Oh dear it like the wet and windy weather is continuing Boo-hoo. Still there are indoor pursuits available and today we are going to the Stromness Museum. we found it ok, parking was a bit of an issue, but the lady on reception allowed us to park on the slipway beside the museum so missus didn't have far to walk. The museum has two and a half floors and had been the Town Hall at one time with the Natural History Society occupying the top floor ( see Photo).
So we decided to start at the top then come down. The top floor was mainly Natural History, not just of Orkney though. There was a Gorilla Scull and a collection of Butterflies from far off lands. The skull was very scary, it was bigger than mine. There were some interesting artifacts, purchased by The Rev. George Low from James Cook's ships when they visited in August-September 1780. They too are on display on the top floor.
Artifacts from James cooks ships Resolution and Discovery bought by The Rev. George Low.
Also on the top floor was a Geology section about all the different Rocks and Minerals that make up the Orkney Isles and interesting Fossils who's names Missus couldn't even pronounce, no hope for a little bear like me. Someone else (can't remember who) had donated a large collection of stuffed birds, they were all round the edges of the room and I think most of them were from the Orkney Isles. They were very old too. The most interesting part of the museum was downstairs. This had a lot of information about John Rae and his work in the Artic for the Hudson Bay Company mapping coastlines also some of the items from the ill fated Franklin Expedition that had bee purchased from the Inuit. These Inuit had traded with some of Franklin's starving crew when they met them and also items they had picked up when they found the dead bodies later on. This was how John Rae had discovered the fate of the Franklin Expedition. There was a life size model of John Rae in one of the first ever inflatable Dinghies', these were made from Rubber and Fabric. It depicted the time he had no oars for it and had to use 2 plates to paddle it.
John Rae in his inflatable, a source of amusement and interest to the Inuit.
The other main exhibit was about the German boats Scuttled in Scarpa Floe in WW2. The North Atlantic German Fleet had surrendered and steamed into Scarpa Floe as ordered, and mysteriously the boats all sank overnight a gurgling bubbling was heard and in the morning they had all gone. In subsequent years divers have collected artifacts from the boats and the boats have been blown up so very little remains now. Many items from the ships make up this Exhibit. We were talking to the Receptionist at the end of our visit and I spotted another book about John Franklin, Missus thought it looked interesting so she bought it. Master gave the lady a copy of our blog address for our North West Passage cruise we went on last year, she went straight to it on the computer. Then Master asked if there was anywhere open for lunch on a Sunday in Stromness, there came a chorus of unlikely on a Sunday, but another lady who was a local and on the Stromness Council suggested we go to the Pierhead and sample the Beefburgers on sale today. Turns out The RNLI were having an open day, so that's where we went. Fortunately the drizzly rain had stopped. we managed to find a parking space in the Ferry Terminal car park and duly bought a parking ticket. We subsequently found out it was free parking on a Sunday! We joined the long queue for a Beefburger (the burgers were all fresh and delivered this morning, they were local). While we waited we were entertained by a local Fiddle Group playing jolly tunes. They were a very accomplished group, some of them were quite young. The burger was delicious, Missus had dried fried onions sprinkled in hers, master had onions and a curry sauce in his. After the Burger we wanted a cup of tea and a sit down, Master was dispatched on this mission. He soon came back with good news and led us to a table and chairs where I sat down. The deal inside the building was Cup of Tea or Coffee and 2 cakes for £5, this was too good to miss. The homemade cakes were nice too. After this Master wanted an ice cream so we went over to the souvenir shop and master bought 2 cones each with 2 scoops of ice cream in. The flavours of which were Orkney natural and one Toffee streaks and a Toffee with Orkney Fudge lumps in. Missus bought a Red Cap with a Puffin and the word Orkney on the front. I would think this probably says 'Tourist' to a local. Still if the rain continues the peak will help keep the hood of Missus's coat falling over her eyes. eating the ice cream kept Master and Missus quiet for a long time. We sat on a bench by the statue of Dr John Rae. There were tours of the Lifeboats, (surprised Master didn't go on one), there was trips in an old rowing lifeboat. There was a Fire Engine that kept going Whoop whoop! Also you could have a go at holding the hose and spraying water into the harbour. One little lad had difficulty holding the hose, we think he got a bit wet. Missus bought a 2025 RNLI calendar. All the pictures for 2025 have been drawn by children. As well as the Fiddle group there were Bagpipes
Master and Missus with their Ice creams.
The sun does shine here in Stromness Orkney, it is a beautiful wind evening out there now at 18.55.
The view from our garden this evening.
Its apparently going to rain tomorrow.
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