Tarristie of Setter

Coastal Feature, Headland, Point in Shetland

Scotland

Tarristie of Setter

Noss ferry approaching the Bressay shore Credit: Mike Pennington

Tarristie of Setter is a prominent coastal feature located in the Shetland Islands, Scotland. It is classified as a headland or point, jutting out into the North Sea. The geographical coordinates of Tarristie of Setter are approximately 60.230°N latitude and 1.286°W longitude.

This coastal feature is characterized by its rugged and rocky terrain, typical of the Shetland Islands. The headland is composed mainly of sedimentary rocks, including sandstone and shale, which have been shaped by coastal erosion over time. The cliffs along Tarristie of Setter can reach heights of up to 30 meters, providing stunning views of the surrounding area.

The location of Tarristie of Setter offers an ideal vantage point to observe the rich marine life that inhabits the waters of the North Sea. Seabirds, such as puffins, gannets, and fulmars, can often be seen nesting and soaring around the headland. The area is also known for its diverse population of seals, which can be spotted resting on the rocky shores or swimming in the nearby waters.

The coastal path that runs along Tarristie of Setter allows visitors to explore its natural beauty on foot. However, caution is advised when walking near the cliffs, as they can be unstable due to erosion. The surrounding area is largely unspoiled, offering a peaceful and remote setting for nature enthusiasts and photographers.

Overall, Tarristie of Setter is a captivating coastal feature that showcases the raw beauty of the Shetland Islands, with its dramatic cliffs, abundant wildlife, and breathtaking views of the North Sea.

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Tarristie of Setter Images

Images are sourced within 2km of 60.13917/-1.0285504 or Grid Reference HU5439. Thanks to Geograph Open Source API. All images are credited.

Noss ferry approaching the Bressay shore

Mike Pennington

Gungstie, Noss, from Noss Sound

Mike Pennington

Noss-sound, Bressay, from Noss Sound

Mike Pennington

Noss National Nature Reserve

Taken from a tour boat moored in Nesti Voe, Noss, Shetland, I am looking west to Big Ness where the wardens of Noss National Nature Reserve are located. NatureScot operates an inflatable ferry boat across Noss Sound (beyond the buildings pictured) during the summer months to allow walkers to get from Bressay to Noss.

Carroll Pierce

Gungstie, Noss

I am looking back as we leave Noss Sound, Shetland, on our way back to Lerwick. The rocky outcrop of Gungstie is to the right of shot and the distinctive Hill of Setter (to the south of Noss) can be seen in the distance.

Carroll Pierce

Noss from Lunning Sound

Mike Pennington

Getting onto the Noss ferry

Whilst the Bressay ferry used to get here takes vehicles and has a "proper" dock, the Noss ferry is only for very small numbers of pedestrians, so needs no more than a set of steps down to sea level. There's no timetable - when the ferryman notices that there are people waiting, he will come across to get them. Whether this works on foggy days is another question entirely, and not one we needed answered, as we were visiting in our own boats, just popping over to look at the ferry terminal out of curiosity.

Andy Waddington

Paddling down Noss Sound

Somehow, using a map, one always thinks of heading south as "down" though, of course, on average, the sea is level, and as we were going against the very start of the flood tide we might actually be going a tiny bit uphill ! Tidal flows at Noss are generally insignificant except in this shallow channel, and we were going anticlockwise round the island more to have the sun behind us on the scenic side than to take any advantage of the flow. The boat powering away from us had been stationary as we arrived, but seemed to form a sudden desire to leave as (or perhaps before) their clients realised just how much closer to the wildlife sea kayakers can get than anyone in a big boat. The Sound had already given us close encounters with Seals, Eider, Cormorants and Terns diving in just metres away. The outer side promised huge numbers of Gannets and Razorbills...

