Vaila

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Vaila
The island of Vaila seen from Mainland, with the Muckle Flaes in between
The island of Vaila seen from Mainland, with the Muckle Flaes in between
Waters Atlantic Ocean
Archipelago Shetland Islands
Geographical location 60 ° 12 '12 "  N , 1 ° 35' 2"  W Coordinates: 60 ° 12 '12 "  N , 1 ° 35' 2"  W.
Location of Vaila
length 2.5 km
width 2 km
surface 3.27 km²
Highest elevation East Ward
95  m
Residents 2 (2011)
<1 inh / km²

The small Shetland island of Vaila, which belongs to Scotland, is only a few hundred meters from the western part of the main island of Mainland and is separated from it and the small harbor town of Walls by the narrow Vaila Sound . There are no public ferry connections. The distance to the main town of Lerwick is around 22 km.

The hilly and treeless island has a maximum extension of 2.5 × 2 km and an area of ​​327 hectares and with the East Ward has a height of up to 95 meters.

Numerous seabirds breed on the island, which is rarely used for agriculture, except for extensive sheep breeding, especially on the cliffs. Vaila has a rare flora and fauna.

The main attraction of the island, which is rarely visited by tourists due to its difficult accessibility, is Vaila Hall . In the 1890s, a wealthy spinning mill owner who built a sheep farm on the island converted an already much older homestead into this castle-like manor house .

After the island was temporarily uninhabited in the 1980s, it has two inhabitants again today (as of 2011).

Individual evidence

  1. 2011 census data

Web links

Commons : Vaila  - collection of images, videos and audio files