VisitShetland

By Yacht

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Marinas Guide 2008

The indented coastline also makes Shetland ideal for summer sailing: there are dozens of sheltered, natural harbours - many with good piers, slipways and marinas; much of the coast is "steep-to", with deep water close to shore and most dangers clearly visible; the hazards are usually well-charted and visiting yachts have the reassurance that local search and rescue services are first-class.

Shetland Cruising Details

• Lerwick
• Bressay And Noss
• South Mainland
• Fair Isle
• Foula
• Burra Isle
• Scalloway
• Skeld
• Walls
• Papa Stour
• Aith
• Voe
• Brae
• Muckle Roe
• Hillswick
• Sullom Voe
• Cullivoe
• Mid Yell
• Burravoe
• Baltasound
• Vidlin
• Lunna Ness
• Out Skerries
• Symbister
• South Nesting

Lerwick

Lerwick is the main centre for visiting yachts - and usually the first port of call. The Small Boat Harbour offers pontoon berths with mains power and fresh water for visiting yachts. This bustling town has all you need when making a Shetland landfall - Customs, a Coastguard station, helpful staff at Lerwick Port Authority, waterfront ship chandlers and licensed grocers specialising in marine supplies. If you have a problem, there's a shipyard, skilled repair engineers and a lifeboat station. Lerwick Port Control keeps a 24-hour watch on VHF channel 12 and visiting craft should contact the duty controller on that channel before entering the harbour.

Just a step along from the yacht harbour at Victoria Pier is the Lerwick Boating Club, where visiting crews are always welcome to take a hot shower, use the laundry and enjoy a drink at the cheerful bar - with a lovely view of the harbour. The key for the club's showers, toilets and laundry is usually available by arrangement from the Lerwick Port Authority Office at Albert Building on the Esplanade. The club runs a busy summer programme of sailing races for dinghies and the famous 'Shetland Model' skiffs. Visitors are welcome as spectators or participants. The telephone number is: +44 (0)1595 692 407.

Bressay and Noss

Half a mile across the harbour, the island of Bressay has good pub-grub at the Maryfield Hotel (specialising in seafood), some fine hill and coast walking and a secluded anchorage at Aith Voe. East of Bressay is the National Nature Reserve island of Noss. May to July is the best time to see the birds. Noss has a daytime anchorage at Nesti Voe.

Warning: The bird cliffs on the east side of Noss are just off the edge of the detailed chart and, although the water is mostly deep, there are several dangerous uncharted reefs - so yacht skippers should take local advice before approaching the cliffs by sea.

South Mainland

South of Lerwick, the island of Mousa has Europe's finest broch, a seal colony and many nesting birds. Anchor, and row the tender ashore. The pier is in shoal water and used regularly by the ferry.

Pool of Virkie and Grutness Voe are handy while waiting for the wind and tide to round Sumburgh Head and Fitful Head, or to make the Fair Isle crossing. There is a pier at Grutness but the Fair Isle ferry has priority and vessels should not be left unattended here. Virkie has a boating club, slipway but the entrance is very narrow and shallow and should not be attempted without local knowledge.

Fair Isle

Fair Isle, world-famous for its bird life, has no all-weather anchorage but the North Haven is suitable for summer cruising. Berth at the well-sheltered new pier or anchor off.

There is a shop, bird observatory (serving excellent food) and an auxiliary Coastguard.

Foula

Foula has no safe all-weather anchorage but the harbour at Ham Voe has been improved. The Kame is Britain's second highest sea cliff. The Hoevdi Shoals, where the White Star liner 'Oceanic' foundered, lie east of Foula.

Burra

Burra Isle's sheltered sounds make a picturesque detour. Hamnavoe, a fishing village, has a small pier and is an ideal base to explore the nearby uninhabited islands of Oxna, Papa, Cheynies and Hildasay.

Scalloway

Scalloway, Shetland's ancient capital, provides a storm-proof harbour and everything a visiting yacht requires. A charming little museum depicts the saga of the wartime 'Shetland Bus' operation running arms and agents into Nazi-occupied Norway. The boating club extends a legendary welcome. North of Scalloway, Strom Voe offers scenic shelter, worth visiting before exploring Whiteness Voe, Weisdale Voe, Sandsound Voe and the Bixter Firth.

Warning: Most Shetland voes have fish and shellfish farms. Although they are usually well-marked and lit there may be floating ropes some distance out and visiting yachts should take extra care, particularly when under power.

