Lesley Bellew boards AE Expeditions’ ship Greg Mortimer
Bing bong: “Good morning, it’s a beautiful day out there so we’re lowering the zodiacs and scouting landing sites. Enjoy your breakfast and I’ll update you with timings for going ashore. It’s going to be a wonderful day in the Inner Hebrides”.
Every morning, 127-guest ship Greg Mortimer’s expedition leader Daniel Stavert’s dulcet tones wake up passengers, sending out positive vibes whatever the weather on the ‘Wild Scotland’ sailing from Troon to Aberdeen.
Often Daniel’s view of a beautiful day in the windswept Hebrides does not always tally when opening the stateroom curtains to witness all of Scotland’s seasons in one hour – sun, cloud, rain, hail and those biting winds, but he’s right, sailing into these unspoilt islands is the joy of this cruise.
Expedition cruising
From our floating base camp everyone onboard is here to make the most of a holiday away from the crowds. This is not a leisurely cruise – it’s an expedition for adventurers. Anyone wanting to relax all day is on the wrong ship!
Each morning and afternoon guests head to the Mud Room to don boots, weather-proof trousers, jackets and lifejackets (all provided). Birdwatchers board zodiacs to view cliffs of nesting seabirds, hikers take off on challenging walks after wet landings on beaches and kayakers brave choppy seas to explore caves and coastlines.
Learning is constant. Noticeboards are covered with bird and sealife identification posters, maps, routes and daily logs. With around 17 expedition crew we have experts in everything from botany, birdlife, kayaking, marine biology, Viking ships and geology. Their enthusiasm is contagious and each evening there’s a recap on our day, a briefing on the next day’s plans plus a session where a member of the expedition team shares their knowledge and amusing stories linked to their particular field.
There are never any promises about where we will land because the weather can change in an instant, but we have the best chance because our polar-class ship, named after AE Expeditions’ Australian founder and adventurer Greg Mortimer, copes well with Scotland’s challenging seas – the ship’s striking X-bow hull looks almost upside down and so pointed it cuts through rough seas like butter.
Stepping onto St Kilda
One of the biggest thrills is landing on St Kilda and as we hike to the top of the Hirta cliffs we feel the magic of this remote island. The last residents left in 1930 and Carol Knott, the ship’s historian and archaeologist, who lives on the Isle of Lewis, helps us understand how families survived in the harsh conditions.
Outside each of the empty croft houses, which replaced original windowless black houses, is a slate marked with the number of the house and the name of last people to live there alongside the date they left. It is a haunting sight.
Carol, who has lived and worked on the island with the National Trust of Scotland, explains how sea birds were important to the St Kildan people’s diet and nutrition. She said: “Men had to be able to prove they had head for heights to catch birds and collect eggs before anybody would want to marry them and have a family!
“In Victorian times people would arrive on steamships to see men go down the cliff to catch birds and watch the women spinning wool, so St Kilda became a tourist attraction”.
Sadly, the St Kildans became victims of diseases brought by visitors and interference from authorities. A nurse brought on to the island persuaded the last 30 residents they should leave for a better life and in 1930 the last islanders were evacuated. Many were put to work in forestry which was rather strange as trees do not grow on wild St Kilda…
The islanders’ Soay sheep were left behind and fend for themselves and we’re pleased to see Great Skuas, thriving after being hit badly by Avian bird flu. The Ministry of Defence now has a base on the island and tests rockets nearby, so we leave promptly to view the archipelago’s sea stacks teeming with gannets.
Island hopping
Iona is another intriguing island and here on the Cradle of Christianity in Scotland we wander to the monastery founded in 535AD. Overlooking the sea it is a peaceful and atmospheric place of pilgrimage – also a nice spot to relax for five minutes!
Thousands of puffins make their home on uninhabited Lunga, in the Treshnish Isles, and a short climb up the cliff is rewarded by a prime viewing spot to watch the clown-like birds go about their daily business.
On Skye, we watch dozens of common seals laze on the water’s edge while on the Pabaigh Mor, near the Isle of Lewis, a golden eagle soars above us.
Community-owned island Eigg is an eye-opener and here we learn how affordable housing is attracting people to the island and the 100-plus eco-minded residents’ green energy is fed into the grid.
On Fair Isle, although the population is down to about 50, the knitters still demonstrate their traditional craft. They are no longer sitting outside their crofts but selling their distinctive knitwear from the community centre, running small residential courses and thriving online businesses.
The trip provides a fascinating insight into island communities which are not so isolated as you think – for millennia people have been using the sea to travel and in Shetland, Britain’s most northerly islands, we land on beaches where Neolithic man first arrived at Sumburgh Head.
Shrill calls of Arctic terns overhead let us know they are not so happy about our arrival, so we leave the beach to explore Jarlshof, a Bronze Age site where Norsemen later settled.
We continue to follow the passage of time in Orkney through the ancient Standing Stones of Stenness, the Ring of Brodgar and the 5,000-year-old village of Skara Brae.
All this activity and learning is hungry work so plentiful buffet breakfasts and lunches keep guests well-fuelled while waiter-served dinner is a more leisurely affair featuring British and international cuisine. Plentiful healthy options nourish the many passengers who make wellness choices.
The ship has all the luxuries you would expect of a cruise ship – well-designed staterooms with cream décor and blue accessories, white cotton bedding, a sofa and coffee table, desk, plenty of storage and walls lined with wildlife-themed pictures. There’s also a choice of balcony staterooms.
Leisure time is spent in the lecture theatre and adjoining lounge bar with comfortable seating for listening to briefings, talks, joining a quiz and the end-of-cruise gameshow. We are a happy ship of Australians, Americans, Canadians and Brits with a mix of returning guests and first-time cruisers curious about a new way to explore the spectacular scenery, wildlife and history of Scotland. Walking trousers and thermal tops are de rigueur, and nobody gets dressed up for dinner. It’s not that sort of ship.
Next steps
For information on AE Expeditions’ upcoming Wild Scotland itineraries, speak to Silver Travel Advisor on 0800 412 5678.
