Latest Fieldnotes

Visited 18.1.14

Directions:
The Hillfort is in the village of Norton Fitzwarren, which is on the outskirts of Taunton. Although Norton Fitzwarren is only a small place the Hillfort is a little tricky to find as it is not sign posted and is almost hidden in a residential area. Best advice I can give is to look for the church and take the roads to the north of it. There is a dedicated small car park for the Hillfort / nature reserve – which is signposted at this point.

Once you have found the car park, it is only a two minute walk up some steps and along a path (through trees) to the Hillfort. A muddy path follows the circumference of the site but a fence prevents you from entering the centre of the Hillfort which appears as though it is now used for crop?

The entire bank of the rampart is covered in trees. From the inside, the bank is about 1m in height, from the outside 2-3m in height. The houses to the south back right up to the southern defences. The garden fence is literally up against the rampart.

I am sure the house builders wouldn’t be allowed to get away with that in this day and age? Oh I forgot about Old Oswestry……………..!

Although there isn’t a huge amount to see this is an easy Hillfort to access and is worth seeking out if you happen to be in the area.

Visited 18.1.14

Directions:
From Taunton take the A358 North West and then negotiate the country lanes through the hamlet of Cothelstone. When you get to the fork in the road go left and follow the road up to Lydeard Hill car park. An O/S map would be helpful. Once you have parked up, go through the gate and take the ‘path’ to the right, keeping the trees to your right. The Barrow is then easy enough to spot on the left, on the higher ground. It is only a 5 minute walk from the car park.

For various reasons, this was our first day out ‘exploring’ for a few months. Despite the rain and cold, biting wind it felt good to be out in the countryside and in the fresh air – something I have missed.

The Barrow is a bit of a sorry site. It is covered in brambles, heather and gorse. At some point in the past it has been dug into and appears to be a popular spot for lighting disposable BBQs – judging by the two I found in the centre of the hole.

In saying all this Barrow is a decent size – approximately 2m high x 20m across – and affords good views over Bridgewater Bay to the north.

This is an easy Barrow to access and a good first site to start the New Year off with.
Worth a look when in the area.

Until I read the E.H. notes when I got home I was unaware of the nearby other Barrow and Cairn. Pity about that.

E.H. state:

‘The monument, which falls into three areas, includes two Bronze Age bowl barrows and a Bronze Age round cairn aligned broadly from east to west along the crest of Lydeard Hill in the south western region of the Quantock Hills. The easternmost bowl barrow is 21m in diameter and 1.8m high with a large hollow centre; it has previously been recorded with a surrounding quarry ditch 3m wide which has become infilled over the years but which will survive as a buried feature. About 250m to the west is a bowl barrow 20m in diameter and 1.5m high which has been dug into on its southern side; it too is likely to have possessed a surrounding quarry ditch which will survive as a buried feature. The westernmost barrow, which lies a further 150m WNW, takes the form of round cairn (where the mound material contains a greater proportion of stone rather than earth), which is 21m in diameter and a maximum of 1m high. This cairn has a hollow centre which may be the result of antiquarian investigation; spoil heaps adjacent to the mounds of both of the bowl barrows are also considered to be the result of these unrecorded excavations’.

I parked the ailing car right next to the footpath sign on the grassy verge, out of the way.
Taking the path north, slightly up hill, it snakes along in a dip views to the left and right are curtailed. I decided to cut across a field going left, as I got to the edge I could see the cairn looking striking up on it’s hill top. Over the fence was a curious bank and ditch affair running straight north/south, I took a couple of pictures and hobbled up the slope to the cairn.
Coflein succinctly describes the cairn, but mutilated is a bit strong, yes it’s been dug into, without much respect apparently, but, it’s still all together, not much spreadage, a steep sided high cairn with much cairn material showing. I was quite taken with it, mutilated or not.
Selattyn hill and it’s ring cairn was quite visible and close on the western skyline, north I could see the grassy balding hill of Graig Wea and it’s cairn cemetery.
Just twenty yards from Orsedd Wen cairn is an old quarry, now used in several places as a rubbish dump, it is a blot on the landscape and unsightly to the eye.
Good cairn though.
It wasn’t until I was on my way over to Selattyn hill that I realised what the long linear earthwork was, it was only Offas dyke, the best preserved section ive ever seen, but i haven’t seen much, though I know man who has.

