Lerwick is the main town on Shetland Island. Just to put where the island is situated into perspective, on many maps Shetland is shown with a box around it, this is because the distance shown on the map is usually not to scale.

Historically the Shetland islands were given to Scotland as part of the King of Norway’s daughter Margaret’s dowry in 1469. It was only meant to be security until the moneys were paid. Since that never happened the Shetland Isles have remained as part of Scotland.

The Shetlands are 117km (110 mi) north of Scotland and 300km (190 mi) west from Norway.

Sullom Voe Terminal on the west coast of the island is a major part of Scotland’s North Sea Oil and Gas industry.

I do not have many photos of our trip there but we have great memories. For example the wild overnight ferry from Aberdeen to Lerwick and the return sail, not for the faint hearted or those with a weak stomach.

Some of my other memories include travelling around the island on a bus tour. During the tour we stopped at a few small craft, cottage workshops, selling locally crafted jewellery, shawls, scarfs etc. And apart from one very small strip, very small, there were no trees on the island, mainly due to the ferocious Atlantic winds. Another memory was rowing over from Lerwick to Bressay island with Linda and two of John’s friends I think James, but everyone seemed to call him Chimes at least that was how it sounded to me, and his sister. Another experience was going to the dancing at “Planets.” I think it was a church hall. The dance was a multi generational event ranging from grandparents to their teenage grandkids. I would say most of them had had a few drinks before going to the dance.

Our reason for visiting, was two fold. Firstly to see my friend John who had moved from Linwood to Lerwick and secondly as our first trip just after getting married earlier that year.

Many years later I regularly visited and worked at Sullom Voe Terminal. I worked for Chubb Fire, installing fire protection and alarms systems on the massive storage tanks. And was working there when the Queen came to open the Terminal. What made that particular day most memorable was that the IRA exploded a bomb on site. No one was hurt but the level of security, both overt and covert really ratcheted up from then on.