PAPA WESTRAY is a small island located off the far north coast of Scotland. Papa Westray is one of the smallest and most remote islands in Orkney.

You can fly on Loganair from the island of Westray to Papa Westray on the shortest commercial flight in the world a 1.7 mile journey that takes about 2 minutes. Or you can also take a ferry to Papa Westray.

Just over four miles long by a mile wide, Papa Westray has a population of about 90 people. Known to the locals as Papay, the island is renowned for its archaeology and bird life. Here you will find stone houses older than the Pyramids, a restored ancient church, and a neolithic chambered cairn.

Located between the Atlantic Ocean on the west and the North Sea on the east, Papay has a maritime climate. Although the island is very far north, the warm ocean currents keep the temperatures mild in the cold months, although also wet and windy.

The island is green and fertile and has been used for farming for over 5,000 years. Today farming is still very important and Papa Westray is well known for its excellent beef cattle. Interestingly, cattle prefer long grasses and sheep prefer short grasses, so the combination works well.

Papay has begun restoring many of its longabandoned homes in recent years.

THE HOLM OF PAPAY We took a tour with Jonathon, the Papay Ranger. Our first stop was a boat trip to the nearby small island, the Holm of Papay to see the unparalleled Neolithic Chambered Cairn.

The cairn was built 5,000 years ago and was excavated in 1849. It is possible that the inhabitants of the nearby neolithic settlements buried their dead here. A few animal bones were found inside, but no human remains.

The cairn is unusual because it has a long 65 foot long central chamber with 12 cells opening off it. Originally, entry into the chamber was through a low passage midway in the tomb. Today, one enters by a hatch and ladder through the 1929 concrete roof built to preserve the tomb.

KIRK OF ST BONIFACE The restored church of St Boniface is located on an important ecclesiastic site dating back to the 8th century. Nearby you can find remains from the Iron Age and from the Picts, dating from the 6th century BC to the 12th century AD.

St Boniface is only one of two churches in Orkney to survive the Reformation and remain in use in the present day. In the church yard you can find a 12th century Norse hogback gravestone, designed to resemble a Viking longhouse. It was once a fitting gravestone for a Viking ruler. Also hanging in the church is a tiled mural featuring St Boniface sailing on a voyage. It was hand made by Papa Westray Grade School pupils to commemorate the restoration of the church in 1994.

KNAP OF HOWAR The wellpreserved, Neolithic houses at the Knap of Howar are regarded as the oldest stone houses in Northern Europe. They were built around 3700 to 3500 BC almost a millennium before the pyramids were built.

The larger house has upright stone slabs and divides it into two compartments. Traces of post holes suggest it had a lowpitched roof, most likely thatched.

A hearth is located in the inner part of the house and a stonebuilt cupboard.

The smaller of the buildings also has stone partitions and is divided into three areas. It also has stonebuilt cupboards and a hearth.

Archeologists believe the site was occupied for almost a century. Excavations also revealed that the current houses were not the first on the site, but may have been built on the remains of an earlier, even older structure.

Today the site is near the coast, but 6,000 years ago, it would have been inland, probably in a large meadow, behind a wall of sand dunes.

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