I approached from the west from Orsedd Wen cairn, it wasn’t until the second time I crossed the strange linear earthen bank and ditch that I realised what it was, the best section of Offa’s dyke that ive yet seen, silly me, well I never did, foot of our stairs and so on.
It was only a ten to fifteen minute walk from Orsedd Wen to Selattyn hill ring cairn, so while i’m here I thought I might as well, other wise I’d probably not have bothered to have come here.
The heather covered remains have never really appealed to me, the tower dumped in the middle of it, the forestry all round it, half the ring gone, all this persuaded me to give it a miss, but, I am close by so here I am.
Glad of that I am too, it was better than I thought, hidden from the outside world, hanging on in there and delighting even those that didnt really want to come. Sure, Mr Crewe’s tower isn’t easy to ignore, in fact it should be torn down. But half the trees have come down opening up views across Shropshire and Cheshire, unfortunately more have been planted and are now shooting up.

The ring cairn survives to about two thirds of it’s circumference, and is still about a meter high.
The heather is slowly going to cover the cairn material utterly, seeing the difference between thesweetcheats pictures and mine (3 years) is a bit disheartening, the place is about as visitable as it’s ever going to get, which isn’t much, another three years and it’ll be gone again.

[visited 11/13] Out for a birthday sojourn, my actual target was the possible cup marks nearby, but it seemed churlish to ignore this so close to them. Getting here isn’t the easiest, I settled for a 20 minute trek through the heathery bog across Harland Sick from Hell Bank plantation. Not that easy but ok this late in the year. When I finally got here, it was well worth the effort.

What a weird weird site. The peaks does have a habit of unusual sites, hob hurst’s house being a km or so away, but this one may take the biscuit. From what I could tell on the ground and the HER, its basically two mounds separated by an open passage at both ends, including portal stones. I don’t know how much is left here, mounds of rocks are nearby, so this could be the bottom metre only, with the passage perhaps originally being covered turning this into one mound. All in all odd, I’ll try and get back here once I’ve found and read more reports on it...

Access is across open moorland for a km at least. The way straight across the moor from Hell Bank is easier than from Hob Hurst’s house, but still painfully awkward.

Somewhat oddly, bearing in mind the substantial nature of the surviving monument, it appears that the usual archaeological sources are somewhat reticent to assign even a tentative prehistoric origin to the massive cairn upon Moelfre, south-western outlier of Y Rhinogydd. Equally strange, perhaps, is the fact that I’ve never taken the opportunity to find out why this may be the case before today. Hey, in fact a convincing case could be made for a trilogy of related bizarrerie since the decision to pay a visit before heading back to the car before dark was arguably not the most rational of choices available to me. But there you are. Stupid is as stupid does.

The cairn is well seen by the prospective visitor hanging out contentedly upon the ancient ramparts of Craig y Dinas, far below to the south, the door to another, more sensual, perhaps spiritual world seemingly momentarily ajar. Or at least it is in the temporary absence of the ubiquitous cloud mantle which, having obscured the mountain’s 1,932ft top for much of the day, has seen fit to move on to annoy other people somewhere else instead. The southern flank of the mini (although not that mini) mountain is sharply graded to the point of being a tad off-putting. However the way is clear, a fenceline visible clinging to the steeply rising contours to the left of a prominent copse of trees, the boundary promising reassurance should visibility suddenly go all pea souper.

Half way up I’m beginning to form the opinion that this undeniably committed Citizen Cairn should instead be committed to some institution in the event of ever getting down again, a vicious weather front duly sweeping in from Tremadog Bay with the implied malediction of that cloudscape above Sigourney Weaver’s building in Ghostbusters. You know the one. However a distant stile perched upon a dry stone wall (’dry’ as in no mortar, not water!) stiffens the backbone and beckons me on. Nearly there. Nothing to it, really. Once across I follow said wall to the right and soon spy the cairn beyond. Jeez, it’s hard to miss, certainly as big as it appeared from below, albeit utilising the crags upon which it stands to maximise visual impact in the manner of Foel Grach (upon Y Carneddau further north). Yeah, I prefer to call it ‘crafty, intelligent planning and use of natural resources’, as opposed to ‘cheating’. Also of note is the fact that the cairn does not sit at the summit of the mountain, rather being located some distance to the south-east. So, way, way too large to be a marker cairn. Ditto not a walker’s cairn. Hey, it doesn’t even crown the summit.... and furthermore its construction is suggestive of careful planning, the use of a technique I’ve seen employed elsewhere upon the Welsh uplands. Consequently I’m pretty convinced of its antiquity, to be fair. Located as it is upon a gigantic, natural mound of its own.

