I needed to get some petrol, which is a 20 minute drive away and on the way home, I turned off the main road to go and look at the spectacular heather on the hills in a place where I always know it is breath-taking – West Burrafirth.
The heather did not disappoint.
And the smell was incredible too, even sitting in my car.
It has been a particularly good year for heather. The surrounding hills are a beautiful purply-pink.
I stopped at this little Methodist Chapel. It has a white marble tablet in a stone-framed niche on the gable end with an inscription in black lead lettering commemorating the men fallen in both the First and Second World Wars – 10 from the First and 2 from the Second. I am not sure if the Chapel is still in use. I have a feeling it isn’t, though there is a bunch of artificial flowers in every window which makes it special.
Back on the road to a favourite heather spot – Fogrigarth. This is Hurdi Field with its stone causeway.
And then back to the main road and there’s Papa Stour Ferry pier in the distance.
These stone structures intrigue me. They are known as Horizontal Mills – there are three of them.
From Canmore – “The Norse, or horizontal, mills ….. are typical examples of a once-common type of water mill found in Shetland, Orkney and Lewis. The mill used one wheel (tirl) with blades mounted on a horizontal plane, driving a single pair of grindstones. This simple design meant that multiple mills could be built on a length of stream, with a family or small partnership each owning their own mill.”
I enjoyed my little excursion. That heather was breathtaking. Definitely worth the drive.
