Orkney - The Rough Guide to Scottish Highlands and Islands - page 335

probably on their way to the Crusades, leaving copious runic graffiti, including
cryptographic twig runes, cut into the walls of the main chamber. They include phrases
such as “Many a beautiful woman has stooped in here, however pompous she might
be”, and the more prosaic “Thor and I bedded Helga”.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE STENNESS

By bus Buses from Stromness to Kirkwall (Mon-Sat
hourly, Sun every 2hr; 30min) can drop you off at Tormiston

Mill by Maes Howe - under a mile from the Stones of
Stenness and the same again from the Ring of Brodgar.

ACCOMMODATION
Ì Holland House T 01856 771400, W hollandhouse
orkney.co.uk. A beautiful, solidly-built manse in Harray,
set back from the A986. The house is filled with artworks,
there's a peat fire and the home-cooking, i nclu ding freshly
baked scones for breakfast, is outstanding. £96

Mill of Eyrland T 01856 850136, W millofeyrland
.co.uk. Carefully converted former mill in a delightful
setting on the A964 to Orphir; it's filled with wonderful
antiques and old mill machinery, a s we ll as all mod cons;
free wi-fi and enormous breakfasts. £80

7

EATING AND DRINKING
Merkister Hotel Harray Loch T 01856 771366,
W merkister.com. Substantial hotel on the northeastern
shore of the Loch of Harray, popular with the locals and
visiting anglers. The bar's lively and does fairly predicatble

bar meals such as (local) fish and chips (around £10) but
there's a restaurant, too, whose menu features more local
seafood (mains £13-20). Food served daily noon-2pm
& 6-9pm.

Sandwick
North of Stromness, the parish of Sandwick contains the best known of Orkney's
prehistoric monuments, Skara Brae , beautifully situated beside the white curve of the Bay
of Skaill. In addition, the cliffs either side of the bay provide some of the most spectacu-
larly rugged coastal walks on Orkney's Mainland. The other good reason for exploring
Sandwick is to visit the wonderful Orkney Brewery in the old schoolhouse in Quoyloo.

Skara Brae
Daily: April-Sept 9.30am-5.30pm; Oct-March 9.30am-4.30pm • £7.10; HS • T 01856 761606
At Skara Brae , the extensive remains of a small Neolithic fishing and farming village,
dating back to 3000 BC, were discovered in 1850 after a fierce storm ripped off the
dunes covering them. The village is amazingly well preserved, its houses huddled
together and connected by narrow passages, which would originally have been covered
over with turf. The houses themselves consist of a single, spacious living room, filled
with domestic detail, including dressers, fireplaces, built-in cupboards, beds and boxes,
all ingeniously constructed from slabs of stone.
he visitor centre houses an excellent café/restaurant , where you can also get
takeaway sandwiches to order. You can take in the small introductory exhibition , with
a few replica finds, and some hands-on stuff for kids. You then proceed to a full-scale
replica of House 7 (the best-preserved house), complete with a fake wood and skin
roof. It's all a tad neat and tidy, with fetching uplighting - rather than dark, smoky and
smelly - but it gives you the general idea, and makes up for the fact that, at the site
itself, you can only look down on the houses from the outer walls.

Skaill House
In the summer months, your ticket also covers entry to nearby Skaill House , an
extensive range of buildings 300yd inland, home of the laird of Skaill. The original
house was a simple two-storey block, built for Bishop George Graham in the 1620s,
but it has since been much extended. The house's prize possession is Captain Cook's
dinner service from the Resolution ; it was delivered after Cook's death when the
Resolution and the Discovery sailed into Stromness in 1780.