I move in to settle the matter with the fine detail and promptly discover that the vagaries of Nature have placed me under serious interrogation instead. Ha! Prepare for a veritable kicking, my boy. Beyond the shelter of the lee of the wall it is more or less impossible to stand, such is the unforeseen extreme strength of the wind, rain – in the horizontal plane – hammering upon my hood with such staccato force as to surely shred the fabric? So why do I feel so utterly elated, so privileged to be here at this moment? So alive? Erm. Anyone got the number of a neurologist? Standing upon the cairn, bracing myself with both trekking poles to stop being summarily despatched head first into the stone pile, it occurs to me that a supine posture would be more respectful. Not to mention safer. Puny Homo sapiens venturing to such places in such hostile conditions, albeit unwittingly, perhaps can not fail to be overawed by the sheer magnitude of the forces inherent in the natural world. To my mind that would offer a coherent explanation as to why these cairns were erected where they were back then. To offer a quasi-shamanic experience for those not deemed suitable – or able – to go the whole distance. In fact it is only the modern technology inherent in my waterproofs which allows me to focus at all. To have stood here in Bronze Age garb and be subjected to such ferocity would no doubt have sent me running – nay, careering – downhill for my very life... faster than Franz Klammer. Either that or stepping through the portal to the spirit world.....

[P.S – In retrospect an approach from the Cwm Nantcol road to the north, subsequently ascending the less steep eastern flank, looks to be the best bet in lieu of the brutal southern slog. But there you are. Hindsight is a wondrous thing, is it not?]

Visited this hitherto unknown long barrow today. Walked up a firm, steep, footpath from Salisbury Hollow in the village of Edington, turning right at the top onto another field edge footpath. The barrow is in the middle of a crop field almost on the crest of Tinshead Hill. Protected by a strong fence topped with barbed wire and planted with beech trees, it is not possible to investigate too closely. However, couldn’t resist walking up to it across the field – it felt very good to have mud on my boots again. Wonderful views towards Salisbury Plain (in fact on the edge of the Plain) and the town of Westbury. Walking back down to Edington there is a beautiful valley reminiscent of the area around Bishopstone in north Wiltshire – also on a spring line I understand, though it too wet underfoot to clamber down to them today.
Many thanks to my good friend M for spotting this long barrow on the OS map and for leading me up there.

I first became aware of the existence of this somewhat obscure upland enclosure through retrospectively trying to relate the 1:25K OS map to images taken upon Llawlech a decade back. However it’s fair to say the c2 mile walk-in from the west was a bit off-putting. But there you are.... eventually the site rose to the top of the bad weather list.

Needless to say events did not exactly go to plan -do they ever? – the discovery of an extensive, unmarked cairnfield to the immediate west ensuring I arrive a couple of hours later than anticipated. However it is worth the wait, the hill fort proving to be a substantial structure crowning the southern end of a prominent rocky ridge running across the valley, that is between the overwhelming mass of Moelfre to the north and the Afon Ysgethin to the south.

Approaching from the aforementioned wondrous cairnfield I find a very well built (modern) drystone field wall blocking the direct route. Fortuitously, as it happens, since the easiest option is clearly (duh!) to return to the track and approach along the ridge itself, this manoeuvre allowing the traveller an opportunity to discern how the surface rock almost approximates a natural ‘cheveux de frise’ arrangement, albeit a bit of a chaotic version. Yeah, it doesn’t take that much imagination (luckily) to determine the effect such a landscape would have had upon a cavalry – or infantry – charge back in the day, particularly with additional dry stone outworks covering the approach. Morever, according to Coflein, it appears the main entrance was to the south-east, thus ensuring the task of a storming party was even more difficult:

“Craig-y-Dinas, which crowns a prominent outcrop, is a stone walled polygonal hillfort some 75m x 40m with outworks extending 14m to the north-east. It has extensive entrance works to the south-east where stone clearance and walling for an approach trackway can be traced for about 80m to the east and about 107m to the south-east of the hillfort entrance. RCAHMW, April 2009”

