I had spent a lot of time over the last few weeks planning out my last day in Orkney. I wanted to re-visit certain favourite spots, indulge in a few tugs on the heartstrings, and take full advantage of every last minute of my time here.
So, the first thing I did after locking up the Community Fridge was to cross the street and go into my favourite shop in all of Orkney: The Brig Larder, where I said good bye to the lovely staff, and bought a stonking big bottle of Sea Glass Gin from the Deerness Distillery.
Then (and this is where I lost the plot just a peedie bit), I did some driving around town. Specifically, Bridge St, Albert St, Victoria St, and Main St. This is a series of narrow, one-way, twisty, cobbled streets that get narrower and narrower as you progress. When I first moved here I marvelled at the drivers who just popped along, avoiding pedestrians and parking wherever they saw fit. My first winter here, I was leaving Kirkwall early one morning for the 7am ferry, so I bravely (and rather daringly, I thought) turned up Bridge St and navigated my way, thinking that a dark and deserted 6am was the only time I would ever do this. Well, fast forward 19 months: I drive along those streets and lanes often, giving it little thought. But I thought it would be a fitting last drive before leaving town. And it was.
Then a circuitous drive through the countryside, ending up at my favourite hiking spot in all of Orkney, the cliffs at Yesnaby. It was a glorious day, cool and sunny, and off we headed for one last walk out to the seastacks. Everything was going just fine until Scout found a dead seal, and started rolling. Dammit, dammit, dammit. I got her away, but what was I supposed to do now? I had no bathtub to take her home to, the sea was miles below us, and I was about to spend that night locked in a tiny cabin with her on the ferry, followed by two days close-quartered in a 4-seater hatchback. Well, splendid.
Headed back to the car, and drove into Stromness and parked at the harbour. I had a library book I had to finish and drop off at the Stromness branch before leaving. We sat for a while in the carpark while I found out who the murderer was (it was the second wife) and sitting there I realised Scout actually didn’t smell too bad at all. I had had a glimpse of the seal before dragging Scout away and I guess the reason she wasn’t as squiffy as last year was because, well (sorry about this), the corpse was fresh this time. It was just a sleek, smooth corpse, unlike when Scout was covered in all the decomposed ‘bits’ the first time round (again, my apologies). So that was a blessing.
Next on the farewell tour (after returning the book to the library) was a walk through Stromness and out to the Ness and back. Stromness is beautiful on a sunny day, so this was quite a treat. Then back to the car, where I abandoned Scout for 2 hours in a carpark while I went and had one final Orcadian dinner.