Shetland - The Rough Guide to Scottish Highlands and Islands - page 371

BÖDS
With only one SYHA hostel in Shetland, it's worth knowing about the islands' unique
network of camping böds (March-Oct). Traditionally, a böd was a small building beside
the shore, where fishermen stored their gear and occasionally slept; the word was also
applied to trading posts established by Hanseatic merchants. Today, the tourist board
uses the term pretty loosely: the places they run range from stone-built cottages to
weatherboarded sail lofts. To stay at a böd, you must book in advance with the Shetland
Amenity Trust ( T 01595 694688, W camping-bods.co.uk), as there are no live-in wardens.
The more basic böds have no cooking facilities or electricity, but all have a solid-fuel
stove, cold water, toilets and bunk beds with mattresses - those with electricity have a
meter, for which you need £1 coins. If you're camping, they're a great way to escape the
wind and rain.

By bus The bus network ( T 01595 744868, W zettrans
.org.uk) is pretty good in Shetland, with buses from
Lerwick to every corner of Mainland, and even via ferries
across to Yell and Unst.
Car rental It's worth considering car rental once on the
islands. Bolts Car Hire ( T 01595 693636, W boltscarhire
.co.uk) and Star Rent-a-Car ( T 01595 692075, W starrenta
car.co.uk) have vehicles at Sumburgh airport and Lerwick.

Tours There's a range of escorted tours and boat trips
around the Mainland, great for those without a vehicle.
Specific tours are mentioned throughout the text, but
Shetland Wildlife ( T 01950 422483, W shetlandwildlife
.co.uk) offer a variety of tours and boat trips, while the
more adventurous might consider Sea Kayak Shetland
( T 01595 840272, W seakayakshetland.co.uk).

8

Lerwick
The focus of Shetland's commercial life, LERWICK is home to about 7500 people,
a third of the islands' population. Its sheltered harbour at the heart of the town is busy
with ferries, fishing boats, and oil-rig supply vessels. In summer, the quayside comes
alive with visiting yachts, cruise liners, historic vessels such as the Swan and the
occasional tall ship. Behind the old harbour is the compact town centre, made up of
one long main street, Commercial Street; from here, narrow lanes, known as “ closses ”,
rise westwards to the late-Victorian new town.
Established in the seventeenth century as Leir Vik (“Muddy Bay”) to cater for the
Dutch herring fleet, the town was burnt down in 1614 and 1625 by the jealous folk of
Scalloway, and again in 1702 by the French fleet. During the nineteenth century, with
the presence of ever-larger Scottish, English and Scandinavian boats, it became a major
fishing centre, and whalers called to pick up crews on their way to the northern
hunting grounds. Business was from the jetties of buildings known as lodberries ,
several of which survive beyond the Queen's Hotel . Smuggling was part of the daily
routine, and secret tunnels - some of which still exist - connected the lodberries to
illicit stores. Lerwick expanded in the Victorian era, and the large houses and grand
public buildings established then still dominate, notably the Town Hall . Another period
of rapid growth began during the oil boom of the 1970s, with the farmland to the
southwest disappearing under a suburban sprawl, the town's northern approaches
becoming an industrial estate.

Commercial Street
Lerwick's attractive main street is the narrow, winding, flagstone-clad Commercial
Street , whose buildings exhibit a mixed bag of architectural styles, from the powerful
neo-Baroque of the Bank of Scotland at no. 117 to the plainer houses and old
lodberries at the south end, beyond the Queen's Hotel . Here, you'll find Bain's Beach ,
a small, hidden stretch of golden sand that's one of the prettiest spots in Lewick.