Latest Fieldnotes

We parked the car on the small lane to the east of the hill, there are parking places, but no stile into the field so i’m unsure of whether we were trespassing or not. Eric, our two Jack Russells and myself ascended the hill from the north, passing through one gate at the top. Passed the large square concrete wotsit, reservoir ? and came upon the cairn.
Or what was left of it, it has been badly treated in times gone by. Lumpy, misshapen, and very much disheveled but still there. Farmer Barleymo was muck spreading in the next field which I’m told lends a most countryside smell to the place.
Good views south and south west to Chrome hill and Hollins hill, and south east to High Wheeldon.

Visited: October 21, 2013

The Migvie cupmarked boulder lies just a few metres south of Glack Farmhouse, on the verge of the track leading up to the farm, and right beside the drystane dyke to the east of the track.

The boulder appears to consist of a red sandstone and, according to Canmore, has on its upper surface some 42 cupmarks about 10 millimetres deep and averaging 40 millimetres in diameter.

Although Migvie is signposted as 1½ miles from Logie Coldstone, it is a very small and scattered community: there is no ‘Migvie’ sign welcoming you there and it’s easy to bypass Migvie altogether. The best guide is to keep a look out for the churchyard on the north of the road. When you see it you’ve arrived. Park by the churchyard and walk 75 metres east along the main road to Glack Farm.

More details at Canmore.

A robbed out round cairn on Curbar Edge, the stones in the foreground are the remains of a cist. The views from here are extensive, to Baslow Edge and the Eagle Stone to the south, and over Stoke Flat to Over Owler Tor, Mother Cap, Higger Tor, Stanage Edge, Banford Edge and Win Hill to the north.

There are numerous cairns in this area. Stoke Flat to the north has a stone circle and cairnfield, to the south is the Eagle Stone cemetery and Gardom’s Edge Neolithic enclosure and to the east is Big Moor, that includes the Barbrook circles and cairns, as well as Swine Sty field systems.

When this cairn was excavated (or more accurately destroyed) in 1913, by the Duke of Rutland, the cist was found to contain the remains of a cremation, a broken food vessel, a flint scraper and a broken bronze knife.

Everyone seems to be in agreement on this one, in that this is quite an enigmatic and peaceful place and I have to agree that we found it be so too. Maybe it’s that romance we have with ruins that does it, as obviously there’s only about half of the original circle remaining, the rest scattered about, moss-covered and (almost) forgotten.

We found it quite easily after parking up almost opposite the site on the road between Corfe and Studland and I was hoping to catch the last rays of sunlight to illuminate the stones. However the fir trees surrounding them were so dense that almost all the light was shut out so I had to resort to long exposures and flash. Having set up we were suddenly surprised by another person marching purposefully through the woods and half expected to be asked to leave (it is apparently private property), but it turned out to be a friendly local pagan who regularly visited the stones and who told us about where and how the circle was originally, before bidding goodbye and disappearing into the now increasingly murky depths of the woods. Having reeled off a few shots we explored the half circle (festooned with coins, well about £3 worth anyway) and decided that it was now too dark to carry on taking photos and that we’d return in the morning.

The following morning, clumping around in the undergrowth and magically finding one stone after another, the better light revealed just how large this circle once was and the relatively large size of the comprising stones. I think if there was a strong candidate for the repositioning and raising of it’s stones then this circle would be right up there. It seems a terrible shame that it should have been so disarranged and neglected and now almost pushed aside by the serried ranks of pines, but in so doing would it not lose it’s enigmatic nature?

Well, three years on there’s no improvement; this struck me as one of the loneliest circles I’ve visited despite being only a few yards from the main road. I also managed to miss it at first (following my usual pattern) but with careful scrutiny was able to make out a path that was just trodden enough to guide me through the undergrowth as well as indicating that it does receive some visits. I was surprised to find it so overgrown when on the ferry coming over there was a cartoon-type map of the island with a symbol of three monoliths marking its spot hence I expected a sign and a cleared location. I’m not saying I wanted it surrounded by a neat little fence a la Torrylin or Auchgallon but surely it wouldn’t take much effort for the local authority or Scotish Heritage or whoever to cut back the bracken on a regular basis so we could see what’s left of the circle as its makers intended. I’m glad I went but left feeling a little sorry for it.