Andy Waddington

Gannets on The Rump, Noss

The prime nesting sites in any gannetry are the flatter ones in positions still inaccessible to land predators from above. Easier, safer landings are one obvious benefit (a couple of days after this photo was taken, we came across a Gannet which had got its approach wrong and was hanging, dead, by one wing from a crack in the cliff - gusty downdraughts can hit at any time so misjudgements aren't the only cause of accidents). Beyond The Rump, the cliffs return to the vertical once more at Point of Heogatoug, beyond which the coast gets lower, and the bird nesting paradise soon comes to an end. It's an exciting couple of kilometres of paddling up to this point.

Andy Waddington

Paddling past Scarfi Skerries

Paddling anticlockwise round the island of Noss, Scarfi Skerries and East Punds Geo, just beyond, are almost the last rock-hopping opportunities. After Point of Pundsgeo, the coast is a little more subdued, and our route would take us further out on our way back towards Bressay, whose easternmost point lies on the Loder Head peninsula at Rules Ness, pretty much directly in front of the most distant paddler in the photo. There are far fewer birds here than on the east coast, but inland, the island is still inhabited by heavy tripod-toting chaps in camouflage jackets. They seem to move more slowly than sea kayakers, though that might simply mean that they stop more often to take photos.

Andy Waddington

Landing on Noss

Although, coming from Voe of Cullingsborough round Loder Head, we hadn't paddled very far to reach Noss, the island offers few other landing places apart from the west side, facing Bressay across Noss Sound. Thus our group stopped for an early lunch in anticipation that we would be on the water for rather longer to complete our trip all the way round. This beach is just north of the tourist ferry landing, out of their way, and even seemed quite sheltered (we'd had a very windy 24 hours the previous day and the open sea was still quite lumpy, whilst here in the Sound it was essentially flat).

Andy Waddington

Rounding Big Ness into Nesti Voe

Big Ness is really quite a small peninsula, ending in these low shoreline rocks. Beyond to the left is Nesti Voe, with a big beach, but an onshore wind, so not what we wanted for a lunch stop. Across the Voe is Turr Ness, a somewhat rockier and longer peninsula with enough height to conceal our onward route to reach the east coast of Noss. The hill in partial shadow is Hill of Setter, rising to 181m directly above the cliffs and gannetry of Noss Head, though you'd scarcely guess that seeing it from the west. The whole island is a nature reserve, gentle slopes being mainly inhabited by chaps in camouflage jackets carrying large cameras and even bigger tripods. Must be something worthwhile to see then, so let's keep paddling !

Andy Waddington

Mansie's Berg, Noss, from the sea

Mike Pennington

The Noss ferry on the Bressay side of Noss Sound

Mike Pennington

Noss Head

Seen from the Whalsay ferry en route between Symbister and Laxo. I do not normally submit this type of 'long distance view' with no foreground, but this one seemed interesting enough to add to the site.

David Purchase

A Clapper Bridge

Loch of Grimsetter & the Clapper Bridge across Mill Burn, Bressay.

Vanhercke Christiaan

Noss from the SW, with a cruise ship on its way to Lerwick

The ship is the MV Boudicca, a cruise ship owned and operated by Fred Olsen Cruise Lines, which was built in 1973 by Wärtsilä Helsinki Shipyard in Finland as Royal Viking Sky.

Mike Pennington

Paddling past the Point and Geos of Hovie

Although we'd picked the sheltered side of Shetland after a day of high wind on our crossing from mainland Scotland, there was still some swell setting in from the east. Across that, wind waves from the southwest made for interesting conditions round the south side of Noss, with confused water particularly around the headland ahead of us. It still seemed less work than the people on the slopes of Hill of Setter who were trekking across above us with a big camera and heavy-looking tripod. It's a bit of a toss-up as to who would get the closer views of the Gannets and Razorbills - we would certainly feel safer down here than teetering on the cliff edge in the gusty wind, and find Razorbills rafting on the surface, but then they'd probably get better photos than those below in the waves !

Andy Waddington

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Tarristie of Setter is located at Grid Ref: HU5439 (Lat: 60.13917, Lng: -1.0285504)

Unitary Authority: Shetland Islands

Police Authority: Highlands and Islands