Travelling Scotland’s Ancient Orkney Islands
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 30 ก.ย. 2023
- I went to Scotland’s ancient islands. Lying off the north coast of Scotland, there is an archipelago of around 70 islands. A place where humans have lived for more than 8500 years and history is never far from where you look. Welcome to the Orkney Islands.
I start my journey in Scrabster on Scotland’s northern coast and catch the ferry to Orkney with my campervan. I always enjoy exploring lesser-visited places and during my time on the Orkney Isles, I visit other smaller islands in addition to the Orkney mainland. I managed to travel to Westray Island, The Isle of Hoy and the Isle of Rousay.
The more I explored Orkney, the more I became fascinated with its history. I delved into its Neolithic past, including a visit to Skara Brae, The Stones of Stenness and The Ring of Brodgar. I also visited the Old Man of Hoy, a natural wonder, and learned about Orkney's role in World War I and II at Scapa Flow. I explored the charming towns of Stromness and Kirkwall and paid a visit to the unique Italian Chapel, a testament to human creativity on these islands.
Whether you're planning your own Orkney adventure, looking for a NC500 detour or simply curious about these Scottish islands, I hope my Orkney travel guide video will help provide insights into the beauty and history of these incredible islands.
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WHO AM I?
If we haven't met before... Hi, I'm Ruth 👋 and I recently bought a campervan to travel my home country of Scotland after living overseas for 12 years. I’ve hardly seen anything or been anywhere in Scotland and now is the time to change that!
P.S. Some of the links in this description are affiliate links that I get a kickback from.
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my goodness you are a beautiful person, and these sites you visit are just a bonus.
Your videos are so much like the classic travel shows I used to love growing up. Production is great and always full of interesting info and of course, so well presented. Keep it up👏🏽
11:00 There's something incredibly surreal (and emotional to me for some reason) about the contrast between the ancient moss covered tombs and the pristinely smooth modern protective cement "caul" that encases it. The sunlight streaming in through the open skylights seems to really enhance the feeling.
It really is amazing! I’d love to visit Orkney again someday
One of the best channels on TH-cam. You're a naturally gifted presenter. From Melbourne, Australia.
Thanks so much Greg! ❤️
Your best yet… gorgeous photography, jaw-dropping drone shots and fascinating insights into the history. Just jam-packed with content, I was transported for a wonderful half-hour to the Orkneys. Thanks so much!
That's so kind Ben, it means a lot!!
Orkney* not "the Orkneys", easy mistake but you wouldn't say "the Englands" or "the Hawaiis".
Thanks for the video, I lived in Orkney for 21 years, just moved back to the mainland.. The Orkney brewery was my neighbour, great food and beer.
It's a great place! I'll need to try the beer next time!
Ive really enjoyed your video tours of Scotland. Greetings from Florida
Glad you like them! Send some sunshine my way haha!
thanks for all your love of our Scotland God Bless
Thank you too!
stay safe
heaven on earth!!!!
hello ruth aisling l am david jordan form n lreland l love the visiting in scotland
Great content! Such interesting experiences, and relatable perspectives. Cheers.
That’s really kind of you, thank you! Glad you hear you enjoyed the video.
素晴らしい景色の動画をありがとうございます。日本の景色とはまた違う歴史を感じました。日本語の字幕も助かります。
ご声援ありがとうございました。
日本語字幕が役に立っているようで何よりです。
動画が本当に綺麗。とても臨場感があって、風の冷たさとか、空気の匂いまで伝わって来る。
私もその場所に居る様だ。そして、いづれ自分自身でも実際に行ってみたくなる。
カメラワーク、特に画角の切り取り方が上手なんだな。
ご丁寧なコメントをありがとう。
ビデオを楽しんでいただけてうれしいです。
Thank you thank you thank you for sharing! The majority of my Scottish ancestry is from the Orkney Islands and you masterfully transported me there! Wonderful channel from USA ❤
As Orthodox Christians we remember our departed loved ones 40 days after their death, 1 year after death and on other “Soul Saturday” services at church with a special boiled wheat and priestly prayers. Maybe you can visit an Orthodox Church in Scotland sometime! Thank you for your videos.
Maybe I will, thanks for sharing!
