what's abode? !

I had been out here previously with Robbo to do a bit of whale watching

(or orca spotting to be more precise), this time I had a chance to look around a wee bit as it was sunset when I parked up, but the main thing I wanted to do was try the new gas stove which went fine I am sure I will get better the more I use it, I was slow and careful, it’s much more noisy than I thought it would be or maybe I had too much pressure or the valve to far open time will tell, I had regretted buying this style as I am used to my pocket rocket with the gas cylinders they are so easy and efficient, this new one seems a right faff in comparisons but I upgraded as my thinking was that I felt if I ever get around to cycling over someplace remote like the silk road or south America, I can cook using this with virtually any fuel easily obtained even petrol or diesel, but being honest about it I do not need it here in Shetland, I would have saved time and hassle with my wee pocket rocket, I also brought well actually bought a ghilly kettle which I am stupidly lumbering around with me it works of twigs and pine cones! With a romantic notion in my head of gathering some dry wood bits of twig from a beach it doesn’t take much wee bits and some card or paper rubbish to kindle it. I never expected the whole island to be stuck under snow and ice! But I did know it’s an island that has very little twigs and pine cones anyway! DOH I will be sending that home in disgrace lol, the pocket rocket is much safer the MSR fuel burner you truly do need to watch what you’re doing! fire and liquid fuel is something to treat with respect My dinner was good though I had a chance to use up some of the bags of things I had bought, it was a good thing britains most northerly fish and chip shop frankies at brae was shut when I passed, this is another thing about life on the road eating cold stuff out of shops you pass aint that bad, if you have a van you can find a place that sells coffee easier than it is sometimes to fire up your cooking stuff, having motorized transport and cash in your pocket can make you lazy towards cooking for yourself especially when it’s around -3 outside, Once I had ate dinner, I did my log and wrote up some stuff on a word document to hopefully upload later, there is absolutely zero signal up in these sorts of places, there is nothing you can do about this but once you get back into the land of 3&4G your phone pings with various irate friends and family you never replied or you haven’t updated the blog or Instagram strava and no messages for three days, yeh sorry about that but I had no signal! Once you set off driving from one area like that and pass through somewhere with a signal on the way to your next destination you either need to stop driving/cycling/walking and respond especially when its yer mammy! Or accept its best to get the days activities completed then get a catch up with the backlog once you can sit somewhere with good wifi and or signal (wifi is much better as then all my files and photos get backed up to the cloud) It was another bloody cold night in the back of the van this night I tried the extra layer of a foil emergency blanket somebody had put it in my work helmet! (thanks, anonymous good Samaritan) It would be rude not to give it a go, I liked it as it kept any condensation drips off the sleeping bag, did it help with heat retention? Maybe a bit I had put double socks on and the cycling cape over the bag along with four upper layers two lower layers the silk liner, below all that on the vans wooden floor a foam sleeping mat and the thermarest that now needs blown up every three hours or so, it was bearable but still bloody cauld especially if I needed to go for a pee then crawl back inside all those layers and pull the sleeping bag hood over my tammy and jacket hood, what do the folk wear on Everest or the arctic I wish johny notions Bod was open, I wonder what he would say about his bod being shut all last summer due to a pandemic? Considering it was a pandemic that made him famous

John Williamson (c. 1730 – c. 1803), more commonly known by the nickname Johnnie Notions was a self-taught physician from Shetland, who independently developed and administered an inoculation for smallpox to thousands of patients in Shetland during the late 18th century. Despite having only an elementary education and no formal medical background, the treatment he devised had an extremely high success rate, resulting in the immunisation of approximately 3,000 people and the saving of many lives, which had a significant effect on the demographics of the Shetland population at the time. He is reputed not to have lost a single patient. While Notions administered his inoculation by at least the late 1780s to early 1790s (and likely much earlier), his method was largely overshadowed by the work of Edward Jenner, who pioneered the cowpox-based smallpox vaccine in 1796. Despite this, Notions and his inoculation were held with high regard with Shetlanders at the time, while the same could not be said for the cowpox-based vaccination introduced to Shetland in subsequent years