There is a significant volume of drystone rampart still remaining in situ here, far more than I expected, to be honest. Yeah, a ghostly shell of an ancient enclosure, garrisoned nowadays by none save an occasional wandering sheep or carrion crow, the sole enemy the inclement weather. However it is the dramatic location which really impresses, the view eastward encompassing the bare, 2000ft plus summits of the southern Rhinogydd rising above the Afon Ysgethin, the river forded in the middle distance by the enigmatic Pont Ysgethin carrying what was once the major London-Harlech mail coach route through these parts... or so I read somewhere or other some time ago. Hard to believe now, such is the haunting, almost melancholic vibe which appears to fill the valley like invisible temperature inversion. The graceful, yet solidly built arch of the bridge is, in my opinion, well worth a closer look if you can spare the time. As are the mountains themselves, it goes without saying, although unfortunately I haven’t come across any ancient cairns upon the main peaks (although the ‘pile of stones’ at the summit of Moel Ysgyfarnogod to the north did set the Gladman senses a’tingling, to be truthful). To the approx south-east the crags of Llawlech overlook Llyn Erddyn (there is a brace of cairns up there) whilst westwards the enclosure provides a fine panorama of the course of the river flowing to the sea, not to mention that aforementioned extensive cairn-field ignored by all and sundry!

As I sit and ‘do lunch’... as one does... subject to the occasional blustery shower sweeping along the valley, my attention is nevertheless inevitably drawn to the north where the swirling cloud base periodically, tantalisingly reveals the massive cairn to the right of the summit of Moelfre. It sure looks a big ‘un. Too large for a dedicated Citizen Cairn’d to resist, in fact. So... unwisely, perhaps, I decide to go have a look.

Really not very far from the weird Glan Hafon cairn and it’s big central boulder, in fact I blundered across these cairns while looking for the weird one. They are on flat ground in between the big steep hill side and theyre just below the rocky cliffs from which they take their name.
They are next to a footpath but it’s a long way up,
There are three cairns, two are clearance cairns but one could be of the funerary persuasion in cofleins words..... This cairn would appear to have a funerary function as there looks to be a possible cist in a central depression. However, it is very close to the other cairns........
Cairns with a stunner view near lots of other more substantial ancient places, who could want for more.

Another cold, grey, not to mention wet Gwynedd day is summarily kick-started into life – hey, seized firmly by the collar and thrown headlong down the stairs – by the cacophonic dawn chorus generated by the local birds at Fferm y’Rynys, a mile or so beneath the great Capel Garmon chambered cairn. Needless to say I do not concur with our feathery friends’ concept of ‘dawn’, not with darkness still pervading this uncompromising, enigmatic landscape I’ve come to know so well over the years. Still, saves on alarm clock batteries, I guess. And no doubt they are far more perceptive of the idiosyncrasies of this Earth than I. So, in short order I’m heading south-west across The Migneint toward the coastline of Ardudwy, the estuary of the Afon Dwyryd a cadenza of autumnal colour, tones muted by the soft, overcast light. Further south the gaunt, brutal profile of Harlech Castle overwhelms the traveller’s senses with its sheer four-square solidity. Finally, a little way beyond the school house of Dyffryn Ardudwy (with attendant dolmens – has it really been 11 years?) the ram-rod straight Fford Gors heads into the hills toward Cors y Gedol Hall, ancestral home of the Vaughan family, no less. Parking is to be had in a drystone enclosure immediately prior to the terminal gate (small charge – £1 as I recall, perhaps incorrectly? I’d encourage visiting Heads to respect this arrangement since it is quite a handy facility).

Stoneheads new to the area may wish to divert along the short stretch of tarmac to the right in order to visit the nearby, rather fine Cors y Gedol burial chamber.... I, however, take the unmade track heading approx east, the great hill / mini mountain of Moelfre dominating the left hand flank of the valley despite apparent decapitation by low cloud. Now I last came this way a’cycling in 1998 (en-route to the enigmatic Pont Ysgethin) and, to be fair, unless you happen to enjoy plodding along walled tracks a mountain bike would be advantageous if you happen to have one to hand. Unfortunately I do not, it consequently being a relief to discern the rocky north-south ridge, upon which resides the Craig y Dinas hill fort, eventually taking centre stage ahead. It looks worth the effort. Beyond a gate unfenced pasture borders the track to the south allowing me to take an apparent short cut toward the ancient fortress. It’s not, as it transpires (a short cut, that is).... but suffice to say the choice is fortuitous.

Now this being Y Rhinogydd, possessing some of Wales’ roughest terrain, there is no paucity of surface rock, nearby clearance cairns standing as tangible reminders of the local farmer’s ongoing struggle to eke a living from this brutal landscape. As a result the remains of a further cairn initially do not register as perhaps they might have elsewhere... until I notice the large central block, that is, not to mention what might be interpreted as the remnants of a retaining kerb. In other words, features suggestive of constructive planning as opposed to clearance. However since the 1:25K OS map shows nothing I decide to reserve judgement and continue my journey to the hill fort rising beyond to the east.... only to stumble upon a veritable cornucopia of cairns 100 yards further on. Hey, count ‘em. Far too many for my limited arithmetic.

