Day one hundred and forty - Around Rousay

 17th July.

Very heavy rain squalls overnight but it had improved by morning. A windy, showery day with some bright intervals.

Retraced my steps back to the road and continued anticlockwise around the island.

There is a little store that was not open when I passed. I was told later that it is open most days for limited hours and keeps a good stock of most things.

Up the hill and then down to Wasbister, a fertile area of farmland. There were a number of barley fields with a perimeter of oats?

I saw a Post Office sign and had to investigate, there is one and it was open. They open every day for an hour or so in the morning. It was nearly an hour before I managed to get away, I now know most of what happens on the island and, no doubt, everyone will know all about me by now.

On to the archeological bit then and the huge chambered cairn of Mid Howe. A building has been put over the cairn to preserve it which makes it difficult to get a true feeling for it's antiquity, it almost feels like a giant model.

The roof structure dominating the cairn

A bit further along the coast there were two separate archeological digs. The first, an excavation of a Viking long house that the dig director himself explained to me and the second, the excavation of an iron age round house and associated works was all explained by one of the students from Nottingham University.

I got back to the pier in time to watch the ferry sailing down the sound but there is a new waiting room with self service drinks that has been set up by the community so waiting for it to return was no hardship.

Interesting objects at the roadside 

The rain showers had been getting more frequent and heavier, there were no camping spots apparent on the map for my proposed route and I had run out of steam. So, when a bus appeared on the pier I climbed on and went back to the Kirkwall campsite.

As the bus trip makes this the end of The Walk, I have hired a bike for tomorrow to see some more ancient ruins.

13 miles walked 400 meters ascent.