Despite the threat (or rumour) of the impending Storm Floris it was a lovely morning. The weather app said the rain would start at 9am and the high winds building into the afternoon. I wanted to be packed up by 8:00 so I had a good chance of packing the tent up dry. I used the luxury kitchen facilities to make myself a coffee and add boiling water to my porridge. I retired to my stove outside my tent to simmer the porridge and consider what to pack where. I made three piles, things I definitely don’t need on the ferry, a day in Aberdeen or sleeper train. Things like cooking gear, and air mattress were in this pile. Things I might need when on the ferry or boat, such as change of clothes and toiletries. I added my sleeping bag to this pile, as we could be stuck on the ferry longer than expected! The third pile was for things I would need during the days in Kirkwall and Aberdeen. I found this harder than it sounds, and a number of times I had to unpack to check a pair of socks were in the right bag. I expect it will all be in vain, and I will end up on the Caledonian Sleeper with a bag of porridge, a bicycle pump and some tent pegs, when I take the wrong pannier.

I got loaded by 8am including making a huge flask of coffee. I had carried the flask and not used it, but it is really useful if you have a cold wet ride. Up until now I’d relegated it to the panniers and replaced it with a trusty Irn-Bru bottled, which had twice the capacity. It was a bit sad throwing it away!

I wasn’t in a rush, so I sat in the kitchen for a bit, writing my blog next to a plug. I then saw Graeme (from Yell) walking onto the campsite with the owner. I was a bit confused as it was 8:30 in the morning and I hadn’t noticed him last night. He was indeed arriving! He had spent the night in Brae, and got up at 5:30am to beat the storm. Commitment indeed. He was due to be going to Fair Isle, but as it is a five hour trip by small boat he thought it would be unlikely. I’m writing this as we have just passed Fair Isle on the ferry, the captain announced he was expecting a 3.5 metre swell in the Fair Isle gap. So If you did make it – good luck!. I headed off, leaving Graeme pitching his tent as close to the shelter of some bushes as possible. Everyone seemed to be offering him ground screws, by the sounds of it a couple of feet long screws for marquees, not much use on a one man tent.

Light rain started at the same time I started. It wasn’t too bad. The wind was easterly meaning a head wind, or it would have been except for all the hills between me and Lerwick. I think there were four “granny gear” hill to be climbed in a 10km ride.

The wind became an issue as I neared Lerwick. The side winds as I rode north were immense. It was a bit hit and miss as cars, and especially anything bigger, passed as they suddenly took the wind from where I had been leaning into it. On the main road it wasn’t too bad as there was a really good hard shoulder of scalping. Once in the town, this was replaced with a kerb stone which threatened to wipe out my front wheel at every gust. The cars were really good, especially coming down the last hill into town. I was on full brakes with a queue of at least 20 cars behind. It was a Bank Holiday in Scotland, and I felt I was doing my bit to create a Bank Holiday traffic jam.

As it was a Bank Holiday, Lerwick was half closed. It seemed that the banks were open, but I could find only two tiny coffee shops open. I slowly cycled around town a few times and bumped into Roger, who was on the ferry on the way up. He confirmed there was nowhere to hide from the rain. I cycled around a bit more and was contemplating squeezing into a coffee place in the back of a craft shop – in all my wet cycle gear! I hesitated as it didn’t seem like a good idea and at that moment two ladies stopped and asked if I was looking for a cafe. They must have seen me dreaming of coffee. They confirmed the two small ones, and then said “or The Harbourside Cafe by Virgin Bank” its a proper cafe. They weren’t wrong, hidden away down an alley, it was perfect.

I spent over an hour enjoying breakfast and a few coffees. Eventually I felt I should leave and when I was back in the rain, I contemplated catching the Bressey ferry. It looked pretty rough and I did wonder if they may stop running (later Roger confirmed the same fear). Instead I went into the Bressey Ferry Waiting Room and hung out with a few Lerwick teenagers. They were suspicious of me at first and then just got on enjoying themselves. It must be quite a hard place to grow up in. I finished my blog. The waiting room was warm, dry and comfortable, if it had a view it would be as good as a bus shelter.

Next stop was Shetland Museum which, unsurprisingly, was doing a brisk trade despite only opening a few minutes early (I think). Its a very good museum, tracing the history of the Shetlands right back to when they were part of the South Pole (allegedly), up to the oil boom. It is also Shetland Fiddle week and there were some talks on, and lots of people with fiddles (or violins, they are the same!) arriving for a show later.

I was going to go back into town to a pub for lunch but one step out of the museum convinced me to push my bike to the ferry port. Francesco, the Italian who had followed me up Unst, was already there, drying out. He had to change his ticket to Aberdeen as the ferry was not stopping at the Orkneys due to the storm. I guess he will have to rely on Stonehenge for his standing stone experience (I’d spent quite a long time telling him Orkney was better). He was putting a brave face on it, and it gave him longer at Loch Ness (news of the Monster has reached italy). There were quite a few cyclists, and we waited about 2 hours inside before queuing outside for a bit as well.

After boarding and finding my sleeping pod I headed for a quick beer. I think it is best to be prepared and avoid any drink spillage on rough seas. The captain announced it was going to be rough, and a 3.5m swell was predicted in the Fair Isle gap. We headed off with waves breaking over our bows.

I retired to my seat, and put my headphones on full volume to block out the sound of people vomiting. It wasn’t very nice, but not as bad as it sounds – if that makes sense. After a few hours they announced that the restaurant was closing so I ran down (zig-zagging from side to side) for my dinner. I chose Chinese Chicken Curry(!) and unlimited Irn-Bru. I don’t know much about sea sickness, but once a curry on very rough Dieppe – Newhaven ferry prevented it. I can confirm it works in the North Sea/Atlantic as well. I was the only one eating and a lot of food went to waste when the restaurant closed. By chance, this was the exact moment we passed Fair Isle. I got some pictures, and feel pretty sure Graeme wouldn’t have made that journey in a small boat.

Then back to the pod for some sleep.

No map – until I can sync my pesky Garmin

Total Dist Cycled 979 km, (608 miles) 13 Ferries, 1 Train