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Cycle touring shetland

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 MikeR 18 Jul 2015
Hi folks,
So I've got a bit of spare leave to use up in the first week in August and am considering doing a cycle tour of Shetland, weather permitting.
A couple of questions, does anyone know how many days to allow? And any recommendations on things to see or good routes would be appreciated.

Also, I seem to recall seeing some exciting looking sea cliffs, so if anyone is around that neck of the woods and wants to hook up for a climb that would be great, although I would only have harness and shoes being on a bike.

Cheers,
Mike
Jim C 18 Jul 2015
In reply to MikeR:
two good Hostels I used , one near the Ferry and one not too far from the ferry in Unst.

There are also ''Bods that you can use which are council run and quite cheap and scattered around. Camp sites etc.
I found accommodation no problem, and used the tent occasionally in preference rather than necessity.
That might not be the case on the smaller islands though.

Lots of good photos on Flickr, and goods sites on what to see and do.

Post edited at 15:27
 abr1966 18 Jul 2015
In reply to MikeR:

Its a great place.....if you are going by boat you'll need to account for a fair amount of travel time there and back. We took the couple of ferries to get up to muckle flugga and it was an awesome trip.
Jim C 18 Jul 2015
In reply to abr1966:

> Its a great place.....if you are going by boat you'll need to account for a fair amount of travel time there and back. We took the couple of ferries to get up to muckle flugga and it was an awesome trip.

MF was what drew me to go, I 'd heard of Muckle Flugga , and just had to go there .
Sadly , I struggled to speak to many Shetlanders though , all the front of house people , museums, visitors centres etc were all incomers.(locals not interested in guess seasonal jobs I guess)

I seem drawn to lighthouses, I went to the Ardenmurchan Lighthouse a couple of weeks back , being the most Westerly on the Mainland.


 abr1966 18 Jul 2015
In reply to Jim C:

There's a real draw to it being the most northern part of GB! I also like all the edges...went to the mull of galloway not long ago...worth the trip if you get chance.

I can't remember the name of the bay but the place where the Shetland bus was organised from is worth a visit. There is a great little church to go in and it'd be a great place to camp if its a cycle tour/camping trip...
 DaveHK 18 Jul 2015
In reply to MikeR:

As long as you go knowing that its not about the cycling you'll love it. Sounds like you're in that mindset already. We combined it with Orkney but 5 days on Shetland alone would be enough as long as you didn't plan to stop in places for more than one night. Definately visit the furthest north point. I also really liked Braewick Bay. Because of the oil money there are lots of really good facilities and community campsites so camping is easy. The middle bit of the mainland is a little grim. We had no wind on way north and a howling tailwind heading south! I've paid for it since.
 petestack 18 Jul 2015
In reply to MikeR:

> Also, I seem to recall seeing some exciting looking sea cliffs

Probably Eshaness. Well worth an exploratory walk whether climbing or not, as is not-so-far-away Ronas Hill, where terrain, flora, Shetland-wide view and a prehistoric cairn combine to make it much more interesting than it looks.

In reply to abr1966:

> I can't remember the name of the bay but the place where the Shetland bus was organised from is worth a visit. There is a great little church to go in and it'd be a great place to camp if its a cycle tour/camping trip...

That's Lunna (though the very nice memorial's at its later base of Scalloway).

I'd also suggest Jarlshof and the Broch of Mousa as unmissable if you like the old stuff, or Unst Boat Haven if you like boats, but Jarlshof and Unst/Muckle Flugga are at opposite ends of the whole archipelago!



OP MikeR 18 Jul 2015
In reply to abr1966: and others,

Thanks for the recommendations. I'll have a tent with me, probably go for a mixture of camping and hostels. Do you think muckle flugga and jarlshof are doable in five days (assuming no strong headwind!)?

OP MikeR 18 Jul 2015
In reply to DaveHK:

> We had no wind on way north and a howling tailwind heading south! I've paid for it since.

I did the Hebridian way with a friend last year from Barra to the Butt of Lewis and had a ne headwind the entire way, so hoping karma will give me all tailwinds this time!
 abr1966 18 Jul 2015
In reply to MikeR:

> and others,

> Thanks for the recommendations. I'll have a tent with me, probably go for a mixture of camping and hostels. Do you think muckle flugga and jarlshof are doable in five days (assuming no strong headwind!)?

Depens on your peddling to beer ratio!! I gound the cycling a bit dull for a fair bit of it on the mainland but very good off the main through routes. Wind and rain are pretty guarenteed but it changes that quick we hardly noticed. Enjoy the trip, I really enjoyed my time there and will be going back....

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