|
Hoy
Hoy ( sco, Hoy; from Norse , meaning "high island") is an island in Orkney, Scotland, measuring – the second largest in the archipelago, after Mainland. A natural causeway, ''the Ayre'', links the island to the smaller South Walls; the two islands are treated as one entity by the UK census. Hoy lies within the parish of Stromness. History The Dwarfie Stane lies in the north of the Rackwick valley and dates back to around 3000 BCE. It is unique in northern Europe, bearing similarity to Neolithic or Bronze Age tombs around the Mediterranean. The tomb has a small rectangular entrance and cleft, hence its name. Discoveries have been made on Mainland, Orkney, at the Ness of Brodgar that date back as early as 3510 BCE with the first stone circle in the British Isles found there. The two most northerly Martello Towers in the UK stand here, built in 1814 to defend merchant shipping in the natural harbour of Longhope against privateers commissioned by United States Preside ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Old Man Of Hoy
The Old Man of Hoy is a sea stack on Hoy, part of the Orkney archipelago off the north coast of Scotland. Formed from Old Red Sandstone, it is one of the tallest stacks in the United Kingdom. The Old Man is popular with climbers, and was first climbed in 1966. Created by the erosion of a cliff through hydraulic action some time after 1750, the stack is not more than a few hundred years old, but may soon collapse into the sea. Geography The Old Man stands close to Rackwick Bay on the west coast of Hoy, in Orkney, Scotland, and can be seen from the Scrabster to Stromness ferry. From certain angles it is said to resemble a human figure. Winds are faster than for nearly a third of the time, and gales occur on average for 29 days a year. Combined with the depth of the sea, which quickly falls to , high-energy waves on the western side of Hoy lead to rapid erosion of the coast. Geology The Old Man of Hoy is a red sandstone stack, perched on a plinth of basalt rock, and one of the t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orkney
Orkney (; sco, Orkney; on, Orkneyjar; nrn, Orknøjar), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of the island of Great Britain. Orkney is 10 miles (16 km) north of the coast of Caithness and has about 70 islands, of which 20 are inhabited. The largest island, the Mainland, has an area of , making it the sixth-largest Scottish island and the tenth-largest island in the British Isles. Orkney’s largest settlement, and also its administrative centre, is Kirkwall. Orkney is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a constituency of the Scottish Parliament, a lieutenancy area, and an historic county. The local council is Orkney Islands Council, one of only three councils in Scotland with a majority of elected members who are independents. The islands have been inhabited for at least years, originally occupied by Mesolithic and Neolithic tribes and then by the Picts. Orkney was co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rackwick
Rackwick is a small coastal crofting township in the north west of the island of Hoy in Orkney, Scotland. As well as a handful of tourist amenities the township is largely made up of crofts and other small dwellings, however most now form second homes with Rackwick having very few full time residents. In 2016 there were only three dwellings occupied year round. The Orcadian poet George Mackay Brown's poem ''Rackwick'' describes the township as "the hidden valley of light" and "Orkney's last enchantment". The name Rackwick may derive from the Old Norse ''reka-vík'', meaning ''bay of jetsam''. Geography Rackwick is surrounded on three sides by the hills Moor Fea, Mel Fea, and Red Glen, with two glacial U-shaped valleys (glens) leading into Rackwick containing two burns (streams), Rackwick Burn and South Burn. The Township lies overlooks Rackwick Beach and Rackwick Bay, with the adjacent coastline dominated by imposing cliffs. Rackwick also borders the RSPB Hoy nature r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South Walls
South Walls ( sco, Sooth Waas), often referred to as Walls, is an inhabited island adjacent to Hoy in Orkney, Scotland. The name is a corruption of "Sooth Was", which means the "southern voes" – as with Kirkwall, it was assumed that it was a mispronunciation of "walls". South Walls forms the southern side of the harbour of Longhope. It was a tidal island until a narrow causeway, was constructed over the sandbank in 1912, which was known as the Ayre, although this name has become transferred to the causeway itself. Although sometimes considered to be a peninsula, it is an island in all but name. South Walls is a popular stopping off place for barnacle geese. Geography and geology The island, like most of the Orkney archipelago, is made up of old red sandstone with the Rousay Flagstone Group predominating. The island is more or less oval in shape, but there is a small promontory, called Cantick Head in the south east, which is created by Kirk Hope (Church Bay). It is separat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stromness (parish)
Stromness (, non, Straumnes; nrn, Stromnes) is the second-most populous town in Orkney, Scotland. It is in the southwestern part of Mainland Orkney. It is a burgh with a parish around the outside with the town of Stromness as its capital. Etymology The name "Stromness" comes from the Norse ''Straumnes''. ''Straumr'' refers to the strong tides that rip past the Point of Ness through Hoy Sound to the south of the town. ''Nes'' means "headland". Stromness thus means "headland protruding into the tidal stream". In Viking times the anchorage where Stromness now stands was called Hamnavoe. Town A long-established seaport, Stromness has a population of approximately 2,190 residents. The old town is clustered along the characterful and winding main street, flanked by houses and shops built from local stone, with narrow lanes and alleys branching off it. There is a ferry link from Stromness to Scrabster on the north coast of mainland Scotland. First recorded as the site of an inn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dwarfie Stane
The Dwarfie Stane is a megalithic chambered tomb carved out of a titanic block of Devonian Old Red Sandstone located in a steep-sided glaciated valley between the settlements of Quoys and Rackwick on Hoy, an island in Orkney, Scotland. The stone is a glacial erratic located in desolate peatland. The site is managed by Historic Environment Scotland. Description The attribution as a tomb was originally based on its resemblance to recognized tombs in southern Europe. The Dwarfie Stane is the only chambered tomb in Orkney that is cut from stone rather than built from stones and may be the only example of a Neolithic rock-cut tomb in Britain."Hoy, Dwarfie Stane" RCAHMS. Retrieved 27 May 2010. However, despite its unique construction, its plan is consistent with the so-called [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scapa Flow
