View Full Version : lybster questions
hi, i'm looking at a house exchange from our house in england to lybster and i was wondering if anyone could give me the low down on the village/area.
what's life like in lybster? is there anything in wick for teens? what's the bus services like? general stuff like that.
any advice, good or bad, gratefully received as it's too blimmin' far to go and have a look round for ourselves ;)
seren :)
Lybster
http://www.caithness.org/atoz/lybster/lybsterharbour26may_s.jpg (http://www.caithness.org/atoz/lybster/lybsterharbour26may2001/index.htm)
Lybster Harbour 26 May 2001 (http://www.caithness.org/atoz/lybster/lybsterharbour26may2001/index.htm)
this is Lybster, a very friendly village, quiet most of the time, but plenty to do. Wick and Thurso have e niteclubs and other entertainment. A great place to live in. If you go to this site under Caithness photos and type in Lybster, you will see lots more pics of Caithnesss and Lybster or click on the Lybster harbour link above
there is also a site called ariel photos of caithness - lybster but it wont copy and patse
hi, i'm looking at a house exchange from our house in england to lybster and i was wondering if anyone could give me the low down on the village/area.
what's life like in lybster? is there anything in wick for teens? what's the bus services like? general stuff like that.
any advice, good or bad, gratefully received as it's too blimmin' far to go and have a look round for ourselves ;)
seren :)
If it's too blimmin far to go why not stay where you are?
does it make you happy to be rude to posters lasher? i was only asking as i can hardly go and have a look-see for myself when it takes a day to drive there. i know the highlands pretty well but haven't been as far north as caithness.
as my granny used to say - if you have nothing nice to say, say nothing at all...:evil
So why are you wanting to move there if you have never been? Seems odd to me.
I dont find it odd at all wanting to move somewhere new! are you just trying to put people off moving up here lasher:confused
I have to agree with lasher, why upsticks to a place you have no connection with, is it just a case of sticking a pin in a map? If I was moving I would want to know a lot more about it than the opinions of people on here and I'd want to stay there and get a feel for it first.
Surely you would at least go a look before you moved? Not a bad idea putting people off moving there tho, too many stangers in the place already!
actually i've been here for 8 years and had never seen the place before i moved. some of us have a sense of adventure ;)
it's been a toss-up between caithness and isle of lewis but the thought of the ferry costs makes me :eek:
like seren i have a sense of adventure you can always move again if you dont like it!
as for to many strangers in the place , there only strangers if you dont make the effort to be friendly & get to know them:D
Get to know them, half of them are lunatics! Think they escaped from somewhere!
maybe from England lasher??:eek:
maybe from England lasher??:eek:
I was meaning an asylum somewhere, most of them do seem to be english right enough!:lol:
maybe from England lasher??:eek:
Why does it always have to be English? A stranger is a stranger no matter where they come from. Maybe the beauty of a place is that there are no strangers and everyone knows each other?
Why does it always have to be English? A stranger is a stranger no matter where they come from. Maybe the beauty of a place is that there are no strangers and everyone knows each other?
do such places exist? where everyone knows each other & no-ones a stranger.
doesnt always have to be the english sweetpea were just always referred to as the mad english:lol:
do such places exist? where everyone knows each other & no-ones a stranger.
doesnt always have to be the english sweetpea were just always referred to as the mad english:lol:
Yeah I think they do exist until strangers swarm all over them! as for mad english well you said it.
well im glad im the friendly sort that would welcome any new comer to the area english or otherwise.
im sure living in the same place the whole of your life, knowing every person in the community is cosy but it isnt for me.:)
well i'm in england but i'm not english ;) every place needs some new blood now and then or people tend to inbreed :Razz
well i'm in england but i'm not english ;) every place needs some new blood now and then or people tend to inbreed :Razz
What is wrong with in breeding? I find my three eyes and seven fingers on each hand quite useful!!!
What is wrong with in breeding? I find my three eyes and seven fingers on each hand quite useful!!!
haha :lol: so its you that lives near me!:lol:
connieb19
03-Jul-07, 16:05
haha so its you that lives near me!:lol:He's the one with aunts in his pants. :eek:
well you've all brightened a wet day :lol:
well you've all brightened a wet day :lol:
A wet day? Where are you? Clouding a bit now but here in Thurso I have got unburn again. I should know better but with the in breeding I only have one hat for my two heads. And as I have often been told half a brain!!!
no rain her either or maybe its just that i cant see it for the fog !
