North Sea Cycle Route (UK) Stage 23 Kirkwall to Kirkwall
Stromness
Ride overview
Having ridden all this way up to the far north, the designers of the North Sea Coast Route would like you to spend a day exploring Orkney, by riding a circular route out from Kirkwall. Of course, those pressed for time will want to jump on the night ferry and head straight up to Kirkwall, but dashing off would be to miss one of the supreme highlights of the whole route. For Orkney is truly wonderful. Low hills, no trees, long roads into the wind, lochs and the chilly, grey sea might not appeal on first reading. But. Orkney clears your soul. Opens you up and frees you. Some arrive for a short break and never leave. They come from Derby, Blackpool, London. For the fleeting visitor, there are ‘sites’ to see; Maeshowe, a neolithic burial mound, the best preserved in all of Britain, formed into the shape of a bosom, into which for several weeks the sun beams onto its deepest recesses. There’s Skara Brae, the most complete neolithic ‘town’ and the ring of Brodgar, a stone henge of mystery and beauty. There is the ever changing sky, the bird life, and Stromness, a town of such haunting melocholy, from where Franklin’s Arctic expedition left never to return and from where countless other adventures landed worn out by their explorations. Orkney. Remember the name, and plan to stay, possibly for ever, but certainly for a day or two.
Ride practicalities
The route is well signed with the blue background/white bicycle along with some North Sea Cycle Route signs.
START/FINISH: Thurso/Kirkwall DISTANCE: approx. 50km. Distance will depend on whether you ride to Duncansby Head Lighthouse, the most north-easterly part of the mainland and back to Gill’s Bay (20km) The Ferry takes off a further 30km approx. Thus if you ride only to Gill’s Head Ferry and onward to Kirkwall, you’ll only be riding about 50km TOTAL ASCENT:700m TERRAIN AND SURFACES: quiet-ish roads. The road to Kirkwall can be a little busy RECOMMENDED CAFÈS/PUBS/ACCOMMODATION: NEARBY MAINLINE TRAIN SERVICES: Thurso PLACES TO VISIT; Mey; Castle Mey, Lambholm (Orkney); The Italian Chapel, Kirkwall; The Orkney Museum, Bishop’s and Earl’s Palace, St. Magnus Cathedral LINKS TO OTHER RIDES: NSCR, stage 23
FERRIES; North Sea RouteFerry; Pentland Ferries run service from Gill’s Bay, Caithness (on the way to John O’Groats), landing at St. Margaret’s Hope, on Orkney. The other Service is with Northlink Ferries , who run a service from Scrabster, (near Thurso) to Stromness on Orkney.
Ride notes
There are two day ride options for your brief but memorable stay on the Orkney mainland - as the biggest island on the seventy island archipalego is called. The ‘official’ route takes you on a full 115km circuit, often on main roads, which can be surprisingly busy for a sparsely populated place. Or should you feel in need of a shorter day, the ‘half route’ as described below maybe your preferred option, especially if it is breezy. Orkney is always breezy. Other options include taking a bus from Kirkwall to Scara Brae and after a three hour explore of the Neolithic UNESCO World Heritage sites of Scara Brae, The Ring and Ness of Brodgar and the Stone of Stenness, you take the bus onwards to Stromness, for lunch, an explore and perhaps the local museum (better than most), before taking the late afternoon bus back to Kirkwall. This is a good option if you are in need of a day off from the bike, or if it’s blowing a ‘hooley’. ('hoolie' may come from the Orkney Scots 'hoolan', a strong gale). Mist purples the gentle-sloping hills
Orkney
The skies are huge and open as you leave Kirkwall on a stiff uphill towards the open hills. Traffic is present and sometimes fast on the long, open roads but sightlines are good and the Orcadians appear to give cyclists plenty of room as they pass. Gentle hills rise and fall around you, covered in a pattern of walls and pasture. The climate in Neolithic times was warmer than it is today, and the low-lying land gave abundant grain harvests. Today, the hills are mostly green grass supporting a vibrant beef and dairy industry. Trees are rare - the near constant wind and the sea-salt air are not conducive to woods. The roads are ‘heavy’, well surfaced with larger aggregate bound together with tar. The wind will blow. The grass shudders, and above you, the clouds race each other across the sky. Settlements few. After 10km, you turn off the A964 towards and ride beside the granite grey lock of Kirbister on a single track road which after a further 8km connects with the A965. You ride past Maeshowe. Entry is by guided tour and must be booked ahead of your visit.
Maeshowe, a ‘chambered Cairn’, was built by Neolithic people to honour and capture the sun moving through the sky. For three weeks either side of the winter solstice, a shaft of winter sunlight from the setting sun beams onto the back wall. For around fifteen minutes, there is a promise that warmth and light will return after the dark, bleak days of winter. The cairn is a marvel of early engineering, a sound proof cocoon, womb-like, its walls built with giant blocks of stone. . Maeshowe is often described as a ‘burial mound’, but in truth no one really knows - was it a meeting place, a sacred space, a heavenly observation centre, a temple, a woman’s communal space (as Alice Albinia in ‘The Britannias’ suggests)? Whatever its function, it is thought to have taken over 100,000 man hours to build.
Skara Brae
Riding on, take the next turn on the right, a single track road to Scara Brae, the five thousand year old town. People were living here in organised communities, building monuments and homes which still stand, before the slabs of of stone were dragged to Stonehenge, or the Giza pyramids. Inside the homes with their interlinking corridors, the furniture is all stone - moveable according to need. There are tables, shelves and beds - the latter very short. Did they sleep sitting up? Beyond the village is the curve of the Bay of Skaill. The shore is covered in pebbles wich clunk and chink under your feet, their punk colours wet and shiny; lapis-blue, corn-yellow, haematite-red. Layers of seaweed on the tide line lie like uncombed hair.
Stenness Henge
You return back to the main road, passing the The Ring and Ness of Brodgar and the Stone of Stenness. Each huge, each a mystery, each a place of power and brilliance. Billy Connolly; “for reasons best known to myself, (I) danced naked in the Ring of Brodgar. Why? I just felt like doing it, and the director of the TV show wasn’t going to stand in my way. I started off with a piece to camera, saying, “these stones were placed here in 2500 BC by people we know nothing about, and for reasons we know nothing about. Was it a giant’s board game? Were the symbols used in ancient numerology? Were they of religious significance or a landing strip for intergalatic travellers? Personally I think they are the goalposts for some ancient game, the rules of which are lost. It’s just a very impressive place. And odd exotic, hippie types from Glasgow have been known to come here and perform strange rites. Who knows why? All we can do is soak up the atmosphere. Then I emerged naked and dance around the stones singing ‘On Christmas Day in the Morning”, so as I’d keep rhythm and keep the editors happy”.
Stromness
Re-joining the A965, you ride onto Stromness. It is a town shaped by the sea; a safe haven since Viking times, a whaling and fishing port. The town is a network of flagstone streets, narrow lanes, piers and slipways. It has a timeless feel to it. Lunch at either the Hamnavoe, or The Ferry Inn is a must.
Unless you have decided to stay in the town you’ll need to re-mount and head back along those wind-buffeted roads roads back to Kirkwall, riding through that un-paralleled brilliance, the lux perpetua - the Orkney evening summer light.
Every route on this website has been carefully researched as well as ridden. However situations on the ground can change quickly. If you know of changes to this route, or cafes, pubs and the like which you think other cyclists need to know about, feel free to share your thoughts below.
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