Granted, a number of these cairns do indeed appear to lack any structural detail, so implying field clearance; however with base content seemingly ‘fused’ to the ground, I would argue they are not modern, having been in situ for some considerable time. Others, however, stand in association with orthostats, more still with stone piles bearing apparent evidence of central structures subsumed within. I wander south in a daze and locate a very large round cairn (relative to the others) with a central depression partly covered by a stone slab, as well as elements of what looks very much like a retaining kerb. Still more cairns possess apparent ‘cap stones’ supported upon upright stones buried in the acidic soil, the resulting voids now clearly home to local creatures. Still not sure – cynic that I am, or perhaps not convinced by my own perceptions – unequivocal evidence is nevertheless soon forthcoming courtesy of a cairn retaining the remnants of a ‘Dartmoor-esque’ triple kerb. Blimey. I do declare (finally) that here we have an extensive Bronze Age cairnfield overlooked by an ethereal upland fort.... cunningly camouflaged in plain sight, so to speak.

As I stand and ponder what I’ve found the summit of Moelfre, rising to the north, divests itself of its cloud mantle to reveal the presence of a very large cairn indeed. Yeah, it all begins to make sense, what with the Afon Ysgethin, engaged in its short journey from the high southern peaks to the coast, flowing to the immediate south. This cairn-field is so extensive I clearly need more time... but that would mean sacrificing a visit to the hill fort. Morever I decide an aerial view would be beneficial. And where better than upon the ramparts of Craig y Dinas itself? OK, upon Moelfre itself. But that’s another story.

Visited: January 11, 2014

Castle Rock at Auchmithie bears the remains of a—probably Iron Age—promontory fort. The situation is breath-taking, guarded by 30 metre cliffs rising vertically from the shingle beach below. Sadly, the actual site of the fort is impossible to visit these days as it is in the embrace of the thickest expanse of mature gorse imaginable. To reach the site you would have to come armed with loppers and a sturdy saw!

The Fort is reported to be protected by means of three curved banks with:

“medial ditches, broken by a central entrance causeway 2 metres wide. The fort was diminutive, the level enceinte being c.30.4 metres square, but now considerably eroded on the north, and to a lesser extent on the east. The site was surveyed in 1958 by the OS, and was excavated between 1967-1974. Features included various postholes, and hearths were associated with a floor, possibly a single circular structure with a porch or a series of windbreaks, or lean-to shelters”.

More information, including an aerial photograph, is available at Canmore.

Possibly the highest round barrow in Wiltshire, overlooking Adam’s Grave.

Although now destroyed, this may have once been a chambered round barrow judging by the amount of sarsen scattered around the site. Whoever desecrated this barrow made a point of tearing the internal structure apart.

ACCESS
The area around Adams Grave and the Ridgeway car park has been updated.
The old footpath route has been removed and a new set of gates lead the visitor around Walker’s Hill Barrows and along the field boundary onto the White Horse Trail. This is a much improved surface and could possibly carry a wheelchair or pushchair.

Visited: January 11, 2014

Lud Castle is a clifftop promontory fort (most probably Iron Age) just over a kilometre south of the village of Auchmithie (near Arbroath). The location is dramatic, the site being guarded by 30 metre vertical cliffs on all sides but the northwest. Canmore states that the fort was isolated by a 2 metre rampart at the top of the grassy slope on the seaward side of the narrow neck of land leading to it. But I found no trace of this.

Remains of the fort, alas, are now non-existent. But to visit the site on a fine sunny day is a joy: the seascapes in all directions are a sight to behold, with red sandstone cliffs undercut by caves and arches.

Access to the site is by an excellent clifftop path starting in the village of Auchmithie, and continuing all the way to Arbroath.

Visited January 5, 2014

Aquhorthies Stone Circle lies scarcely more than 200 metres northwest from Old Bourtreebush stone circle, and is clearly visible from it. So, having visited the latter, a short walk to Aquhorties was a given.

This used to be a simple matter of following the field boundaries to the circle, then hopping across the dyke and a barbed wire fence that had seen better days. But in the past year, a brand new, very robust fence with four extremely taut barbed wires has been erected inside the field containing the circle, parallel with the old fence. The triple obstacle of dyke followed by two barbed wire fences will be daunting to many. So the best bet now is to make for the top of the field, where you find a convenient gate leading into the ‘Aquhorties field’, and follow the fence back to the circle, a detour of just a few minutes.

