proper start Sumburgh

Sumburgh

I should be on that plane 

I couldn’t count how many times I have flown over Sumburgh head lighthouse? at least once a month for over seven years that's over a hundred times I’ve seen it from the air, only once previously did I visited it as a day out with work colleagues during the commissioning of the gas plant days, that was way back June 2014 that was a visit to see the puffins,  it was the wrong time of year for puffins on this visit, and I was on a different mission, it was the chosen kick of point for the trig pointing adventure 

I took this photo during a flight

Sumburgh airport runway shares a section with the main road into it,  the only other airport runway like this in Europe is Gibraltar I have enjoyed a few sideways landings at Sumburgh but no longer will as I have pledged to go flight free for 2021 minimum maybe forever! 

It was a fun feeling to cycle across the runway           I love lighthouses doesn’t everyone? Shetland goes a step beyond and many of the lighthouses here can be hired as accommodation, Shetland Lighthouse Holidays offer visitors three historical and spectacularly situated lighthouses. From the very tip of Shetland's southernmost point in Sumburgh, to the dramatic North West cliffs of Eshaness and the exposed outcrop of Bressay; each location offers a unique and unforgettable holiday destination.The now automated lights remain under the control and care of the Northern Lighthouse Board. The lighthouse keeper’s cottages are owned by Shetland Amenity Trust to hire your self-catering holiday

https://www.shetlandlighthouse.com/

Built 1821 sumburgh is the oldest lighthouse in Shetland. It replaced a fog bell which had been presented after the loss of the Royal Victoria in 1861. The light was automated in 1991 Designed by Robert Stevenson, the grandfather of one of my favorite authors Robert Louis, the famous family of lighthouse engineers, on his first visit he declared it as a suitable site for a lighthouse. He visited Shetland in 1814 with Sir Walter Scott, who later published his novel 'The Pirate', which was set around the nearby areas of Jarlshof and Fitful Head. 

A cold start and the lighthouse all shut

Trig point adventure begins it was a cold wet start I shall do another blog post on how the rest of the day went due to this update being done one finger typing on my mobile phone in a cold tent brr