Long forgotten, Ellon Stone Circle is still 'on the go' but has been moved 50m south thanks to the building of houses.
Parking is no problem as you can park at the supermarket, one that rhymes with Baldi. Walk west a few meters west along the path until the first bench, no teddy bear sitting on my visit. (Canmore had a helpful teddy) Then walk south, if you can, only a few meters.
This was difficult to find because of head high weeds, grass etc etc. After a good 30 minutes of tramping and passers by thinking I'd gone mad, the circle was revealed.
Apparently there was 5 stones in the original circle, there are suggestions that even two of these might be from somewhere else, just to add to the confusion another stone has been added.
It's amazing to think that many people passing knew nothing about the site, but three people did know about the stones and were delighted to see them. Most knew about Pinkie Park, the name of the area along this stretch of the River Ythan, also the area gives the alternative name to the site - The Pinkie Stones.
A major modern housebuilder faces a dark omen from an ancient civilisation of the past. Barratt Developments (Scotland) Ltd. of Ellon want to build in the town's Ythan Terrace. But local folklore has it there was a Pictish stone circle in the Ythan Terrace development area, and the superstition is that anyone who tampers with the stone is in for bad luck. In fact, the last time the stones were moved - more than 40 years ago - to make way for the Market Garden, the then landowner died of cancer. He had been warned by the locals that bad luck would befall him, according to Mr Robert Chalmers, secretary of the Ythan Amenity Trust. Mr Chalmers recalls the strange superstition in a letter to Gordon District Council's director of planning about the proposed Barratt development.
The trust hope the stone circle, known as the Pinkie Stones, will with the co-operation of Barratts - be resited as near their original site as possible. Five stones were arranged in the cardinal points with a central stone. The trust say there appears to be a "vacant lot" in the landscaping in Barratt's plan which would be the best and most obvious place to site the stones.
"I do not know whether either you or Barratts are superstitious, but local folklore had it that anyone who interferes with the Pinkie Stones will receive bad luck. I am of the opinion that those who return the stones to their original position will find favour in the sight of the gods. Speaking personally, who could not do with such help?" Mr Chalmers remarks.
I'm taking it the powers that be felt it was best to leave them where they were. In the 'Aberdeen Evening Express', 31st August 1982.
Along the Ythan valleys, archaeologists have identified cairns, stone circles and cists, many destroyed or badly damaged in previous centuries by farmers and builders before their importance was understood. Most standing stones suffered a similar fate, but one of these “menhirs”, the Candle Stone, persists at Drumwhindle. On the Hill of Logie, about a mile downstream from Ellon, evidence of round, stone-built huts from the Iron Age is clearly visible. And further downstream near the estuary, a village from that same period has been unearthed (unsanded?) at Forvie. A stone circle of unknown purpose stood on the riverbank near Aldi’s current location at the charmingly named Pinkie Park. The 3ft high stones are still visible upstream on the riverbank, though sadly not in the original circle. And if you visit the Prop of Ythsie, take a look at the stone circle known as Druid Temple, started around 3000 years ago, when the third phase of Stonehenge was under constructon.
As you can read, the people at Canmore didn't seem very convinced by the authenticity of this site back in 2011, but I sensed a more sympathetic view from their site visit of 2016. There is one quite large stone, 1.4m long by 0.8m broad and 0.6m thick. The stones were moved to the north bank of the river in the 1930s.
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