Britain’s most northerly islands lie almost 160 kilometres (99 miles) north of the Scottish mainland, at a similarlatitude to the southern tip of Greenland, or Bergen in Norway. Kept relatively warm by the Gulf Stream, Shetland’s100 islands experience almost 24 hours of daylight in summer. They abound with nature reserves and archaeologicalsites and offer a taste of traditional island life. We plan to explore some of the following sites:Midway between Orkney and Shetland, Fair Isle houses a major European ornithological research station, and is alsofamous for knitwear and historic shipwrecks. About five kilometres by three kilometres / three miles by two miles inarea, it is surrounded by impressive cliffs. The 70 or so islanders mainly live in traditional crofts on the more fertilelow-lying southern part of the island.A bird watchers’ paradise, Fair Isle lies on the intersection of major flight paths from Scandinavia, Iceland and Faroe.In summer, the cliffs teem with breeding fulmars, kittiwakes, guillemots, gannets, shags and puffins. The Isle is anexcellent place to view seabirds, especially puffins at close range. Fair Isle also has over 250 species of floweringplants, including wetland flowers, rare orchids, alpine species and common wildflowers. We’ll be welcomed by thehospitable villagers and may take a hike or visit the museum. Grey and common seals inhabit these waters aroundFair Isle, while sharp eyes may spot harbour porpoises, white-beaked dolphins, Atlantic white-sided dolphins, killerwhales (orcas) and minke whales.In Lerwick, learn stories of smugglers, fisherman, Vikings and fictional detectives as you walk around Shetland’sbustling capital. Lerwick may mean ‘muddy bay’ in Old Norse but there’s nothing damp or gloomy about this thrivingseaport. Take a guided walking tour of the town and learn all about its history and most iconic buildings.With its mile-long seabird cliffs, the Island of Noss is a National Nature Reserve. In breeding season, the sound ofaround 150,000 birds and chicks fills the air. Millions of years of wind and ice have honeycombed thousands ofnesting ledges in sandstone cliffs almost 200-metres / 656-feet high. Resident seals and visiting otters feed in densekelp around the shores.Jarlshof is one of Shetland's best preserved and most complex archaeological sites. It was exposed by storms in thelate 19th century. The Old House of Sumburgh, built here in the 17th century, was named 'Jarlshof' by Sir WalterScott in his novel 'The Pirate'. The record of human occupation dates from around 3,200 BCE. Jarlshof’s main BronzeAge site is the house of a bronzesmith working around 800 BC. Clay moulds into which molten bronze was pouredrevealed that he was casting axe heads and short swords. It seems that Shetland suited early Norse settlers, for theyquickly settled here and left their mark on Shetland's history for ages to come.Mousa Broch, on the small uninhabited island of Mousa, is the best preserved of Scotland’s 570 brochs (fortified IronAge towers). Storm petrels nest among its stones, which can be seen when visiting the broch at night. In daylight, alarge colony of common and grey seals basks on its shores, and you may spot otter (Dratsi, in Shetland dialect).