Thousands of acres await any visitor to the mainland or the Isles who want to reset their brains and forget about the hustle and bustle of city life.

Looking out over the Churchill Barriers

During every walk you should stop and take in the surroundings.  Take a moment to listen and look around and you may hear the sounds of the Atlantic beating against cliffs or see a seal enjoying the afternoon sun.

Signposted

Many walks are signposted and have well maintained paths and gates.  Please keep to these paths and take care to keep away from animals. Keep dogs well under control at all times.

For the more adventurous or those people who want a local guide to help, a number of companies are now available to provide assistance.  A local guide is especially useful during the winter or in bad weather to ensure your safety.

We have put together details of a number of walks, guides and maps on our sister site www.wherecanwewalk.com.

If you know of any walks not featured in this list or are a local guide then please get in touch and we can update our information.Similar Posts:

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Many people travel to Orkney via ferry, bringing their own motor home with them, However, we would point out that the roads in Orkney are not designed for large vehicles and heavy traffic, many are indeed single track road with passing places, which could make some of the large, modern mobile homes a little cumbersome.

An enterprising couple on the mainland are offering tourists the freedom to travel light and hire a self drive camper van when they get there….and yes, they are genuine VW camper vans, lovingly named;

Poppy the Orkney VW camper van

Poppy, who is a 1986 Leisuredrive conversion and Mr Bumble, a 1982 Westfalia High Top

The vans are equipped with everything you need to start your holiday, all you need to do is chose what to do first.

Hiring a VW camper gives you the freedom to choose where you go and how long you stay there as well as being compact and easy to drive around Orkney’s roads.

“It’s not just your wheels and your bed, it’s a way of life”.

Wild Camping
As well as campsites, Orkney (and the rest of Scotland) is one of the few places in the UK that you can still wild camp.

Plenty of beaches have public toilets with drinkable water and sinks.

Mr Bumble, the Westflaia High Top

People are asked to be aware of their impact on the natural habitat when wild camping, so there are a few simple rules to ensure your stay leaves the beautiful beaches as you found them and the facilities clean and tidy. This will ensure that this privilege lives on long after we have all gone.

A Hire Car with a Difference
Why not think about hiring a camper van as an alternative to a conventional hire car? It is much cheaper than a hire car and a hotel, plus you get to live the dream and you can vary whether you sleep in the van, stay with friends or at a B & B or Hotel, the choice is yours.

Have you seen Poppy or Mr Bumble?
Maybe you have seen one of these characterful camper vans on your tour of the islands or perhaps you have even hired one…If you have some happy camping stories and pictures to share, then just send them to us via the comments link at the end of the article.

More about camping in Orkney

Orkneycampers.com – Genuine VW camper van hire

Wild camping in Scotland

Orkney camping, caravan & hostels - A full list of camping and caravan sites on the Orkney mainland and islands

Be a responsible camper – Scottish outdoor access codeSimilar Posts:

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Delicate ice crystals cling to winter seed heads

The Orkney Isles can have warmer winters than on the mainland but 2009/2010 must be an exception.

For all Orcadians reading this article, your ex-natives would love to know what orkney looks like this winter.

Please send us your pictures, stories and even video which we can feature on this site.

If you are a professional photographer on the island, why not send us some images and promote your business at the same time.

Have any of you been lucky enough to see the Aurora Borealis this winter?

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Covenanter Memorial, Orkney

Made of brick and standing possibly 10m tall, the monument at Deerness is around 300m from where a boat full of covenanters sank during a storm.

The Scottish Covenanters (also called Whigs), were a group of people in the seventeenth century who covenanted to hold themselves and each other accountable for reformation of religion in their land.

The Stuart kings of the time favoured episcopalianism, with the monarch having Divine right.  Covenanter presbyterians could hear of no man, not even the monarch as being the leader of the church.

They signed a Covenant to confirm their opposition to the interference by the Stuart kings in the affairs of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland.

When Charles II was restored in 1660 to the throne, a great deal of suffering, torture, imprisonment, transportation and executions would ensue.

In 1679, The Battle of Bothwell Brig, saw defeat of a Covenanter’s uprising and around 1,200 prisoners were rounded up at Greyfriar’s Church in Eginburgh.  250 of these prisoners were bundled on board “The Crown of London“, awaiting transportation to the American colonies as slaves.

She set sail from Leith with the prisoners confined to the hold to avoid escape, her fist stop was Orkney. ‘The Crown’ ran into a storm at the edge of Deer Sound in December 1679. The anchor broke causing the ship to be dashed onto the rocks.

Covenanters Memorial Plaque, Orkney

The captain and crew escaped to safety.  One crew member broke through into the hold with his axe but only 48 prisoners managed to survive.

The rest of the prisoners drowned as the ship sank and over many days, bodies washed up on the beaches,  they were buried at Scarva Taing.

Built by public subscription, including a large donation of £50 from a surgeon,  the monument was inaugurated on Wednesday 22nd August 1888.

The plaque at the base of one of the sides of the monument reads:

‘Erected by public subscription to the memory of 200 Covenanters who were taken prisoner at Bothwell Bridge and sentenced to transportation for life, but who perished by shipwreck near this spot, 10th Dec. 1679.’

It is reported that behind the granite slab is a small recess where a set of jubilee coins in a bottle were deposited.

Situated outside St Magnus Cathedral in nearby Kirkwall is a polished Aberdeenshire red and grey granite drinking fountain.

Covenanters Fountain. St Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall. Orkney

Looking slightly out of place against the red and yellow sandstone of the cathedral this public water fountain was erected using funds left over from the building of the main monument at Deerness.

Further information and useful links

Mull Head & Covenanter’s Memorial Walk – 382K

Scottish Covenanter Memorials Association

Ayreshire History. More about the Covenanter’s Memorial

More about the Covenanters

Wiley Geneology – history of some of the prisoners

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Guest houses and bed and breakfast accommodation is plentiful and a hearty welcome awaits visitors to the islands.

Kirkwall harbour, Orkney

Self caterers can be assured of an incredible range of high quality places to stay.

You can choose from refurbished mills to town centre apartments.

Camp sites and hostels are well equipped to service those bringing their own caravan or motor home.

Many sites have static caravans providing stunning views of the islands.

For a details of places to stay on the mainland and islands, go to www.visitorkney.com

Wherever you choose to stay, you are assured of warm Orcadian hospitality

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