One of the best video on the Youtuble. Fantastic work , Ruth. I like all your video very much. Thank you so much for taking us to the tour of Scotland - one of mt favourite place in the world ! Thank you, Ruth ❤
I've been watching and listening to you for a while now, your voice helps me sleep, thank you for everything you do Ruth, stay happy 😊
You are so welcome! Thank you 🙏
@@ruthaisling Just keep doing what you're doing, you put a smile on people's faces who would otherwise struggle to do so... I have a feeling you will know what I mean 😘
今日も美しいスコットランドのビデオをありがとう❤
ストーンヘンジ、バイキング、スコッチウイスキー、フィッシュ&チップス、そして「広々とした丘陵(spacious hilly area)」。
それが、
ルースさんのビデオで学んだ
「私のスコットランドのイメージ」です。
スコットランドは良い国ですね❤
スコットランドはいい国だ。
いつか訪れてください！
Most of your life is listening to others and awareness of how life is and has been through the ages. I appreciate your uplifting message to make this world feel welcoming in far away homes and people like Scotland. Appearances matter the white wool hat compliments the warmth of the red winter coat, they fit the days stories. Thanks for the adventure
Thank you very much for watching the video!
I used to get Cheese patty suppers with a glass bottle of the Irn-Bru when i lived in the Shetland Islands. Hmmm making me hungry just thinking about it!
すごいね、編集頑張ってるね。HighLandParkのウィスキー大好きです。とても美しい景色で、自由に見学できて、きれいに保たれているところに、規律の正しさとみんなが大切にしていることが伝わります。人がいない（笑）のはいつものことですが、木もないんですね。だから石で住居をつくるのですね。いつもいろんなことがわかって楽しいです。
赤いクルマと赤いジャケットが、シンプルな風景に鮮やかでとても素敵です。
近々、私の地元を紹介する必要がある。木がたくさんあるんだ。😂
ネス湖のネッシーも見たいな😅
Thank you for showing us the beauty of Scotland's nature. In the opening and other parts of this video, we can see striped rock layers on the coastal cliffs.
It is believed that long ago, more than 8,500 years ago, the seabed was uplifted due to tectonic changes, became land, and was further eroded, eventually becoming part of the coastline.
The grandeur of this natural process is truly awe-inspiring, isn't it?
It really is, humans are so small compared to the power of nature
素晴らしい景色動画ありがとうございました。 スコットランドの古代の島々とスコットランド人の先祖たちが厳しい冬を乗り越えて文化を作ったことがよく理解出来ました。素晴らしい歴史❣！❣！
とても興味深い歴史だ。コメントありがとう。
Greetings from South Carolina 🇺🇸
There’s a Pee Dee river running through here- perhaps named from Scottish origins 😄
Love the videos 🎉
3:05 What you said about it sounding particularly beautiful and maybe being to do with the stones is actually 100% correct! I will be working at Skara Brae this summer and as part of the training process we visited many of the other HES sites for familiarisation, and I learned that the placement of the stones, sounds bounce off their broad surfaces and create a hauntingly beautiful echoing effect, having a wonderful acoustic effect on any sounds created inside the circle. A similar effect can be had at the Ring of Brodgar however as Brodgar is significantly larger it takes louder sounds to have the same effect. So you hit the nail right on the head :)
ポアロの映画で見た風景がそこにある。歴史を勉強して旅行したい。
ルースさん
こんばんは。
今回の映像もとても興味深いものでした。いつかわたしも行ってみたい。素晴らしい映像をどうもありがとうございます！また楽しみにしております。
毎回のサポートに感謝している。ありがとうございました。
Hi Ruth. Many of the female TH-camrs talk about the merits of the countries where they were born and raised. This time, the ancient ruins were talked about very vividly, and I think that there are many similarities between the round tombs and megalithic civilizations in Japan, and although this has not been proven, there was once a connection between them. I want to imagine that.
That is so interesting, next time I am in Japan I will try and visit some of those places. Although it's a different time period, I did think the dinosaur museum in Fukui Prefecture was excellent. Probably the best museum I have visited in Japan.
This is a very beautiful and wonderful video.
I think adding a little bit of Japanese will give a sense of familiarity to Japanese people.
Thank you for your lovely comment!
Ruth you are just amazing 🎉love watching your videos
Thank you so much!
Thoroughly enjoyed watching this and your other videos, thanks
I’m glad! Thank you for watching 🙏
Nice video Ruth. Some great points covered.
Glad it was helpful!
Stunning views, stunning video, stunning host.
Thanks George!
So amazing ✨. 石器時代から現代まで魅力ある文化･自然の数々!! . 平明達意でわかりやすかったです.堪能しました～😊. 英国は保存の仕方が素晴らしいですね🌟.