The first thing you notice about Aquhorties is that the entire edifice has been built atop a sizeable artificial platform. Aquhorties is an impressive RSC, the recumbent and one flanker still standing erect. The circle is highly complex, and consists of two concentric ring cairns which, despite robbing, can still be clearly traced: the recumbent setting stands between the two ring cairns.

You can read the fine detail (and there is quite a lot of it) on the Canmore website.

Visited January 11, 2014

I noted on the map the existence of this cairn on Bridgeton Hill when last I visited The Cloch stone circle, but that was in late summer, and the field containing the cairn was rampant with vegetation. So I placed it on my to-do list for a fine winter’s day. Today was the day, and I renewed the search during a brief stop on my way to enjoy the Auchmithie Clifftop Walk.

Heading south past Johnshaven, take the second road on the right, which serves Mains of Bridgeton and Gateside properties. You can drive up the road, following a gentle S-bend, till it passes between two cottages: here, though the tarmac gives way to a wide, well metalled farm track, continue straight ahead and turn sharp right once past the cottages. Continue till this track dog-legs sharply to the left, and park up. Walk on round the bend for a few metres and you will come to the gate of the field where lies Bridgeton Hill Cairn. All that remains is to cross the field in a northeasterly direction to its far boundary, where theboundary fence actually straddles the gorse-clad cairn.

Visited Stonehenge today via the new Visitors Centre at Airman’s Corner. The Exhibition Room was excellent, the gift shop was what it was, and the cafe was probably the best it could be catering for hundreds of visitors a day (don’t expect anything more than the most basic of light-lunch-type-food). I was looking forward to the land-train but instead travelled on a small bus which used the remains of the A344 as access to Stonehenge. It’s still a bit of a mess up by the site of the old carpark and I was disappointed to find the wire fence still in place around the ancient monument. To view the Stones from the Avenue you have to go around into the adjacent field. However, Stonehenge was wonderful today with a far wider circumference to walk around than previously. The English Heritage staff were friendly and helpful but I was still left with the feeling of being ‘delivered’, ‘processed’ and ‘dispatched’ with exit through the gift shop. Next time I’m going to try and walk up the by-way from Larkhill to fully take in the barrows and magnificent sweep of the landscape.

Dalnabreck is situated on the western side of the River Ardle. From Stylemouth (Balnabroich etc) I walked down the A924 to the Dalnabreck entrance. Follow this track, cross the bridge, keep going straight until the first corner. Look west and the barrow is about 20 meters into a field.

The barrow is grass covered and is 29 meters wide/3.5 meters high. Some erosion or animal damage on the south side allows the construction of the barrow to be seen.

Yet another brilliant site set amongst fantastic scenery.

Visited 8/8/2013.

(on onslaught on mountains and hills with Pitcarmick etc is on the agenda, making for a monster walk)

From the petrol station/shop at Kirkmichael take the minor road south west until a sadly ruined church. (must have looked good in it’s prime)Follow The Cateran Trail thru the lovely Ardle valley for about a mile. Nothing to strenuous here.

The cairn is next to road and has a wonderful ‘cairn type’ shape to it. It is made up of slabs and pebbles. Unfortunately farmers thru the ages have probably thrown field waste on top of this. Still it is a very attractive place which stands at over 15 meters wide and 3 meters tall, and is covered in grass along with 5 evocative trees. On a misty day this would be a very atmospheric place. The only thing wrong is the shabby barbed wire fence.

