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Dunnet
Head Outdoor Activities, Walking, Fishing, Wildlife & Bird Watching at the most northerly point of the UK mainland! |
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Dunnet
Head Outdoor Activities, Walking, Fishing, Wildlife & Bird Watching at the most northerly point of the UK mainland! |
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Well, what a month we have had. We had convinced ourselves that this season would be quiet due to the F&M, and it seems busier than ever! Not that we're complaining, we are delighted that so many of you have made it to this magnificent part of the country - some say "God's country" and I, for one, wouldn't disagree.
The barbeque on 21st June was attended by three hardy stalwarts, one of them a Brough resident. The pilgrimage to the Head was cancelled as we decided we wouldn't see much anyway! As for the rest, they did not find it in themselves to brave the wet rainy Caithness weather. So much for the summer solstice. However, the restaurant was so packed that the poor people couldn't even get in to eat their barbeque! Ah well, perhaps next year - we already have bookings!
| Our friendly photographer, Frank Garnet from Northampton, visited us TWICE and presented us with yet more of his excellent photos of the area, including "the lone puffin" and "the flying puffin". You can telephone Frank on 01604 401460 if you would like copies of the photo, or any others taken by him which can be seen on our web site. |  |
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The cybercafe is doing a roaring trade as word gets around that we offer email and internet facilities. The most northerly cybercafe on the UK mainland. We have recently updated our web site, and it now includes links on how to get here and special offers. If you look carefully at the picture of the tearoom/restaurant, you can see Fred the tearoom ghost. It was spooky when it took several attempts for the photo to load to the server …..
Perhaps the most exciting event (for Richard my horse and myself anyway) was the arrival of a beautiful blonde bombshell - a Welsh Cob called Honey. Richard could hardly believe his eyes. Well, he doesn't eat her hay, so it MUST be love. Fortunately he is a gelding. Honey belongs to Sue and Alvin McMenomy who are newcomers to the village and I, for one, look forward to seeing Sue driving and riding Honey around the village. Welcome to both them and their four legged friend. Good luck in your new home.
Sam Robinson from Leisure Activities shop in Princes Street, Thurso, organised a charity bike ride on 1st July (this is supposed to be the June newsletter, but hey, what's in a day…!) The route took them from Thurso to DunnetHead and back. 14 fit souls ranging in age from 16 to whatever it was (the gentleman in question was "more than 21") raising £123 (to date) for the continued development of Santa's village, the annual treat for children at Thurso tennis courts in December. They stopped off for a welcome cuppa on their way back from the Head.
THINGS TO SEE IN THE AREA
Useful web sites
- http://www.caithness.org - a wealth of information about the county.
BURIFA HILL
Gee was a radio navigational aid developed to help Bomber Command navigate and find its targets over a blacked-out Germany at night. As such, the system consisted of several ground stations linked together which, by the transmission of carefully timed radio signals, produced a grid (hence the name: Gee for grid) of signals from which a navigator could determine the aircraft's position. The main pulse would be sent by a Master Station and this would trigger transmissions from Slave Stations and the resulting grid made it possible to navigate very accurately to a range of about 300 miles.
A number of Gee chains were built in Britain, to cover various areas of Occupied Europe. One of these was the Northern Gee Chain of which Burifa Hill was the master. There were Slave Stations at Scousburgh in Shetland, Windyhead Hill near Fraserburgh, and Sango near Cape Wrath. There was also a Monitor Station and this too was at Burifa Hill. The Northern Gee Chain became operational in late 1941 and remained in use until March 1946.
The Northern Gee Chain was used to great effect in hundreds of operations throughout its operational lifetime. These included assisting with minelaying operations carried out in the North Sea and Baltic Sea during September and October 1943. One particular operation which is mentioned in the records of Burifa Hill is of interest. The Chain gave a "very exceptional performance" on the night of 3/4 September 1943 when its signals were used by a Bomber Command force of 316 Avro Lancasters in a raid on Berlin at a distance of 620 miles from Burifa Hill. This is a quite remarkable distance, being more than double the normal range for Gee reception.
Burifa Hill is on the road to Easter Head, the most northern tip of Dunnet Head, and the lighthouse. Go over the bridge and once past the hairpin bend, there is a track to the left. You can see the buildings from the road.
For info on the radar installation during the 2nd World War
ibrown@ radararchive.freeserve.co.uk|
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