:lol: i'm just thankful i'm not in yorkshire - all those poor beggars having their houses flooded :~(
Well like Brie and probably many others we moved up here without really knowing the place either, we stay outside Lybster and for us it too was a toss up between here and Lewis, and after visiting Lewis it has beautiful beaches but thats about it! the rest of it is a peat bog in the middle of the sea ! Now for me after being here for 8 years I love the area, love some of the people, Hate the weather and would I move here again knowing what I know now? -Yes, but I certainly would be be aware of the draw backs for kids, especially teenagers as there are very little opportunities and very little social things for them.
NickInTheNorth
03-Jul-07, 18:50
...Yes, but I certainly would be be aware of the draw backs for kids, especially teenagers as there are very little opportunities and very little social things for them.
and yet we have just moved here precisely because there are so many more opportunities for our kids than where we were before...
in what way nickinthenorth?
Im english and moved to lybster without knowing anyone or having never been there and loved it ..very nice people and wish i didnt move back to lincs but had to for family reasons. would move there again. jan x
NickInTheNorth
03-Jul-07, 20:11
in what way nickinthenorth?
where we used to live was a 100 mile round trip from Fort William, including a short ferry trip, being on very low income we could not afford to be driving in there often so there where very few opportunities for after school activities etc
Now they can swim, go to scouts/guides, go to the shops, go to the cinema, go bowling, visit the gym, play squash, go to the library, 10 pin bowling etc etc
I guess my point really is that there is plenty to do here, just less than many larger urban areas, but a good deal more than seriously remote places...
porshiepoo
03-Jul-07, 20:20
We bought our house at Lybster on a whim and it was the best whim we ever had. lol. We'd never even been further than Fort William!
Love it, love it, love it!
We have 16 year old girls (they were 11 when we moved here) and we've never had a problem with them being bored - mind you we do have 4 acres with many of animals. lol.
They both joined 'sea cadets' 6 months ago and wish they'd joined sooner. It gets them out and about and they get to do some stuff they'd never do otherwise, even if they don't intend to take it any further military wise.
There may not be the nightclubs etc up here that you'll be used to down there but please don't see that as caithness lacking anything. Caithness makes up for it in so many other ways. There are loads of walks to go on, it's much much safer for your kids, the people are usually friendly and the beaches are to die for.
As English we're bought up to believe that the scottish highlands are inaccessible, snow bound for most of the year and English generally aren't accepted.
Believe me, the weather nowhere near as bad as you'd think. We have some very warm days made hotter if you're not coastal like Lybster is. I don't think we had much snow to speak of over this christmas - in fact it was terribly mild IMO and for the most part the people are friendly and interesting. You get the odd 'Incomer' hater but then you get them everywhere and if you take it with a pinch of salt then you'll be fine. But like I said, comments aren't very often anyway.
The bus service is pretty good and the drivers actually speak to you! :eek:
In fact this bus service is better than what it was in Boston when I left there.
The school bus picks the kids up for Wick High at the top of our lane so that's really convenient for us too - none of this driving lark.
There are some people who don't like Wick High and have had problems there but I can honestly say that my two have never had a days trouble there and like it so much they're staying on for the next two years - at their insistance.
Basically, I would recommend Lybster over England any day of the week.
Take the risk - you only live this life once.
anneoctober
03-Jul-07, 20:46
Welcome Seren, firstly to the Org and hopefully to Caithness in the future. I suspect lasher's bark is worse then bite [lol]
sounds like my american bulldog :lol:
Get to know them, half of them are lunatics! Think they escaped from somewhere!
aye lasher e same place as ye!
I've lived most of my life in Lybster and i think its a heck of a lot better than where i am living at the moment! I moved to Birmingham 6 years ago to go to college and be closer to my dad. But now he's moved to the Isle of Lewis and we are considering moving there or Caithness. It depends on jobs really and if the hubby can get a transfer it would be even better!:D
Almost anywhere in Caithness would be a good place to live and bring up kids (which we wil be doing) and we'd move up in a heartbeat if a job came up. I'd recommend it to anyone!!!:D
oldmarine
04-Jul-07, 04:10
hi, i'm looking at a house exchange from our house in england to lybster and i was wondering if anyone could give me the low down on the village/area.
what's life like in lybster? is there anything in wick for teens? what's the bus services like? general stuff like that.
any advice, good or bad, gratefully received as it's too blimmin' far to go and have a look round for ourselves ;)
seren :)
I've been there three times. Twice on my job to the former NavComSta Navy Base for an engineering project and once on tour with my family for 3 weeks.