Visited 8/8/2013

The drive into Wales was mostly sunny and I was thinking it would be a very nice day indeed, plus the chance to walk off the sciatic pain in my leg was a bonus. I parked down the road from where I parked last time when I was here for Glan Hafon cairn a few weeks ago, that trip inspired this one. I set off up hill in good spirits and very little pain.
The river had much more water in it than last time and on the way here sandbags were piled up outside houses and shops, flood warnings very much in effect. I carried on.
I finally reached the old shepherds hut at the bottom of the waterfalls immediately north of the bulk of Craig Rhiwarth, from here on in the up would be much steeper and much harder going, take that Sciatica. I followed the small but very pretty waterfalls up hill then broke out across rougher ground. It is times like these that I feel my age and wonder how long I can last on this lush rock we call Earth.
Eventually I reach the long front wall that stuck out so much last time I was up here. It is a long straight wall running west to east cutting off the higher ground on Craig Rhiwarth from the rest of the southern Berwyn mountains. About half way along the wall is a fairly well preserved entrance that opens onto a steep bit of hill but the track through the entry curves round to the left avoiding the steepness. A hundred feet west from the main entrance is a smaller less well preserved entrance, for foot traffic perhaps.
From the wall I staggered manfully up to the summit cairn just as the drizzle set in, but as I reached the top the drizzle turned into hail and the wind which was as ferocious as I’ve ever seen it whipped the hail hard against me, trying to stop the hundred mile an hour hail from hitting me in the face became an all consuming game.
The cairn is mostly flush with the ground, except for a modern walkers cairn on top of it. It isn’t Wales’ most interesting cairn, but just a few yards down hill are the best preserved round house hut circles, Coflein says there’s a hundred and seventy but I couldn’t see any more than a dozen. But then the wind and the hail were seriously curtailing my searching efforts. I took as many photos as I could, over a hundred in all, but over half were wet and blurry, it was not a good day for hill walking let alone photography.
I sought some out of the wind place to sit and ponder for a bit, I found some near a rectangular Hafod, a farmers summer hilly hideout. I took stock of myself and my stuff, it was wet, me coat aint waterproof anymore nor are my trousers. I tried to take another picture of where I was but the camera said replace the battery, crap, I thought, already dead? that was quick. So I started to make my squelchy way off the mountain. The 532 meter high hill, or is it a mountain, isn’t a uniform flat topped hill its full of nooks and crannies pinnacles and troughs. In better weather I imagine someone in less pain than me would stay up here for longer.
After leaving the summit cairn area on the west of the hill top I didn’t see any more hut circles, why are they all clustered around that area, even the obviously better sheltered areas were free of hut circles or are they buried. There was none on the east side of the hill either.
The way down I took was slightly different from on the way up, steeper harder and more dangerous, but quicker, I really needed to get off this mountain, so I carried on.
Then as I got to the bottom of the hill the wind dropped, the rain and hail subsided and the sun shone down upon me, I looked up to the sky and opined my lot in Wales, really ?
If anyone ever says the weather has no mind and isn’t watching me continuously, well, they’re just wrong.
Back in the car the camera had changed it’s mind and now told me the battery was fully charged. Eh ?
And the day after, the sciatica that has so plagued me all week had now got worse and started on the other leg as well, now that really hurts.

Visited January 5, 2014

This stone circle stands on a low mound/cairn in a field, some 200 metres west of Old Bourtreebush House. For long a dilapidated ruin where one could conveniently park, the Old Bourtreebush farm buildings were totally renovated during 2013 into a rather luxurious homestead. Rather than invade its privacy, I parked up on a cul-de-sac just to the south of Bruntland Road in Portlethen (this road used to lead to Old Bourtreebush in the days before the dual carriageway severed it).

It’s now a 20 minute walk to the stone circle: follow Bruntland Road to the dual carriageway, cross with care, and walk 50 metres south to pick up the metalled road signposted to Durris. 300 metres on, take the sharp turn on the right, and after another 200 metres, just short of Old Bourtreebush, a new farm track leads left across the stream to join the existing path that heads north along the field boundary. Cross the gate into the field to the north and head west by the field margin to the now-evident stone circle: then cross the tumbledown dyke to access it.

In summer this field often contains cows and calves which often enjoy relaxing in and around the circle. At this time of the year, the field is generally livestock-free.

Old Bourtreebush Stone Circle comprises four large upright orthostats which are visible from afar, as well as a number of additional large—but sadly now fallen—stones. The tallest upright stands just a shade under three metres high. One of these large stones is square and blocky, but current opinion is that this is not a recumbent stone circle.

See Canmore.

Then it was off to visit the nearby Aquhorthies stone circle too.

I headed up to Cheetham barrow today and it is easy to find. It is a nice straightforward 15 minute walk from Hawkshaw village and if you use the OS map it is easy to locate

The barrow is bigger than the pictures suggest and it is a nice, quiet location where you can get some decent but not spectacular views to the south over Manchester.

Its difficult to understand why this location was chosen for the barrow as it is not the highest point around but then again if we knew why our ancestors chose these places then these places wouldn’t be as special as they are

Although (arguably) not as dramatically sited as the enclosures (count ‘em) upon Foel Offrwm to the east, the hill fort located upon Foel Faner nevertheless occupies a position to die for.... literally, perhaps, if you happened to be unfortunate enough to have tried to storm it back in its heyday. Cadair Idris is the dominating factor here, the legendary mountain massif emphatically claiming the southern/south-western skyline, the sublime Mawddach Estuary duly ensuring the lower regions are equally pleasing to the eye.