Scapa Flow viewed from its eastern end in June 2009 Scapa Flow (; ) is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray,S. C. George, ''Jutland to Junkyard'', 1973. South Ronaldsay and Hoy. Its sheltered waters have played an important role in travel, trade and conflict throughout the centuries. Vikings anchored their longships in Scapa Flow more than a thousand years ago. It was the United Kingdom's chief naval base during the First and Second World Wars, but the facility was closed in 1956. Scapa Flow has a shallow sandy bottom not deeper than and most of it is about deep; it is one of the great natural harbours and anchorages of the world, with sufficient space to hold a number of navies. The harbour has an area of and contains just under 1 billion cubic metres of water. Since the scuttling of the German fleet after World War I, its wrecks and their marine habitats form an internationally acclaimed di ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ward Hill, Hoy
Ward Hill is a hill on the island of Hoy in Orkney, Scotland. It lies at the north of the island between Moaness and Rackwick, and is the highest point in both Orkney and the Northern Isles, Scottish Northern Isles at an elevation of . The hill forms a curved ridge, reminiscent of a 'J' in shape. The lower slopes are covered in Calluna, heather and grass, though the top of the ridge is covered in small stones with bare sandy soil. The highest summit is towards the northern end and is crowned by a trig point. The ridge is well separated from the other hills of Hoy, and both the other Marilyn (hill), Marilyns on the island have high topographic prominence. Ward Hill is separated from Cuilags by the Glens of Kinnaird, and from Knap of Trowieglen by the glen carrying the road between Moaness and Rackwick, in which lies the Dwarfie Stane. Ward Hill may be climbed from a variety of starting points. The northern side, directly above Hoy Village is steep and cliff, craggy, and thus presen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Longhope, Orkney
Longhope is a coastal settlement on the island of South Walls, in Orkney, Scotland. South Walls is linked to Hoy by causeway; Longhope is the largest settlement on the two islands. The settlement is situated on the B9047, the main road on Hoy and South Walls. History A coastal artillery battery, Hackness Gun Battery, was established near Longhope at to defend gathering Baltic convoys from enemy attack. Excavation undertaken by Headland Archaeology proved that this battery had undergone two stages of development. It was built between 1813 and 1815 in response to a perceived threat from American privateers. On recommendations made by the Admiralty the base was constructed alongside one of only three martello towers in Scotland; the others being across the bay from Hackness at Crockness and the Tally Toor in Leith. Eight 24-pounder guns were placed in the original battery, but were replaced in 1866 with four 68-pounder guns as part of an overhaul. This remodelling was in response ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lyness Royal Naval Cemetery, Hoy, Orkney - Geograph
Lyness is a village on the east coast of the island of Hoy, Orkney, Scotland. The village is within the parish of Walls and Flotta, and is situated at the junction of the B9047 and B9048. During the 1920s Lyness was briefly the headquarters of the metal salvage firm of Cox and Danks's raising of the German High Seas Fleet, scuttled by the Germans on 21 June 1919 during the Armistice (Scuttling of the German fleet in Scapa Flow). During the Second World War it was home to HMS Proserpine, the main base for the naval fleet based at Scapa Flow. Today an Orkney Ferries Ro-Ro car ferry links it to Longhope on South Walls, the island of Flotta in Scapa Flow, and Houton on Mainland, Orkney. Naval Cemetery Lyness Royal Naval Cemetery was opened in 1915 primarily to serve the Scapa Flow base (which closed in 1946). Buried there are 445 Empire and Commonwealth service personnel, chiefly Royal Navy, from World War I (109 of whom are unidentified) and 200 from World War II (8 unidentif ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lyness
Lyness is a village on the east coast of the island of Hoy, Orkney, Scotland. The village is within the parish of Walls and Flotta, and is situated at the junction of the B9047 and B9048. During the 1920s Lyness was briefly the headquarters of the metal salvage firm of Cox and Danks's raising of the German High Seas Fleet, scuttled by the Germans on 21 June 1919 during the Armistice (Scuttling of the German fleet in Scapa Flow). During the Second World War it was home to HMS Proserpine, the main base for the naval fleet based at Scapa Flow. Today an Orkney Ferries Ro-Ro car ferry links it to Longhope on South Walls, the island of Flotta in Scapa Flow, and Houton on Mainland, Orkney. Naval Cemetery Lyness Royal Naval Cemetery was opened in 1915 primarily to serve the Scapa Flow base (which closed in 1946). Buried there are 445 Empire and Commonwealth service personnel, chiefly Royal Navy, from World War I (109 of whom are unidentified) and 200 from World War II (8 unident ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orkney Mainland
The Mainland, also known as Hrossey and Pomona, is the main island of Orkney, Scotland. Both of Orkney's burghs, Kirkwall and Stromness, lie on the island, which is also the heart of Orkney's ferry and air connections. Seventy-five per cent of Orkney's population live on the island, which is more densely populated than the other islands of the archipelago. The lengthy history of the island's occupation has provided numerous important archaeological sites and the sandstone bedrock provides a platform for fertile farmland. There is an abundance of wildlife, especially seabirds. Etymology The name Mainland is a corruption of the Old Norse . Formerly the island was also known as meaning 'horse island'. The island is sometimes referred to as '' Pomona'' (or ''Pomonia''), a name that stems from a 16th-century mis-translation by George Buchanan.Buchanan, George (1582''Rerum Scoticarum Historia: The First Book''The University of California, Irvine. Revised 8 March 2003. Retrieved 4 Octo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.png "Click for more on -> South Walls")
