The Shetland News site. Great  for up to date Shetland info.

Click on the box above for over 100 Shetland photos.

The Simmer Dim Rally has run every year since 1982.  Except for a break in 2001 when foot & mouth ravaged the UK mainland. (Shetland did not get foot & mouth. The rally committee agreed at some financial cost to cancel the event to help keep F & M out.)

The rallies traditional home has been Vidlin. It did spend one year at Hillswick when the Vidlin Hall was used as a temporary school during the refurb. of the Lunnasting Primary School.

Link to some Shetland webcams.

Stuart Tod’s Simmer Dim Rally website contains photos & comment from 1982 to 2011.

Please be aware that displaying the St George’s flag on a vehicle in Scotland can trigger acts of vandalism toward the vehicle & the owners other property.

Even showing the Shetland flag sometimes does not go down very well in Scotland.

Some Scots don’t like parts of Scotland having a separate flag.

The famous Unst Bus Shelter website.

The expanded Vidlin Hall.  Now with twenty first century lavatories.

Brian doing his Sean Connery impression.

Otto & Frank at the Simmer Dim Rally site.

John Hinkley (with tankard.) One of the few people who have attended all of the Simmer Dim Rallies to date (2011)

The camp field at the Simmer Dim Rally.

Simmer Dim Rally site from the other side of Vidlin Voe.

The Northmavine Jarl Squad on a reconnoissance mission.

The Shetland Times photographer getting down to work.

Looks as though the reconnoissance mission produced a result.

More beer vicar.

A diesel powered outfit used to make regular appearances at the rally.

Our old Vango Hurricane tent & current Honda NT700V ABS.

This is a somewhat airier camping set up.

Away from the rally we have sunbathing Shetland style.

Shetland can sometimes suffer from inclement weather. It’s occasionally easier to torch a car indoors than out.

Because it’s cheaper than transporting used glass to the mainland & produces a smaller carbon footprint Shetland recycles it’s own glass.

These bins are made from 80% glass cullet, 20% cement.

The glass recycling centre also produces pavers & glass aggregate that can be used instead of quarried rock.

The hydrogen power car run by the PURE Energy Centre on Unst.

This photo was taken in June 2006. The car was still in use in Oct 2009. Word on the street is that it is no longer running in 2011.

A replica galley stored on Unst. (Photo taken June 2006)

Unst the most northerly of the Shetland Isles is also the home of the Valhalla Brewery whose excellent beers are now available at the rally.

Looking north from the cliffs at Eshaness.

Balan standing near the the edge of The Cannon. A hole about 90 feet deep that drops straight into a sea cave. Makes my bits go tight just thinking about it.

The Shetland Bus Memorial in Scalloway.

Top of the memorial.

The ocean going tug that is sometimes stationed in Scalloway. It was put there after the oil tanker Braer ran aground at in 1993.  This little incident dumped about 85,000 tonnes of crude oil onto land & sea.    The tug is due to be scrapped after the 2010 defence review.

Lying on the east coast is Lerwick the present day capital of Shetland.

The building with the clock tower is the Toll Booth. Just to it’s left is the gable end of the Queens Hotel. It’s exterior doesn't look much but they  serve real ale plus they do a very good meal.

Lerwick’s small boat harbour with the Seven Class lifeboat & the restored Swan lying at anchor.

Late evening at Lerwick’s small boat harbour. Photo taken from by the Toll Booth. The yachts are mostly Norwegian & Danish.

The Lodberries on the Lerwick sea front.

The Dim Riv lying at anchor on Bressay Sound.

The north end of Lerwick with the Northlink Ferries terminal etc.

Left to Right. Puker, Ted, Jim & Jock doing their tourist bit at Fort Charlotte in Lerwick.

The Lerwick Carnival returned in 2007 after a gap of about ten years.

I am not at all sure of this particular floats theme but in future I will think twice before wandering off into the heather.

This & other squads are part of the carnival procession. The uniforms are worth a close look.

View over Clickimin Loch from the old road over North Hill, Lerwick.

This is the almost obligatory Puffin photo.

Puffins used to be plentiful but in latter years their numbers appear to have declined.

The Oyster Catcher. During the summer even if you can’t see one your are bound to hear them peeping.

The Shetlanders are a hardy folk as shown by people sea bathing without a wet suit in sight.  Shetland weather.  It looks nice & warm in the photo but I can assure you that it’s not.

Sumburgh Head from the north.

Stuart Tod on the Big Gold Baby Buggy. Stuart is one of the few to attend every Simmer Dim Rally.

Stuart’s Simmer Dim website page is well worth a look.

Jock giving his bike a last check before boarding the ferry for the twelve hour overnight trip to Aberdeen.

Left to Right. Brian, John & Frank who will be away to the northwest after returning to Aberdeen return from there last provisions trip.

While waiting for the ferry Frank asks. Should he fix the failed elastic or throw them out. The consensus was. Bin them & sod the expense.

After boarding the ferry we often spend time watching kittiwakes showing off their flying skills.

It doesn’t happen on every crossing but the fast rescue boat drill is well worth watching.

Our last look at Shetland for another year as we sail south past Sumburgh Head.

Find your way to Vidlin using this useful Google map. The rally site is at the crossroads on the bottom left of the satellite view.

The car is being driven by Ross Gazey.

Link to the Shetlopedia Simmer Dim Rally page.

The Shetlopedia used to be a very good resource. Unfortunately it now (May 2012) contains many broken links & out of date information.

Maggie & I took an hour plus trip on The Rim Div in 2010. The experience was well worth the £10 fare.

The hall is much extended since Maggie & I started to attend the rally in 1991.

1. Shetland photos.