Hermaness covers the northern peninsula of Unst, ending in cliffs that fall 170 metres straight into the Atlantic. From May to early August the cliffs and stacks support around 25,000 pairs of gannets and roughly the same number of puffins, alongside fulmars, kittiwakes, and the bonxies — great skuas — that nest on the moorland behind. The bonxies will swoop low over hikers in the breeding season; not aggressive but startling.
From the car park near Burrafirth, a marked path of about three miles each way crosses peat moorland (boardwalked in the worst spots) and reaches the cliff edge above Muckle Flugga lighthouse — a small white lighthouse perched on a sea stack offshore, with Out Stack beyond it. Out Stack is the most northerly point of the British Isles. Stand here in clear weather and the next land due north is the Arctic. Allow three to four hours round-trip. Bring waterproofs even on a fine day.