We all thought it was a wonderful place. Now that all my children are raised and on their own with their own children, my wife and I are thinking about a return trip to a beautiful place. All of those places you mentioned are worth the visit and the move likewise if you are thinking of doing so.
where we used to live was a 100 mile round trip from Fort William, including a short ferry trip, being on very low income we could not afford to be driving in there often so there where very few opportunities for after school activities etc
Now they can swim, go to scouts/guides, go to the shops, go to the cinema, go bowling, visit the gym, play squash, go to the library, 10 pin bowling etc etc
I guess my point really is that there is plenty to do here, just less than many larger urban areas, but a good deal more than seriously remote places...
Were you on Ardnamurchan Nickofthewest?
We moved to Caithness 1.5 years ago and it is going well. The people are pretty much like anywhere else. Some welcoming some freindly. Some unpleasant and ignorant. As elsewhere most just want to get on with their lives. Now Tescos is here shopping is easier than anywhere I have lived. You seem to be able to get most things you want up here. There are often additional costs in postage buying mail order/internet aswe are not counted as Mainland(???) Lybster seems to have a bit of a reputation locally but those I have met from there have been quite normal. I am sure if you are OK, they will be too. There always seems to be a place with a bad rep for no apparent reason does there not? It is an attractive place with its apparently out of context wide main street, why is it like that? The weather is no worse in Caithness than I have experienced elsewhere I have lived. The winds are frequent and can be damaging. It has fairly mild in terms of temperature. Both winters have been a Joke. Judging by the plants it would seem to be getting less harsh down there than up here at 'Groats. The harshness has a beauty of it's own.
Crime rates are low.
I have seen some of the worst driving I have ever seen up here and guess drinking and driving is a biggy.
There is a lot of untapped tourist potential. If you compare it the Orkneys for example they have created a very successful feeling tourist market with much the same terrain, access and archaeological interest. There is a run down feeling in the main towns but that is something a load of places go through for a few years and improve. There seems to be people trying to improve things and with events like the wick Harbourfest and Thurso Big Gig and loads of local shows and events.
If I had kids I would certainly feel it is a great place for them to grow up.
I think asking questions on the forum is a perfectly valid way of researching a move. It would be a privileged position to be able to do all the research in person. We moved up because I lost my job through Ill health and could not afford the mortgage and found a property on the internet. I could still live in the country and be mortgage free and still live in the country as I always have. Towns are not my scene at all. A days Drive up. A 10 minute look round the property as it got dark and a drive back home. That was my research. I would advocate a move to Caithness
NickInTheNorth
04-Jul-07, 09:58
Were you on Ardnamurchan Nickofthewest?
To be 100% accurate it was Morvern, but to many people they are one and the same. We were at Lochaline. (And Ardgour before that, and before that the Isle of Muck).
So far my limited experience of Caithness is very very positve.
We made the decision to move up here based on my very limited experience. One visit a couple of years ago when I saw the inside of a pub or 2 and a good view of the coastline whilst out fishing.
We then came up for the weekend with the kids to show them the area looked at some houses and rented one of them. Moved within a month of making the decision.
If seren wants any advice I would say - just do it!
Unless you are the sort of person that is obsessed with having ALL the trappings of todays crazy world right on your doorstep you will love it.
We moved up ten years ago after one visit when i had my job interview where we drove up to Wick had a cup of coffee and turned round and drove back to inverness where the interview was. The next time we visited we looked at three houses and a school and rented one. I didnt have the luxury of the internet back then to do any more research.
I never regretted it for one minute, my children were 8,7 and 2 and loved growing up in Caithness. go for it Seren its worth it
Tom Cornwall
04-Jul-07, 16:48
Get to know them, half of them are lunatics! Think they escaped from somewhere!
somebody once said, or sang, 'a stranger's just a friend you do not know'
so there you go:)
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