Eviedale Yurt
What is a yurt? A yurt, or ger, is a traditional Mongolian nomadic house. Constructed from a wooden frame and covered in layers of material, the yurt is designed to be warm in winter and cool in summer.
Our yurt: Evideale yurt is an authentic yurt, made in Mongolia and imported to Orkney. It is very large, 6.6m in diameter and 2.9m high at its crown, in order to provide plenty of living space. The kiln-dried frame is painted with traditional Mongolian designs and is covered by layers of linen, felt, canvas and, finally, a decorated suncover. The yurt itself is placed upon a level, wooden floor to make it as comfortable as possible.
Inside, the yurt is furnished to a very high standard. Carpets, rugs and wall hangings give it a cosy feel, while the wood-burning Mongolian stove keeps it warm in the cooler months – it is also possible to cook on this if you choose to! If you would rather cook on gas, the yurt has a two-ring, gas camping stove and is supplied with a cast-iron dutch oven, skillet and pans with which to cook. We know how annoying it is trying to cook when kitchen utensils and implements are absent or of poor quality, so a wide range of these have also been supplied. Once you have cooked, eating is a lovely experience – all the crockery comes from local potter Andrew Appleby and includes his 'Neolithic' plates and bowls. A Nomad cool box will keep your food supplies cool for up to ten days. Orkney is a great place to buy high-quality, local food, and should guests require a welcome pack of organic food can be provided on arrival (bread, milk, butter, cheese, bacon etc).
The Georgian chest of drawers contains towels and Egyptian cotton sheets for the beds. These are high quality futons (one double and two singles) with thick mattresses and feather down duvets and pillows which provide a good nights rest. If there should be more than four in the party, we have a further four bed-in-a-bag mattresses with additional memory-foam mattress toppers. At night, the yurt is transformed by the light of 8 storm lanterns.
Should you want to spend some quiet time in the yurt we have provided a small selection of books (including some with an Orcadian theme) and a set of ipod speakers.