Yesnaby – Flagstone Cliffs and a Sea Stack in the Atlantic
About a mile on foot.
Yesnaby is where Orkney's west Mainland stops dead: a flat heath that ends in cliffs of stacked flagstone, with nothing beyond but the Atlantic.
Just off them stands Yesnaby Castle, a sea stack on two legs with the swell washing through underneath. The walk to it along the clifftop is about a mile there and back. There's no fence, and on this coast the wind decides whether it's a day for it.
- Time
- About an hour: roughly a mile there and back along the clifftop, on coastal heath that is wet in places.
- The path
- Coastal heath, wet underfoot in places, along the top of unfenced cliffs.
- Where to start
- At the end of the Yesnaby road, on the clifftop among the old wartime buildings.
- When to go
- All year in daylight, and not in a strong wind. From November to January set off by 1.30pm.
- Dogs
- On a lead: sheep graze to the cliff top and birds nest on the ground from April to August.
- Children
- Unfenced cliffs with a loose edge: keep children beside you.
- Toilets
- None at Yesnaby: the nearest public toilets are at the Bay of Skaill, a short drive north.
- Before you set out
- Unfenced cliffs of loose flagstone on a very exposed coast: not a walk for a strong wind. Stay well back from the edge.
The walk
Park at the end of the Yesnaby road, on the clifftop among a scatter of old brick buildings left from the war. The cliffs start a few steps from the car: layer on layer of flagstone, cut into narrow inlets and ledges by the sea. Yesnaby Castle, the sea stack, is 800 metres south of the car park on the map, so the walk along the clifftop to see it and back is about a mile, a little more as the path winds. Allow an hour.
No official figure is published for this short walk. The ground is coastal heath, wet underfoot in places. The cliffs have no fence, and the flagstone at the edge is loose and undercut, so stay well back and keep children beside you. And Orkney's tourist board calls this coast very exposed to the elements: in a strong wind, and above all a wind blowing off the land, it's no place to be near the edge, so leave it for a calmer day.
Sheep graze right to the cliff top and birds nest on the ground from April to August, so dogs stay on a lead. There are no toilets at Yesnaby, and the nearest public ones are at the Bay of Skaill, a short drive north. There's nowhere to eat here either, so bring a flask. From November to January, set off by 1.30pm.
If it rains
There's no shelter at Yesnaby and the flagstone is slippery when wet. In rain or a strong wind, look at the cliffs from beside the car park and keep the walk for a calm, dry day.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
None of ours is close by: the nearest is House of the Northern Gate, 28 miles away. Sleeps 18.
For further reading, before you go.
Photograph by VisitScotland / Paul Tomkins