topic Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS in Community Chat

FARAWAY ISLANDS

Oznell — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 14:32:38 GMT

It's summer, so time to think about cool, remote, almost uninhabited islands, ha.

This time-- the St. Kilda Archipelago in the Outer Hebrides, way up, off of northwestern Scotland, but not as north as the Orkneys, etc.

It's a cluster of scenic, cliff-bound islands lashed by the North Atlantic, with Hirta being the largest one.

Even though off the beaten track, it was permanently inhabited for 2000 years. The last permanent villagers were evacuated in 1930.

But it still hosts military personnel, researchers, and volunteers and others, so, at any given time, it seems that the St. Kilda group of islands does have "residents". That's somehow reassuring.

The only village on Hirta was called Village Bay. There's the Manse, the white building below. It was damaged by a German U-boat in 1918 in World War I, but has been restored.

There's the St. Kilda Church and school room, also still preserved, thankfully--

Interior of church--

Ruins of houses and buildings in Village Bay--

The British Ministry of Defense has built a modern structure, the Accommodation Block, to house personnel. It's clad in Siberian Larch and planted with St. Kildan grasses on the roof--

It's built low to merge into the landscape and withstand the punishing Atlantic gales--

Outside, the puffins are an endless delight--

So cute!

Such a fascinating, almost forgotten corner of the world.

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

Desertdi — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 14:41:18 GMT

Avalon, Catalina CA is about as far as I'm willing to go.

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

We rescue cats — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 14:45:40 GMT

Amazing!!!!!! I would love to visit there!! I always enjoyed visiting off the beaten track locations when I owned the travel agency. . .I even camped on tha Amazon and was one of the first agency groups to visit China when they opened their doors in 1978.

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

Oznell — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 14:55:32 GMT

I love all the different aspects of the St. Kilda archipelago. Here, rather austere--

....and here, beautiful and limpid--

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

Oznell — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 14:58:38 GMT

Wow, @We rescue cats , either of those adventures would be epic-- and you did both!

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

Kachina624 — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 15:02:34 GMT

@Oznell. I saw this picture and read the caption under it and thought, "they really knocked themselves out providing fancy accommodations". I eventually concluded they were referring to another photo. I wonder what this rock hut was?

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

manny2 — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 15:06:10 GMT

The church and schoolroom are quiet survivors of time. Beautiful!

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

Oznell — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 15:06:56 GMT

Ha, ha, @Kachina624 , the British military might be tough on their recruits, but let's hope not THAT tough...

Those little rock structures, which are all over Hirta, are called "cleits" ( sp?) in Gaelic. They apparantly had multi-uses-- as food pantries, places to store peat, etc.

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

nwbabs — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 15:07:57 GMT

Thank you for sharing this @Oznell. These off the beaten path places are so interesting. Visually and historically. Cheers!

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

Bonkers1 — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 17:42:30 GMT

Not interested but I do love the Puffins.

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

LIndaMJ — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 18:58:37 GMT

Thank you @Oznell for this super interesting information and photos. When we visit DS in Canada we so enjoy watching the puffins on the cliffs. They are so cute!

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

bmorechick — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 21:46:46 GMT

@Oznell what a stunning place to live with the sea right there..I'm sure the last inhabitants were sad to leave their beautiful land. However, it sounds like a harsh life. Thanks for the info and pictures. So many beautiful spots on this planet.

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

Oznell — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 21:47:06 GMT

Oh, cool, @LIndaMJ -- puffins in what part of Canada? Labrador, or the island part of Newfoundland?

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

Oznell — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 21:50:06 GMT

Oh, exactly, @bmorechick -- I thought the same thing--they had to be devastated to leave, after their families had been there for 2000 years. Feel so bad for them, but apparently the remote island was just not sustainable for them, so they moved to mainland Scotland....

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

LIndaMJ — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 22:20:35 GMT

Witless Bay, Newfoundland, to the best of my knowledge at the southeast area of the island. No exaggeration there is a colony which contains thousands of the fascinating puffins @Oznell.

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

DSD2 — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 22:34:44 GMT

Thank you for another fascinating, engrossing post @Oznell

I always learn so much from you. The islands are intriguing; I've always loved puffins too.

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

on the bay — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 23:35:17 GMT

My sister just got back from Ireland and one place they visited was Rathlin Island which has a Seabird center with these puffins!

Scotland has several puffin reserves.

It must be so wonderful to see all these fluffy puffins all at once!

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

nwbabs — Sat, 27 Jun 2026 01:41:12 GMT

@on the bay sounds like your sister had a great trip.

We are fortunate to have tufted puffins here on the West Coast of the United States. I've seen tufted puffins here in Washington State in the Salish Sea, on the Oregon Coast at Cannon Beach, and California.

The horned puffins your sister had the pleasure of seeing do inhabit Alaska and British Columbia here on the West Coast.

They are so stinking cute! Cheers.

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

We rescue cats — Sat, 27 Jun 2026 12:20:32 GMT

The Puffin pics are amazing!

I can't fathom how hard life was then, just trying to stay warm in one of those homes and face Mother Nature let alone what it took to build any of them. . .

Re: FARAWAY ISLANDS

Cakers3 — Sat, 27 Jun 2026 12:49:30 GMT

@Oznell

Thank you!