Travelers to St. Kilda may be interested to know that the islands are a World Heritage Site under the auspices of three organizations: The National Trust for Scotland, Scottish Natural Heritage, and the Ministry of Defense. The National Trust works to preserve the islands’ historical, cultural, and natural values. This includes archaeological research in the summers, as well as a work program that allows volunteers to stay on the islands while helping in the preservation effort. The Ministry of Defense site was established in 1957, and is currently staffed by civilian workers who live on Hirta year-round. This base serves as a radar tracking station for the missile range in the Outer Hebrides islands of the Western Isles of Scotland. It also provides infrastructure to the islands—power, medical aid, transportation—which in turn helps facilitate the work of the National Trust and the Scottish Heritage.
Visitors enjoying Scotland travel will be awed by the immense colonies of seabirds that breed there each year. St. Kilda boasts the largest colony of North Atlantic gannets in the world, and the largest colony of fulmars in the British Isles. Other birds found in the archipelago include puffins, kittiwakes, sanderlings, great skuas, Manx shearwaters, and petrels. Birds are not the only creatures that make these islands unique, however. St. Kilda is also home to Soay sheep, which are descendants of primitive sheep and have probably lived on the islands for over 1,000 years. The St. Kilda field mouse is also a unique mammal, a subspecies found only on the islands. Grey seals can also be seen swimming in the waters surrounding St. Kilda.
Those visiting the island must observe certain regulations. In order to keep the risk of parasites low for the Soay sheep, no dogs or cats are allowed on shore. Visitors are taken ashore on small boats; this practice ensures that rats are kept off the islands, as rats would threaten the seabird colonies. People are encouraged to enjoy their travel of Scotland’s St. Kilda islands, but are asked to take pictures rather than plants, rocks, flowers, or other specimens. They are also asked to avoid sheep with young lambs, nesting birds, and breeding seals, as these animals are very sensitive to disturbance. If everyone shows this respect, travelers will continue to enjoy the history, the wildlife, and the spectacular scenery of these remote islands.
The National Trust for Scotland has a St. Kilda website with detailed information and pictures: http://www.kilda.org.uk/
The holiday of a lifetime. The company is Alaksa-owned and thhat makes a big difference to the experineces you get i.e. meet genuine First Nations tribes people. The amount of wildlife was beyond my expectation, and seeing everything on sucha small, intimate boat made it even more spoecial and unique.
Liz O
2 days ago
Adventure Life covered all the details in planning our trip to Ireland. Any questions we had were answered immediately. Any trip glitches, which always happen when traveling, were resolved immediately. There were no worries, just fun!
Kathleen Weller
2 days ago
It was an outstanding, up-close, educational vacation of nature, culture, history, animals and geology! It was everything they promised! Binoculars were plentiful on the boat, but I'm glad I brought my own. Food was excellent. Rooms had black-out shades. Pack/wear multiple layers of clothing (I carried a small backpack when off the ship). Crew were delightful and very accommodating! Remember to jump FEET FIRST first when taking the optional polar plunge! Spend as much time outdoors as you are able and ENJOY!!!
Janet Dutton
1 week ago
Excellent travel advice and service
This is my second experience working with Adventure Life. I’m sold. Jess Heuermann is an experienced traveler and provides a lot of useful information when planning a trip. These are the questions I like to ask at the outset - What’s it like to go here, there, what would you suggest, what do people report, can we add any additional side trips? Jess took the time to answer my questions and seek additional information to share with me. Petchie Colina is outstanding in helping with travel logistics and final preparations. Adventure Life has excellent guides and offers private guides and small group adventures. We enjoyed the opportunity to talk with the guides and drivers to learn more about their countries, cultures and histories. A highlight was having the guides pick local restaurants where we could share meals together. Highly recommend.
Claire Cordon
1 week ago
Our six-day tour in Iceland went smoothly with one exception. We had asked for two rooms each night. Somehow we were booked with one room with three beds. It could not be fixed at the first hotel in Reykjavik because the hotel was fully booked. Once informed of the problem, however, Adventure Life rebooked for two rooms for the remainder of the trip. As an 85-year-old traveler, I appreciated that one could participate at different physical levels at many of the stops. Iceland is a great place to visit but on the expensive side.