Orkney

Love the bus stop! Yes, I've clocked your stories, Brue. It's good stuff.

I've done some more studying of the timetables and it seems that while the northbound journey from Kirkwall to Lerwick is 7hrs 45mins, the southbound trip is 'only' 5hrs 30mins. Thoughts of cabins, Magnus' Lounge and Stugeron make it appear more acceptable.

We did the Magnus Lounge on the way out, OH went in for a free stiff drink before crashing out in the cabin (somehow I think he got more than one freebie, it must have been 1am by then!) It was also nice for breakfast in the morning. However on the way back we opted for a restaurant deal and discovered it's just as comfortable in there and the food was good. We had to shift  a couple of backpackers from our pre-booked reclining seats, other than that all was ok. The outside cabins were very good too, you can choose other types. I didn't notice much difference in the travel times but felt a lot more relaxed on the way back...mission having been accomplished probably helped. 

It's back on the table I think and looks good.

Just  a  couple of  Off Thread  Bits  :--

I  was  second  in  the  Queue  for  the  Stromness  to  Shetland  Leg  og  my  trip  --  the  first  was  a  Transit  van  full  of  furniture  .  The  owner/driver  had  not  booked  an  over night  cabin so  he  got  turfed  off  onto  the  quayside  and  had  to  rough  it  !!

Had  a  brew  with  me  and  by  the  time  we had  drunk  it,  we  were  numbers  2001  &  2002  !!  Don't know  where  they  came  from  but  we  were  surrounded   by  Sheep  !

Sad  to  hear  Clickimin  is  no  more,  it  was  newly  refurbished  when  I  went  Circa  1988,  One  caravan,  three  tents  &  me  in  my  little  Bambi  m/home.

That  was  in  pre  mobile  phone  days,  so  I  was  writing  out post  cards  till  about  11:00  pm  by  natural  light  then  went  to  bed.  At  about  02:30  woken  up  by  an  appalling  scratching  noise  --  discovered  it  was  the  sparrows feeding  their  young,  running  round  on  my  roof  if  you  please    No  respect  for  the  tourists  at  all  !

The Clickimin car park is still useful when you arrive early in the morning, plenty of room to park up, same for departures. Also a well known supermarket nearby...something to remember when you head off and wonder when you'll see the next shop. (There are some by the way and you'll be glad when you spot one! )

It's my guess that finding shops and garages won't be so very different to the far NW of Scotland and you learn to grab your chances when they arise.  

Talking of mobile phones, what are the signals like on the islands, please? Not that it'll be a deal breaker if none exist.

Things aren't too bad up there, North Sea industries have boosted the area quite a bit.  (You'll also find Shetlanders using some of the van sites, especially at weekends.)

According to O2 there is coverage of a sort - it'll do me. 

Not weekend blockers, surely!