Burrafirth then a 40-min ferry crossing to Papa Stour. We then take a circular walk around most of the coastline of the island, a distance of 11 miles (18km), Please be sure that you can undertake a walk of this distance before booking.

Since there are no shops, café, or toilet facilities you will have to carry everything you need for the day with you.

All tours depart from the Market Cross, Lerwick just outside the Tourist Information Centre. To find out which walk or tour is operating on any day and to book call Shetland Tourist Centre on 01595 693434 or Allen Fraser on 01595 859218.

You can also look at my Online Calendar to see when I am operating each tour.