字幕を使っても理解しやすかったのでよかった！コメントありがとうございます。
My favorite scotch, Highland Park. I’ve always wanted to tour the distillery.
This was the most fascinating video of yours I have seen so far! The views were amazing. I cannot imagine myself braving those cliffs. I am a total wuss over heights. Absolutely awesome! ❤
Glad you enjoyed it! Thank you 🙏
Orkney is my love. i was two times there and i think i was not the last one. Greetings from Germany
You should visit a third time!
Orkney was already on our bucket list and then this video came along!
I agree, it's so important to mark bereavement anniversaries. It's really helpful with dealing with grief.
本当に美しい景色ばかり。日本にはこのような景観はないので食い入るように見ました
あといつも思うのですが食べ物がおいしそうで、私は刺身などの生ものは一切ダメでお肉もロースとかわずかな部位しか食べられません。ルースさんが食べているものが美味しそうでたまりません
スコットランドの風景を気に入ってくれてうれしいよ。
日本では礼文島くらいかな。
スコットランドを思い出しました！
Thank you so much for the tour I don't have any words .... amazing just amazing so many ancient sites and you are a lovely host ,seeing part of your world from the comfort of my home in Litchfield Connecticut thanks G☆ 3 22 24
Glad you enjoyed it in Connecticut! Thanks for watching 🙏
Really love watching your videoes/vlogs, although I am English, I love Scotland, it's such a beautiful country!
Glad you like them! Thank you 🙏
Thanks Ruth. I’m related to the Harvey and Linklater families from Orkney, and have always wanted to visit.
The Italian POW chapel was for me, worthy of a visit to Orkney . Thanks for sharing as it brought back many memories from our visit many years ago.
It is so good to see so many high quality productions about my home nowadays, Orkney. I was born here and have lived here all my life and you could not pay me to leave, it is a very special place. Just so you know for the ferry animations it would be better to use a picture of the "Earl Sigurd" for the Inter Island ferries and the "Hamnavoe" for the Northlink ferry as the pictures you used were of the Shetland inter island ferry "Linga" and the Aberdeen ferry "Hrossey." 😃
Good Morning Ruth thanks for your trip to the Orkney islands from the us but love all the experiences in these islands your history explanations and visits to places no one normally goes is a plus thanks stay safe see ya soon😘🌸🌺🌿
Lovely videos thank you. Lots of interesting information content which I hope to bottle and head to the Isles.
Thanks again.
i went to orkney with a friend and her family about a year ago! so cool to see places i have visited and also places that we didn’t have time to see in your video 🥰 Hope you had a lovely time Ruth it truly is a wonderful place!
I'm happy to hear you've been too, I hope you had a great trip! I had the best time there, still so many more islands to discover so I'll need to plan another trip sometime!
I've always wanted to visit Orkney! We lived in thurso but moved as my 18yr old daughter fell to death cliff there, still live caithness beautiful place😊
I’m so sorry to hear that about your daughter 😢
I can imagine what the Briny breeze's are like, ahhh lovely 👍
Thank you so much for these fascinating videos. I'm from Peru, and your trips are almost other-worldly. Your presentation and personality make them great.
Glad you like them! 🏴
@@ruthaisling I really do. Your heartwarming feelings about Scotland make one want to visit. Oddly, my desert is normal to me, and seeing the green and brooks is fascinating.
FYI - We have a river called the "Pee Dee" River In North Carolina and South Carolina, USA. Love your channel!
Haha nice, thanks for sharing!
Hey Ruth - Thank you for the gorgeous videos. I'm from South Africa and doing a road trip to Scotland in May 2024. Getting on the Northlink ferry from Aberdeen to Lerwick. Then from Lerwick to Kirkwall, followed by Stromness to Scrabster. My trip was inspired by your brilliant videos and not by the "Shetland" TV series🤣🤣
I’m so pleased you’re going to Orkney and Shetland. You will have an amazing time!
Thanks for a beautiful bit of island hopping Ruth. and it sounds like more to come!
Thanks for watching!
Good morning, when you on the isle of Hoy did you get to see Betty Corrigall's Grave. Regards Robin
Thank you for sharing. Your vlogs get better and better.
That’s so kind of you to say, thank you!
Great content and loved the start / intro
Thank you so much Victoria!
Oh my Ruth, such a wonderful video. Your videos are a highlight of my week.
Wow, thanks!
Thankyou for such a wonderful video, so inspiring to go and visit. So much history and fantastic scenery.
It's such an amazing place!
