After breakfast we kitted up and rolled the two miles down to the ferry terminal in Thurso to catch our boat which would take us to the Orkney Islands. The plan was to arrive at Stromness and do a 50-odd mile loop to finish the trip. Sadly we found out when we arrived at 8.15am that our ferry was cancelled and that the only other ferry to Orkney that day was from Gills Bay near to John ‘O Groats in just under three hours, 20 miles away. This wasn’t going to be a slog but it did mean a change to our plans as it arrived at a different part of the island in early afternoon and would mean we would be under a bit of time pressure to arrive at our hotel in Stromness before nightfall. Also, just to add a touch more drama I had a phone interview scheduled at 10.40am so I had to hope and pray there would be phone reception at our new ferry terminal. It would be my first interview conducted in cycling gear.
Off we went out of Thurso and of course up the same hill as yesterday. Things started to look up when I found my bike light in one piece as we struggled up the hill. I was so out of breath I could only cough my delight as I pocketed it and carried up on the hill. Another stroke of luck came my way when my cycle computer miraculously came back to life, just like Jesus, as I neared the crest of the hill just in time to tell me I was rocketing up the road at a blistering 6.3 mph.
We arrived at our other ferry terminal at the bottom of a hill at 10.15am to discover my phone did not have a signal in the waiting room. So closer to the interview time I legged it back up the hill holding my phone nice and high (even though surely this does nothing?) until my phone flickered on to one bar of signal and the phone eventually rang. All things considered I thought I did pretty well considering the various background noises of the interview such as biting Scottish wind and squally showers, passing freight trucks and the hilariously comical timing of an aircraft thundering past overhead. I didn’t get the job though but at least I was still on holiday.
We did get the ferry however. The ferry workers let John and I on first on our trusty bikes so we could stow them away in a corner before the cars and various trucks got on. I was massively impressed that they managed to get everything on without a) some tourist crashing through the ferry and into the sea or b) the boat sinking.
After leaving the mainland we passed an island that from a distance looked inhabited and it was only once the ferry got closer that we realised the buildings were all ruins, apart from the lighthouse at one of the edges. This was Stroma, an island abandoned since 1997 when the lighthouse keeper left (but hopefully didn’t turn out the lights).
We arrived at St Margarget’s Hope in the middle of the afternoon and although it was only 34 miles to Stromness we had a small detour along the way bringing this final leg of our ride to 45 miles. The sun was out though and we were both excited to see what the Orkney Islands would be like.
The answer is beautiful and full of midgy bastards that appear to have a particular attraction to ear holes. I feel like I still have a few of them buzzing around inside my head. Cycling over the causeways that connected the islands was stunning though as we made our way north through to the mainland over rolling hills.
We were just a few miles from Stromness when we took our detour further north to our spiritual home of Twatt. Sadly there was no traditional road sign welcoming you to Twatt (I can’t think why) but we did manage to visit Twatt Church. It was both very immature and thoroughly worth it.
All that remained was a final 10 mile sprint (and I use the word sprint very loosely) into Stromness up and down the final few hills. By this point I couldn’t feel my arse anymore but didn’t care as the sun was out and I knew the hotel we were staying at was also a pub which served food (I’m looking at you Strathy) and beer.
Although we would have some more gentle cycling to complete the trip between ferries and trains this was the end. One final tip though, if you ever want shit, wavy hair don’t waste your money going to the hairdressers. Simply sit on a bike for 7 or 8 hours and let your helmet and Highlands wind sort that for you.
Daniel McChrystal 