Unlike the aforementioned Foel Offrwm, access to Foel Faner is relatively straightforward, prospective visitors presented with the luxury of a way-marked route known as ‘The Precipice Walk’ serviced by its own car park. Should you decide to follow the ‘high level option’ along Foel Cynwch – as I would recommend – the reason for the moniker will become all too obvious, the hillside falling more or less vertically to the Afon Mawddach and A470 below to the west (unfortunately the latter is currently in a bit of a mess, courtesy of very ongoing road improvements). The walk is worth the effort in its own right, to be honest, particularly if you aren’t that confident in your upland navigational abilities... or simply getting on a bit! Tell me about it. However if this doesn’t appeal there is a ‘lakeside walk’ beside Llyn Cynwych which will get you there just the same. As it happens I take that on the way back to the car.

I’ve only a couple of hours to spare before the hills are once again subsumed into that total darkness rarely, if ever, experienced in suburbia.... so I’m obliged to get a move on so as to make best use of the golden light which has rendered this morning’s dull, monochromatic grey but a distant memory. The hill fort crowning Foel Faner lies to the immediate (approx) south-west of Foel Cynwch and is well seen from the latter, with Cadair Idris towering above and beyond. It is an impressive sight. A short, somewhat rough descent and re-ascent later (serves me right for taking a short cut) I am within the Iron Age enclosure, gazing across Llyn Cynwch to Foel Offrwm and today’s earlier haunts. The univallate dry stone defences are pretty substantial, although not overly so, the entrance to the north-east apparently protected by an outwork. That is more or less that in terms of archaeological detail. But it is enough since the views are simply sensational toward Abermawddach, whilst Y Rhinogydd lie resplendent in gold to the west. Sure, there’s gold in them thar hills. No, really, there is.... although I assume not a lot of it is left underground nowadays. Yeah, a little way north within Coed-y-Brenin (King’s Wood) a minor, dead end road heads north-east from the A470 near the confluence of the Afon Eden and Mawddach. Park at the terminus and follow the track to see the waterfalls of Pistyll Cain and Rhaeadr Mawddach.... and if you’re very, very lucky you might just come across a nugget. Right on!

As for myself, spending the dying embers of this wondrous day upon the rampart of Foel Faner is more than ample reward for my efforts, despite said ‘embers’ being fanned by a very sprightly wind indeed. Hey, in the absence of any golden nuggets let’s just say this is another jewel in the proverbial crown of Merioneth. And there are quite a few, are there not? So many, perhaps, that only the likes of Idris himself would’ve had the neck muscles to wear it.

A hundred yards away and across the road from the stone circle is this three stone row. More of less aligned on the winter solstice sunset and summer solstice sunrise. The stones aren’t really big, two to three feet high, with some field clearance in between.
We were here apres sunset on the winter solstice, the sun had gone down and all the clouds to the east were a gorgeous golden colour.
The stone row has a draw all of it’s own but to have such a good stone circle over the road, makes this a must see site, and with all the other stuff nearby, forts, standing stones and other circles, burial chambers and rock art make this whole area a must see place.

Visited January 1, 2014
New Year at Tyrebagger Stone Circle

New Year dawned fine and clear but with rain forecast for afternoon. So what better than an excursion to view Tyrebagger Stone Circle at sunrise!

Sunrise is at 08.49 am in Aberdeen on New Year’s Day, so an early start was required, something I would not normally contemplate on account of the rush-hour mayhem here at that hour. But not today, of course. This was the perfect opportunity. And I wasn’t disappointed, as I hope the views accompanying these notes illustrate. The atmosphere in those 10 minutes immediately following sunrise has to be experienced to be believed.

Mission acconplished, it was off to nearby Tyrebagger hill to enjoy a leisurely 1½ hour stroll to the sumnit and back as the cloud gathered, then back home for lunch.

31/12/2013 – Last day of the year and I fancied a bit of a mad adventure to end on so I turned again to the fieldnotes of drewbhoy for inspiration and picked this cairn to try and find. It turned out as tricky as it looked. Starting from the same place as Drew,we headed north first, then looped west to climb Millstone Hill and back east through the woods to find the cairn. Trees are well spaced, so no problem there but under foot it’s pretty hard going. Got there in the end. Cairn is very overgrown and not that exciting. The stone with Ogham inscription is worth the trip on it’s own though. I really liked it. Back to the car via the ring cairn, which was again hard work and a bit tricky to find. Nice way to finish the year and made it back before the rain started, which is always a good thing.