The Links site is located in the northeast of Westray, on the south shore of Rackwick, close to the village of Pierowall. The tangle dykes (Canmore ID 295186) run along the coast from NGR HY 43998 50043 to HY 44423 50383.
The site was visited as part of the project launch in Westray during December 2023, with recording undertaken by the ORCA team and local volunteers in October 2024.
Historical background
Tangle operations for alginate began at the Links in 1966. These started at Grobust and gradually moved along to coast as far as North Haven. In its heyday, during the 1970s and 80s, the harvest along this stretch of coastline often produced 400-500 tons of dried tangles per year.
By the late 1990s, the yearly harvest was down to approximately 100 tons, with production ceasing in 1998. Purely by chance, the last season was documented by a visiting team from a German magazine.
Survey results
Forty-two features were identified along the coastal edge at the Links. Thirty-seven tangle dykes were recorded, preserved as linear stone-built features, varying in length from 3.8m to 22.4m.
On average, they measured 0.67m in width and varied in height varying from 0.35m to 0.9m.
Other features included three nousts and two spreads of stone material, one of which may have been a ware slip, similar to one identified in North Ronaldsay. These were points where kelp could be brought inland from the shore. This ware slip may be evidence of an earlier phase of kelp burning during the nineteenth century.
