Eviedale Campsite
Evie
Orkney
Scotland
KW17 2PJ

Tel/contacts: Mr Heaton 01856 751 270 (phone & fax) or Mr Richardson 01856 751 254

Email: eviedale@orkney.com
Website: www.eviedale-orkney.co.uk

Costs in 2005:
Tents from £4.50 to £8.50...Campervan (small) £ 6.00 or motorcaravan (large) £8.00...Showers on 20p meter
Tents and campervans/motorhomes only. No caravans or dogs.

Directions: in the centre of Evie on the A966.

This is a lovely, small site on a working dairy farm on the North-East coast of Mainland, Orkney. Quite basic - there are no electric hook-ups - but with clean and well maintained facilities.
The site has pitches on both sides of the road, mostly level tent pitches with one hard standing space on each side. The owners, who are very friendly & helpful, suggest ringing if you have a campervan or motorhome due to the limited spaces.

The camping fields are both quite small but sheltered, level, neat & well mowed, with a few picnic tables dotted about. If you’re travelling north, the right-hand side of the site is where the facilities are. The campervan pitch on the left-hand side has absolutely fantastic views over Eynhallow Sound to the islands of Eynhallow, Rousay and Wyre.

There is a small shop in the village selling most essentials plus a range of local produce - Orkney ice cream is delightful, and we also enjoyed local tomatoes and strawberries. Above the shop is a bar, open only on Friday & Saturday nights. It’s officially a private club but we had no trouble getting signed in and we enjoyed the cheapest pint of the holiday here - Orkney Breweries finest ale at £2 a pint.

The campsite is well placed for the whole of the centre, north and east of Mainland. There is so much beautiful scenery and lots of places of interest that you could easily spend several days here and not see everything. The area is scattered with a lot of important prehistoric sites, including the Brough of Gurness, which is within walking distance of the site. We also visited the Brough of Birsay, Skara Brae, standing stones at the Ring of Brodgar and Stenness and the fascinating farm museum at Kirbuster. There is a lot of natural beauty & wildlife to enjoy too, as well as one of the best beaches in Orkney at Aikerness, where we enjoyed watching the seals as the sun set over the bay. We saw quite a few seals in the area, as well as hen harriers over the moors, puffins on the cliffs on Birsay and lots of other wildlife. The inland area is beautiful and unspoiled, with lochs and rolling hillsides. There are a lot of wildflower meadows and I think the local population are encouraged to protect these by council grants - money well spent, in my opinion.

We had a fantastic day out on the nearby island of Rousay. The ferry sails from Tingwall, which is a 5-minute drive from the site. We went over as foot passengers for £6 return, although we could have taken the camper over for £18 return. We walked along the coast to the Westerness Walk - apparently the most important historical mile in the UK! The most impressive site is that of Midhowe Cairn, a large burial chamber that is older than the pyramids. It was a much longer walk than it looked on the map and, given the times of the ferries. I think taking the car over or taking advantage of the minibus tours of the island that are offered would be an idea if you wanted to see more.

Janette Lee. CLIC. July 2005

The Pickaquoy Caravan and Camping Site--- Second report below--- Fishing site
The Pickaquoy Centre
Muddisdale Road
Kirkwall
Orkney
KW15 1RR

Tel: 01856 879 900
Fax: 01856 879 901

Email: enquiries@pickaquoy.co.uk
Web site: www.pickaquoy.net/campsite

Situated on the outskirts of Kirkwall all the facilities of the town are within walking distance. Orkney has its obvious attractions and you are centrally located for all the tourist sites on the mainland.

The site is a mix of small hard standings and grass pitches and the electric points are bullet proof! The guy who wired this site could make a fortune wiring caravan sites. The toilet block contains a laundry and lounge for you tenters to "lounge". The whole lot is kept superbly clean by Joan who is a mine of local information.

There are sheltered spots to get out of the wind and plenty of room for all. The centre is superb and the facilities are very reasonably priced and the staff excellent, always willing to help.

Visit the website for more info.

Not really qualifying as a fishing site but all the fishing is very close and great.

Worth the short ferry crossing.

Dave Benison. CLIC. July 2003

The Pickaquoy Caravan and Camping Site--- Third report below--- Fishing site
The Pickaquoy Centre
Muddisdale Road
Kirkwall
Orkney
KW15 1RR

Tel: 01856 879 900
Fax: 01856 879 901

Email: enquiries@pickaquoy.co.uk
Web site: www.pickaquoy.net/campsite

Location on the western edge of Kirkwall, Orkney (just off Pickaquoy Road)

Details:
Site run by the Pickaquoy Centre for the Orkney Islands Council. No resident warden resulting in motor van owners and cyclist and motor cyclist campers using the facilities without actually being on the site.
Bookings are made through the Pickaquoy Centre and you must register there before parking up.

In some areas of the site the caravans are much too close together particularly if using awnings, in other areas vehicles can become bogged down if wet (which it frequently is).

There is a Somerfields and a Co-op within walking distance and the centre of Kirkwall is also within walking distance.
Kirkwall is a central point for touring the Orkney mainland where there are numerous sites of interest… Ring of Brogar, Stones of Stenness, Maes Howe, Skara Brae, various RSPB sites and an easy to follow craft trail to name but a few.

Orkney is very windy so an awning strap is advisable along with extra guys.

Not the worst site I have seen but a long way from being the best.

Irena Krasinska-Lobban. CLIC. July 2005

The Pickaquoy Caravan and Camping Site--- Fishing site
Muddisdale Road
Kirkwall
Orkney
KW15 1RR

Tel: 01856 879 900
Fax: 01856 879 901

Email: enquiries@pickaquoy.co.uk
Web site: www.pickaquoy.net/campsite

Update on Pickaquoy Caravan Site. September 2005

Whilst Orkney is still a wonderful place to visit, for the tourer this site could now be a potential disaster.
Whilst new "temporary" porta-cabin toilets and showers have been installed they are left unclean every weekend from the Friday morning to the Monday morning. In fact the site is virtually on its own during the weekend. There is a duty officer at the centre but they seem to avoid anything to do with the site except taking money during centre opening hours. This means that "casual" campers can have a weekend pitch for free as long as the are off before the staff arrive on Monday morning. Of course they do not stick to guidelines on distances and often pitch between already pitched units.
Lack of maintenance now means the site is boggy when wet and soon cuts up. The warden tries his best but is more General Handyman than actual caravan site warden, which includes being a handyman of course!

This potential Jewel in the Crown of touring sites is a disappointment from what it used to be. I have been assured that things are changing but from my dealings with the site and council there is no change on the horizon. I would recommend the Stromness site as an alternative which although exposed to the elements and with limited toilet facilities does seem to have a warden who cares about and for the site. Stay clear of the Pickaquoy site at the weekend. It is OK during the week!

Dave Benison. CLIC. September 2005

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