Lovely presentation…beautiful countryside/Oceanside and you are lovely and beautiful…and unbelievably charming…stay safe and sound…💕
Thanks for such a great tour of places we’ll never know about let alone visit.
Thank you for watching, I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the video!
Very interesting and well narrated journey thanks for sharing Ruth.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Absolutely brilliant video with lots of interesting content, thanks Ruth
...A real treat before work tomorrow
So happy to hear that, thanks for watching!
Love, Love, Loved this video! 😊
Thank you!! 😊
We were there in August 2023 - have an great time. So many sites and such friendly people. We even crossed over to the Brough of Birsay which as fun. Probably my favorite place now in Scotland.
Nice to hear you had such a great time there too! Did you go to Hoy?
@@ruthaisling we did not, but caught all the Neolithic sites as well as WW 2 sites. We had a great trip.
Beautiful scenery
Breathtaking!
Marvellous video which showcases Orkney's heritage and natural beauty especially with the glorious weather !
Thanks for the ride and its nice to see you enjoyed it as well, especially the 'dip' at the end !!
Can't wait to see part 2! 😊
Thanks Andy!
Wonderful video Ruth! The views were amazing! It’s so beautiful in the Orkneys! Thank you for taking us on the adventure with you!❤
Thank you so much!
Wow! Fantastic filming! Thanks
Glad you enjoyed it
What a lovely video, Ruth. The Orkney Isles, another destination now on my bucket list. 🙂
Thank you John. I honestly loved the Orkney Islands, I hope you have a great time there when you visit!
Loved watching these videos, giving us ideas for our next adventures in “Terry “ the Hiace campervan 👍
I'm glad they are helpful!
You are amazing, your videos sre truly inspiring ❤
Glad you like them!
What I really love about your videos, I've been to all these places but you bring a different facet with such a sunny disposition. We were on Orkney in May and saw some of the same sights you did, but you had much better weather :)
Thanks Darren! I did have good luck with the weather especially after the rainy summer. I did have one or two rainy days but tend to film when weather is nicer 😂
Another fascinating video Ruth. So informative. We longingly looked across to the Orkneys from the Scottish mainland when we were there in our campervan earlier this year. Definitely on a future bucket list. Looking forward to the next installment.
Thank you Mark! I definitely suggest a visit. It's a great place to travel in your campervan.
In the states there is the Great Pee Dee river in North & South Carolina named for an indigenous tribe. Fair number of Scots settled in the region way back when. Very much enjoy your travelogs.
Interesting, thanks for sharing!
Wonderful, this is one of your best videos yet. I love how you allowed us to see the signs in the museums and the menus in the restaurants, it made me feel i was there and the scenery was awesome. Great job Ruth.
Wow, thanks so much! I'm happy to hear seeing the menu is helpful. I like seeing menus also haha
Well that bought back some nice memories of my visit to Orkney many years ago. I remember finding one chambered tomb at the side of the road - there was a small honesty box with a torch inside which you could borrow and then had to crawl along the entrance tunnel to the main chamber inside. Quite a different experience to super touristy places like Skara Brae.
Wow, that sounds brilliant. So many of these smaller sites are so quiet too
That was spectacular Ruth.
I am struck by the amazing scenery there wild & remote.
A lot of very useful information in this one.
The campsites are well equipped & reasonably priced
😊
Thanks Sean! Orkney was incredible, I definitely would recommend anyone to visit!
Thanks for an amazing video Ruth , we have been to Orkney a couple of times and are heading back again in May , you have shown us some new sites and we cant wait to get to Rousey to do some new exploring , I hope the van is running well you made a cracking job with that one
Hi Graham, that sounds great! I hope you have a nice time on Rousay and manage to see some seals too. The van has been really great, I’m so happy I got it!
I've been binging all your videos and enjoying every minute of it! You're lovely! Keep up the great work!
Thank you so much!! I’m glad you’re enjoying the videos.
"I Like Seals"! LOL got me giggling - beautiful work Ruth thanks!
Haha, since otters are so hard to spot, I've grown to like seals since they are much easier to come across and I like their happy faces. 😂
Thanks for the lovely video about this stunning archipelago. Lots of seals too, and I'm still rooting for you to come across an otter in your travels! :)
Thank you! I’m always looking but no sign of one yet 😂
Great. You went to all the cool places - Rousay, Yesnaby and most of all: the Old Man.
Loved them all!
A truly wonderful video. I'd love to visit Orkney.
You should!
Thanks for sharing your wonderful travels I love Scotland ❤
Thanks for watching Paul!
