‘lurking in its malodorous, sandy shallows – a monster which has, at least on one occasion, broken surface to scan the passing traffic on the Kirkwall-Stromness Ayre Road’

The Orkney Herald 15th February 1949

The Peedie Sea in Kirkwall was once so smelly and unpleasant that it was even rumoured to possess a monster.

But plans were ahead to do away with The Peedie Sea Dump.

Today, no longer a dump, and with an extremely successful tree planting millennium project which took over 3 years for volunteers to complete – led by Jenny Taylor – The Peedie Sea would be unrecognisable to those Orcadians who all those decades ago thought it was inhabited by a monster.

The ground was poor but the trees, especially over recent years, have started to fill out the spaces.

The variety of species also means that it is a great boon to wildlife.

The newly renovated Skatepark is testament to the way this incredible space in the heart of Kirkwall can be used by a wide range of people – of all ages.

And there are plenty seats if you just want to take some time out and watch the world pass by.

“The best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. The second best time is now.”

― Chinese proverb

Fiona Grahame