Well, what can I say about today except that it has involved possibly the best lighthouse-related walk I have ever done. We decided that today, when the wind was strong from the north, to walk to the most northerly point of Mainland Shetland, the Point of Fethaland. Sounds like a recipe for disaster, doesn’t it? In fact it was incredible.

I was joined by Bob, my dad and our friend Mervyn, an island bagger. I was a little confused as to why Mervyn was interested in going to the Point of Fethaland as I just expected it to be a headland with no associated islands, but I was to find out exactly why Mervyn wanted to go there.

We parked up near the farm at Isbister and off we set. Once through the gate we had a choice of turning left or right. It turned out that a left turn would have taken us along a track all of the way, but we spotted cows up that way so turned right. Turning right meant we were taking the “off piste” route and we were wandering across fields and weaving our way over and around the wetter sections of grass before we rejoined the main track, which was basically a road. We spotted the island of Muckle Holm and its lighthouse off to the east on the way. The road petered out into more of a land rover track as we headed downhill and began to get the first views of the lighthouse and passed the old houses.

I was surprised at the number of houses, but it turns out the area was once a busy area with a deep-sea fishing station. Sixty boats operated here in the late 19th and early 20th century. These boats were manned by seasonal workers who shared the lodges of which there are believed to have been up to 36. It’s hard to imagine now that it was once the busiest deep-sea fishing station in Shetland. We didn’t see another soul on our whole journey.

As we approached Fethaland it became clear why Mervyn was interested. Fethaland itself is an island, albeit only at certain tides or in particularly wild sea conditions. As we walked across the rock and stones that divide the mainland from Fethaland it was fascinating to see the huge rocks to the west with waves crashing while to our right was a pebble beach with calm water in the sheltered natural harbour. Once we crossed the rocks it was a fairly steep walk up the island. At one point we ended up walking along a sheep track which ran along the side of a steep hill. Due to the wind I found myself stopping every couple of minutes until the strongest gusts passed before continuing on. Otherwise I could imagine myself tumbling sideways down the slope. One final push up the hill took us to the lighthouse and an absolutely stunning landscape opened up before us. As we went up, Bob had been to the high point of the island and I saw him climbing rather precariously up onto some rocks – not ideal in strong wind, but when he showed me the resulting picture I understood why he’d been up there.

The lighthouse is fascinating. I’ve not seen one like it before. It has a concrete base with a GRP section, containing the lens, on top. The lens was spinning away in the lantern. The black panels on the outside of the tower make it look much more modern than it actually is – it was first lit in 1977. Mervyn was delighted to have made it to the lighthouse too and said that it was his favourite and was beautifully engineered. As a former professor of engineering that is quite a powerful statement. I was pleased to have been there with him and that he is very swiftly coming around to this lighthouse bagging concept.

From Point of Fethaland we could also see the island of Gruney to the north, which boasts a small lighthouse. With the wild winds the sea was looking pretty choppy, which added to the awe-inspiring atmosphere of the place. It’s truly beautiful and in a really special place.

After we’d spent a reasonable length of time there we started our journey back. It was all going so well until Bob (our guide) decided to climb up a nearby hill and we ended up missing a gate and needing to climb over a fence. All was fine though and we all made it back safe and happy to have been to such a wonderful place. This was certainly one of those days when you are glad to be a lighthouse bagger. 🙂