The Road through Yell

It's a good piece of tarmac, that main road from one ferry point to another. It's been a lovely sunny day so off I went on my motorbike and found myself heading North from Ulsta on the A968.
Whilst whizzing along at just below maximum legal velocity (honestly, Officer) I found myself wondering just how many tourists have only what they see on this road as an impression of what Yell is like....whilst keeping an eye out for our Kamikaze sheep, that is...and mangling Chris Rea's lyrics for "Road to Hell" to incorporate the words "Road Through Yell" in my head. Multitasking? Easy.

I'm sure many are simply traversing Yell to get to Gutcher for the ferry to that fleshpot isle of Unst. With its tourist facilities, sightings of  North American birds with no sense of direction, fancy bus shelter and local brewery Unst must be Shetlands answer to Blackpool - but with natural 'lights' in the darker months. But what do our tourists make of Yell, I wonder?

"It's got a nice road...lovely tarmac" they'll chirrup, maybe adding that "You get a nice view of North Mainland as you drive along". Super, great, smashing. "And it doesn't take long to get to Gutcher for the Unst ferry"...marvellous...we've become a length of tarmac....

But if these intrepid travellers stray off the two-way tarmac, what will they find? No breweries or tourist centres such as Saxa Vord, but we can offer a bus shelter furnished with two plastic chairs - maybe that will attract them? Probably not.
We have the Haa at Burravoe, the Wind Dog caff at Gutcher and good places they are, too. But, most of all, we have some lovely little places tucked well away from the SuperHighway. Places like Cullivoe, North Aywick, Gossabrough, Otterswick and West Sandwick. Quiet little backwaters that are havens of tranquility and home to manic collie dogs, lovely beaches, friendly waving sheep and picture postcard houses.

They don't know what they are missing, those who view Yell as something just to be traversed.

Wave hello, wave goodbye...

.....to misquote Marc Almond. Something that would get you certified if you did it in one of them there big towns. Waving at other drivers I mean, not anything remotely nefarious.

Everyone does it. Apart from the main road all other roads are single track with passing places, someone pulls in for you - or you pull in for someone else - and a cheery wave is the normal exchange. Fine and dandy. But when you get on the main road you realise that folk still wave as they pass in the opposite direction. Or you've just pulled up outside the shop in Mid Yell or Aywick and a car trundles past - they wave again. And folk actually say 'hello', even if they've never seen you before.

It's nice to be nice.