Rambling around Shetland, 4–sheep

While I was in Shetland, I also watched sheep—in addition to those I saw at the Cunningsburgh show. I could have spent the whole time running around looking at flocks, but I had other types of research to do that needed to precede the conversations I might have with the sheep and their people (for … Read more

On not getting to Fair Isle or Foula

This post is about why I didn’t get to either Fair Isle or Foula, two of the locations on my “must see” list when I arrived in Shetland. They're both islands that are part of Shetland but at some distance from the primary vertical cluster of islands. I did know that “must see” would have … Read more

Rambling around Shetland, 3–flexible planning

The key to success for my recent trip to Shetland consisted of two parts: (1) a series of goals, defined yet amenable to constant modification, and (2) a very flexible schedule. For example, on my first visit to see a particular flock of sheep at Burland Croft Trail, it was raining; I didn’t have the … Read more

Cunningsburgh (Shetland) show, part 2 – sheep

It was easy to spend most of my time around the sheep area at the Cunningsburgh show. There was a lot going on. Initially sheep were arriving and getting settled into their pens, although by the time I got there at 8:45 most were in place. This is a not-quite-complete view of the sheep section. … Read more

Dreaming of Shetland: Thank you!

Friday’s post about my visit to help with shearing a lot of Shetland sheep, like that trip itself, requires an array of thank-yous that would not fit within even my generally overlong post tolerances. Neither that post nor the trip that was its subject would have happened without the Dreaming of Shetland project, which was … Read more

Shearing a lot of Shetlands

Wow! I get to write a blog post! I greatly enjoy doing them, and it’s been a while because I’ve been (1) on the road and/or (2) beset by a lack of ability to connect to the internet. Item 1 has been temporarily resolved. We're still working on item 2. The Orkney/Shetland posts are not … Read more