Geography

This is where you can find out facts about the area such as the climate of the area, the geology of the rocks and that it is a special site of scientific interest SSSI.

Shetland was quite a hard area for our Viking ancestors to lay claim to because of the harsh and unforgiving sea and environment to settle on but we are still here many centuries later and we are surviving still so that is good for us.

Yell, as well as parts of the central mainland, are made from moine rocks, originally formed over 1 billion years ago as thick layers of sand and mud in the sea on the edge of America's continent. They were metamorphosed when Scandinavia, Europe, and America collided together, heat and pressure welded the grains of sand together to form what is known as quartzite and swapped the mud for schist containing new minerals such as flakes of mica and deep scarlet grains of garnet. More information about the geology of the North Isles can be found from Shetland Amenity Trust's site.

There are two beaches that you will be able to access upon coming here the Sands of Breckon and Silvergeo. Silvergeo is made mostly of rock but it does have some sand on it that is the same sand that's on the Sands of Breckon but our sand is made up not from rock but from shells.

That's right, you know how you get sawdust when you use sandpaper on wood, well replace the wood with shells and that's how Breckon Sands gets its sand, above the beach is some sandy dunes which enables maaram grass to grow there. And it is one of if not the largest area in Shetland where it can grow.

The cliffs in this area are home to some birds such as: puffins, cormorants, gannets and of course many types of seagulls.

You will also find a loch called "The Kirk Loch" which is visited by loch fishermen in the trout fishing season.

Special Site of Scientific Interest - Nature Scotland

The area around the beach is designated as an SSSI, Nature Scotland's description of the area is:

"Breckon, situated at the north-eastern corner of the island of Yell, is the most extensive calcareous shell sand dune system in Shetland. Within the relatively small area of the site three main coastal botanical communities are present: sand dune, machair and cliff top. The site also includes a eutrophic loch and Shetland’s largest population of the nationally scarce bog orchid Hammarbya paludosa. The dunes are dominated by marram grass Ammophila arenaria with moonwort Botrychium lunaria also occurring in this area. Part of the machair has an unusual community dominated by hogweed Heracleum sphondylium. The cliff-top vegetation includes species such as frog orchid Coeloglossum viride, field gentian Gentianella campestris, spring squill Scilla verna and the locally scarce autumn gentian Gentianella amarella. The Ness of Houlland has a sward influenced by salt spray with red fescue Festuca rubra, thrift Armeria maritima and plantains Plantago spp. The eutrophic Kirk Loch, highly influenced by shell sand, has other interesting plant species including two species of stonewort Chara aspera and C. virgata and the pondweeds Potamogeton berchtoldii and the nationally scarce P. filiformis. Wet areas around the shores of Bena Water and along burn sides to the north support large numbers of bog orchid Hammarbya paludosa. "

Further details from Nature Scotland