@@ruthaisling i admire a younger lady like you travelling round alone and I've met lot's of different women and men all ages doing this all over the world 🌎 ♥
Hi Ruth, Yet another fantastic Vlog, I'm taking my campervan to orkney next summer and this has added to my long list of things to see and do, Thanks for the heads up about pre booking things , looking forward to your next episode. 😍
Oh amazing! I hope you have a fantastic time there!
Glad to made it to Orkney Ruth, so much to see and do there and so much history. I visited most of the isles there over the past 30 years but they weren`t so busy in the 1990s and you could get to sites like Scara Brae, Ring of Brodgar and many of the others without seeing a soul. Hope you liked the Highland Park tour, quite expensive from when I went back in 1992, I think it was about a tenner. Hope you liked the single malt too. ;) Graemsay is a nice island to walk around if you have good weather and are ever up there again and only a short ferry from Stromness.
Thanks for watching the video David! Orkney seems quite popular with cruise ships these days which will be adding to the increases tourist numbers. The Highland Park Distillery was really nice to see and I enjoyed the whisky samples the other night too. It was a bit pricey compared to the Islay Distillery tours.
Another of your visit to islands I adore. So pleased you enjoyed Orkney. I remember visiting in midsummer and being at the Ring of Brodgar at dusk (about 11pm!) It was so spectacular in the 'simmer dim' as its called, with a soundtrack of the eerie calls curlews and lapwings.
I didn't go to Rousay (if fact I think I was scarred off by the reversing onto the ferry). So great to see all the places you visited on Rousay. I overcame my fear a day later when I went over to Shapinsay for a day which uses the same onboarding process.
Also, I really like the design of your new maps.
Wow, what an experience that must have been! Reversing onto the ferry was a bit nerve-wracking but totally worth it for all the amazing sites that were waiting on the island! I saw some people cycling around the island too. I'll need to visit Shapinsay next time! Thank you for noticing about the maps, they are more detailed / accurate than the previous ones!
Great video. I first heard of Skara Brae while watching the first episode of Simon Schama's A History of Britain. I heard there were stone circles in the Orkneys and thanks for covering them.
Thanks for watching!
Wow go Ruthy, got in the sea, very impressive, Links beach was soooo beautiful really good vlog, thank you
That beach was unreal.... I could hardly believe it wasn't some tropical place overseas 😂
I love learning history, especially Scot & Celt history (there is a monument in Sterling with my last name on it). I used to work with a lady from the Orkney islands, at Vanderbilt about 25 years ago. She loved to talk about her homeland, I loved to listen. Great video!
How interesting! Thanks for watching!
Hi Ruth, that was brilliant, I liked the slightly longer video.And it bought back some great memories for me when I visited in the late nineties. The weather seemed to be in your favour most of the time. Have a wonderful week and I catch you next week. 👍😊x
Thanks David! I'm glad you enjoyed the longer video, there was a lot to fit in! I was so lucky with the weather especially after that rainy summer!
Wow! What an amazing place and a fantastic video! Your style in covering the content is truly outstanding. I'm thoroughly impressed by your work. 👏🏼 Keep up the fantastic job!
Thank you Waqar, I'm happy you enjoyed the video so much!
Thank you for the good video, I want to go too
You should!
Visited Orkney a few years ago and loved it. Had to reverse onto the pentland ferry at gills bay because we were last on.
Oh yikes, from the number of comments, it seems that there are quite a few ferries around which require reversing!
What an absolutely stunning vlog, and you have one of the most relaxing voices I've heard.
Wow, thank you!
This was an amazing video - so informative and beautifully filmed. I’ve been to Orkney and found that not only is there amazing scenery but the people are friendly and kind.
Thank you so much!
Fantastic video Ruth, the detail and commentary are great. I'm glad to see you supporting local shops and Aires. I see that the demon drink raised his head again 😂😂😂😂. It's good to get to know the locals as well, like the ferry man building his eco house. Keep up the good work, looking forward to seeing the next one.
Thanks for your comment Colin! Visiting the local shops and places is one of my favourite things to do!
Great video i enjoy your videos and th way you cover the subect matter.
Glad you like them!
Hello Ruth mick from Hull really enjoyed this episode hope you are well I will look forward to your next episode xx 😊😊
Glad you enjoyed it, thanks Mick!
We’ve had two trips to Orkney now and it was good to see your views about many of the places we visited.
We have reversed our Motorhome onto a ferry, that being the fast craft that runs from Jersey to Poole. That was a bit scary.
Oh wow, that does sound a bit scary!