Skeld

Skeld is a landlocked haven - with a good pier, a marina and a seafood factory.

Walls

Further west, the village of Walls is the terminal for the Foula ferry. There's a marina, shop, bakery and a cheerful boating club. Nearby, Vaila island has a magnificent Edwardian mansion and 'folly' tower.

Opposite Vaila is an award-winning restaurant, Burrastow House, where much of the food is grown on the premises in one of Shetland's most productive gardens.

The cliffs between Walls and Sandness are wild, beautiful and fringed with reefs, not all of them well-charted close to the cliffs (perhaps because the 19th century Royal Navy surveyors reasoned that no-one would ever be crazy enough to sail that close!) The tide race between Sandness and Papa Stour is fierce and can be dangerous. More turbulent water lies between Papa and the Ve Skerries to the north west.

Papa Stour

Papa Stour's sea caves are some of the best in Britain and a Special Marine Area of Conservation - but you'll need a very calm day and a rubber boat to explore them properly. There are two good summer anchorages in the island - Hamna Voe and Housa Voe - and lovely coast walking with varied bird life.

West Burrafirth has a pier for the Papa Stour ferry and good anchorage. To the east lie uninhabited Vementry Isle and the sound of Swarbacks Minn, the entrance to Aith Voe, Olna Firth and Busta Voe.

Aith

The village of Aith has a shop, post office, marina and lifeboat station pier. It makes an excellent base for exploring the west coast.

Voe

Voe, the most Norwegian-looking village in Shetland, makes a pleasant overnight stop, with a pub/restaurant and shop nearby. There are even some trees!

Brae

Brae, at the head of Busta Voe, has shop, post office and good facilities for visitors at Busta House Hotel, the Brae Hotel, the Mid Brae Inn and the Delting Boating Club. There is also a heated swimming pool at the North Mainland Leisure Centre.

Muckle Roe

Muckle Roe is famous for rock scenery and the beautiful small inlets of the Hams of Roe. To the north, the Isle of Nibon is a noted beauty spot and Hamar Voe is one of Shetland's few natural year-round anchorages.

Hillswick and Ura Firth

Hillswick and Ura Firth are open to the south but safe enough for overnight summer anchoring, to enjoy a meal and drinks at the St Magnus Bay Hotel. The Booth vegetarian cafe is also renowned for good food and has a seal rescue centre in the back garden.

The cliff coast from Hillswick Ness to Uyea Isle is sensational. The Drongs stacks and the Dore Holm lead on to the basalt cliffs of the Skerry of Stenness, where there is a huge, square cave.

North of Eshaness lighthouse is another Hamnavoe (meaning - the safe harbour).

Ockran Head opens Shetland's longest sea loch, Ronas Voe, with excellent anchorage at the head.

Yell Sound and Sullom Voe

The gaunt Ramna Stacks, an RSPB bird reserve, mark the entrance to Yell Sound and the tanker lanes into Sullom Voe. Visiting yachts should call Sullom Voe Vessel Traffic System (VTS) on VHF Channel 14 before entering Yell Sound to ensure there is no conflicting traffic.

Sullom Voe has anchorage at its head, on the north side of Brae, and in Garths Voe. It is a long, very sheltered sea loch noted for its wildlife, particularly otters, seals and sea ducks. Despite the huge oil terminal at its eastern end, handling some of the largest tankers in the world, Sullom Voe is one of Shetland's most tranquil and unspoilt sea lochs.

Yell Sound is good cruising water and has secluded bays at Southladie Voe, Burra Voe, North Collafirth, Queyfirth, Ollaberry and Gluss Voe. Yell Sound's north eastern shores are bleak and rocky, the only shelter being at Whalfirth (small pier at the head). Tide races skirt Gloup Holm and the northern end of Bluemull Sound.

Yell

Cullivoe in North Yell lies on the western shore of Bluemull Sound; it has a sheltered harbour, new pier, marina, a handy taxi service (Jamieson's), public hall and one of the most obliging shopkeepers in Britain - R. S. Henderson (who also sells marine diesel). The annual regatta features a splendid dance.

Warning: although Yell Sound is excellently charted, north of Cullivoe there are many inshore rocks on the west coast of Unst, not all of which are accurately charted. Visiting craft should give this rock-bound coast a berth of at least two cables unless with a local pilot on board.