It certainly made for a bit of thinking from me parked up outside his hoose! During this pandemic smallpox makes covid look like a common cold, anyone that’s worried about the vaccination these days should have a look at smallpox and its successful vaccination, of course that said every single one of Johnny notions patients is now dead lol, it was different times then of course but people bringing smallpox to these islands causing various epidemics wreaked havoc at one time killing a third of the islands population young and old,

 

I had been telling the boys for months about my plan to spend my four weeks of work on Shetland completing the trig point challenge that I had made to myself, hopefully to do all the trig points before leaving shetland to cycle home? My work mates all loved the idea but felt it was a bit daft to do it in winter,

I suppose it is! but due to other commitments along with pledging to go flight free for 2021, there was no other viable time,nobody told me about these bods a sort of cross between a bothy and hostel?  

 

In Shetland, a Böd was a building used to house fishermen and their gear during the fishing season. Today, the islanders use the word to describe basic accommodation, the first camping Böds opened in l992 and more are planned to create a network throughout the Shetland Islands. The Böds are all in attractive localities and each has an interesting history. Böds are very basic, some in remote areas having no electricity.

The böd at Aithbank on the island of Fetlar was once home to a legendary local storyteller Jamsie Laurenson

The Windhouse Lodge Bod-The solidly built gatehouse to Shetland's most haunted ruin, this is one of the best-equipped böds and a perfect base for touring the North Isles of Shetland

Johnnie Notions offers economy, self-catering accommodation in a traditional building at the north-western tip of the Shetland Mainland. On the North-West coast, this small cottage is associated with the pioneer 18th century smallpox inoculator, John Williamson, locally known as Johnnie Notions.

 

The Grieve House offers economy, self-catering accommodation in a traditional building on the island of Whalsay on the east coast.Scotland's great poet Hugh McDiarmid (Christopher Grieve) lived for nine years in this croft house, where he wrote some of his best work. The 'Bonnie Isle o' Whalsa' 

The Sail Loft – Voe- Once a store for sail fishing boats' gear and later a knitwear workshop, the largest of the böds stands between the tideline and a handy bakery, in an idyllic village setting at the head of a mini-fjord. 

 Voe House Böd Overlooking the picturesque village of Walls is a fascinating building which has been carefully restored using recycled building materials.

The Skeld böd is amongst the latest additions to the network and has been converted from its original function as the local shop with considerable care and attention to detail. Situated in the thriving village of Skeld it sits right above the marina within a stone’s throw of the sea

The Böd of Nesbister is the only original fishing böd in the group. Situated on a low rocky peninsula in one of the most picturesque inlets in Shetland this böd can truly give you the feeling of being back in the days of the “haaf” fisherman since there is no electricity and the toilet is of the “bucket and bury” variety. The water washes almost up to the front door and in bad weather can sweep clean over the peninsula, effectively placing the böd on an island. Truly a location for the adventurous spirit.

BETTY MOUAT'S BÖD offers economic, self-catering accommodation in a traditional building at the southern tip of the Shetland Mainland.

This stone cottage was originally the home of a redoubtable lady who, in 1886, drifted alone on a fishing boat to Norway and lived to tell the tale. The böd is next door to the Old Scatness Broch and Iron age village archaeological site and is also handy for Shetland's main airport and the Fair Isle ferry.

On reading all about these and looking at their locations all I got all excited for the adventure ahead and had to try to book a bod for late January -

hello I have a plan to cycle tour the whole of Shetland ticking of all the trig points along my cycle route as i go, I will be doing this over four weeks starting 22/1/21 to 19/2/21, i would love to use your Bods along my travels? your website shows them as shut until march is this the case?

      all info welcome thank you – kenny

the reply was –

Hi Mr Alexander,

 

Thank you for your enquiry.  Unfortunately our bods are only open from March – October and in fact they have been closed nearly all year due to covid & at this point we are still unsure if we will open them at all next year.  Soryy.

 

Martine