The East Coast of Yell

Mid Yell has a large pier and marina, a swimming pool and leisure centre, boating club and The Hilltop Bar. You can usually find a berth at the pier but it is used round the clock by fish farms so you may prefer to anchor off. Staff at the Linkshouse Shop and Post Office are extremely friendly and helpful to visiting yachts - and stock an amazing range of goods, from mops and buckets to bacon rolls and home-grown Yell strawberries.

Mid Yell is the best base for exploring the east coast of Yell and the neighbouring island of Fetlar, famous for its Snowy Owls, Phalaropes, Puffin colonies and the seal nurseries of the Blue Banks. There is daytime anchorage only in Fetlar, at the Wick of Gruting and Wick of Tresta. An old pier at Houbie ebbs up badly but a new ferry pier is under construction (2004) at Oddsta in the north end of the island.

Burravoe, at the southern tip of Yell, is a land-locked anchorage with glorious walks, particularly around Heoganess, which shelters the harbour. The marina and pier is run by a local trust which makes a charge for overnight berthing but anchorage is free with excellent holding ground at the head of the voe. The Old Ha' museum and heritage centre has fascinating exhibitions, including the Bobby Tulloch photographic archives, and serves an excellent cup of tea with home bakes.

Unst

Hermaness National Nature Reserve in north Unst is one of the wonders of the bird world. The gannetry extends onto the Muckle Flugga stacks. Beyond is the end of Britain, the Out Stack. Extraordinary caves and natural arches buttress the eastern shore of Burrafirth, a spectacular anchorage but unsafe in northerly winds. On the north east coast of Unst, Wick of Skaw, Norwick and Haroldswick offer temporary shelter.

Baltasound, a large and well-serviced harbour sheltered by the isle of Balta, has a swimming pool, leisure centre, pub, shops, diesel pumps, boatyard and marine engineers. The new pier sports a very convenient pontoon berth which can be made available to visiting yachts.

Rounding Muness,on the south-eastern corner of Unst, Skuda Sound leads to the exposed anchorage of Uyeasound - where there is a shop, fuel pump, phone and an excellent youth hostel. The rare Snowy Owl is sometimes seen here.

Shetland's second Uyea Isle has a ruined mansion house and is a paradise for nesting birds, as are the nearby holms of Haaf Gruney, Sound Gruney, Urie Lingey and Wedder Holm.

Basta Voe, a former naval anchorage, is a good place to see Otters at dawn and dusk; food and drink are available at the nearby North Isles Motel. Otters can also be seen on the island of Hascosay where there is a day anchorage on the west side.

Vidlin

Vidlin, with its pier and marina, gives good shelter in southerlies and there is a well-stocked shop just up the road from the village.

The eastern mouth of Yell Sound leads into the miniature sea lochs of Dales Voe, Collafirth, and Swining Voe (where the ruined at Sand Wick overlooks a fine bay for a picnic), but some very large salmon farms in the area can make night navigation awkward.

Lunna Ness

Lunna Ness has two anchorages, the landlocked Boatsroom Voe and West Lunna Voe, not quite so sheltered. Both have fish farm piers where visitors may lie by arrangement with the proprietors. This area is good for otters although seals in this area are more wary, being occasionally persecuted by salmon farmers.

Out Skerries

Out Skerries, the most easterly islands of Shetland, have a stout pier for fishing boats and a fine natural harbour between Bruray and Housay. The Skerries are Shetland in miniature - famous for migrating birds and for 17th century treasure - the wrecks of two Dutch East Indiamen. This is an ideal starting point for an onward voyage to Norway.

Whalsay

Symbister, in Whalsay is a handy stopover for cruising yachts. The boating club welcomes visitors and the busy fishing harbour has well-stocked shops and a fascinating museum devoted to the German Hanseatic traders who once dominated the Shetland economy. There is a good restaurant at Livister, a short walk from the pier.

South Nesting

South Nesting Bay leads into the perfect little anchorage of the Dock of Lingness, where yachts drawing less than 2 metres can ride out any summer storm.

The beautiful Isles of Gletness guard the entrance to Catfirth, where the anchorage was used by flying boats in the First World War. The derelict foundations of the base are scheduled to become part of Shetland's first gin still.

Shetland Cruising Panel

Need advice about sailing to or around Shetland? Contact our Cruising Panel.

Shetland Marinas Guide

Shetland has many well-equipped marinas. Find out more by downloading our Shetland Marinas Guide.

Stay Safe on the Sea

Planning to sail to Shetland? Follow the Sea Smart Guide by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

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