Visited 11.10.13

This is an obvious ‘must see’ extension when visiting Parc-Le-Broes burial chamber.
Easily seen from the footpath and now has its own info board thanks to the Forestry Commission. The cave has a ‘keyhole’ shape and the entrance is large – no need for stooping here! You pass a smaller cave entrance on the way up the steps but this is also barred and locked.

I had forgotten just how good a site this is – despite the new metal railings.
Up the steps through the trees and into the cave entrance. Although the inner part of the cage is fenced off to protect it (there are also bats roosting) you can still get a great ‘feel’ for the place by sitting on one of the large stones in the entrance.

The information board states that the cave was occupied up to 28,000 years ago. I sat and tried to contemplate this. People sat just where I was; keeping warm next to a fire, looking out across the tundra. I imagined how perhaps the cave was utilised with items and people occupying their own little part of the cave, children playing within the safety of the ‘family home’. Perhaps I am putting an idealistic ‘21st century’ slant on things – but it’s a nice thought anyway! I am still trying to get my head around people, like you and me, occupying this cave so very long ago – wow!

The fact that this is also home to Briatains oldest cave art only adds to the ‘wow factor’.

Anyway, needless to say, I would heartily recommend to this special place if you ever get the chance.

Visited 11.10.13

As I was passing on my way to Crawley Rocks Promontory Fort I just had to stop by and say ‘hello’.

The site is pretty much how I remembered it although it was a bit more overgrown.
The inside of the chamber was full of high nettles.

I had however forgotten that the stones had a pretty pink hue to them.
Quite unusual I thought?

Although the Burial Chamber is collapsed and in a bit of a state I still think it is quite impressive and certainly worth a visit when in the area.

As mentioned before, you can’t see the tomb from the path. You need to come off the path to your right and have a wander around the brambles until you find it – not difficult.

Failed visit 11.10.13

Directions:
From Cat Hole Cave, keep heading north along the path (away from the car park) and the cave is somewhere in the trees on the right – although I couldn’t find it!

I knew nothing about this cave prior to my recent re-visit to Cat Hole Cave.

When walking from the car park, through the gate, towards Parc –le – Breos there are now new information boards erected by the Forestry Commission Wales. These give details of the various flora and fauna to be found in the area along with the historic / prehistoric sites.

As expected this included the burial chamber, Cat Hole Cave and the lime kiln. However, I wasn’t expecting to see a reference to this cave; stating that prehistoric remains had been found there. The information board stated that a wooden marker/info board had been erected at all of these sites.
Sure enough there was one at the 3 sites I knew about so I fully expected to be able to easily find the marker for the Tooth Cave. I (quite excitedly) headed up the path keeping a keen eye out to my right where the map showed the cave to be.

I walked right to the end of the path (where you come to a stile and an open field) but I knew the cave was in the trees so I had walked too far. I retraced my steps back towards the car park and continued to look for the wooden marker post – no joy. I ended up back at the information board next to the car park and sure enough it showed I had twice walked past the cave’s location.

So, either I somehow managed to walk straight past the marker post twice without spotting it (unlikely – but possible!) or more likely there isn’t a marker for the Tooth Cave or there is but it is amongst the trees and not near the path?

I have since managed to find out this limited information about the cave:
Lethrid Tooth Cave is the longest cave on the Gower. It was used during the Bronze Age and when excavated it was found to have at least 8 burials – 6 adults and 2 children. The entrance to the cave is blocked by a locked gate.

I didn’t manage to find it but it is worth having a look for when visiting Cat Hole Cave and Parc-Le-Breos. Good luck!

Visited 11.10.13

On a beautiful day it was a pleasure to visit this secluded wooded valley. There were few people about and it was nice to re-visit this easy to access CADW site.

The grass was wet but the sun was warm. A mother and young child were also paying a visit. The little boy eagerly explored the passageway and side chambers of the tomb.
A future TMAer perhaps?

The site was how I remember it from my previous visit although a new Forestry Commission Wales information board had been erected. This gives a brief explanation of the site along with an artist’s impression of how the tomb had been constructed.

I noticed that the old metal info board calls the site Park-Le-Bruce.
No doubt an anglicised spelling?

This is an easy site to access and well worth a visit when on the Gower.

Visited 11.10.13

Directions:
See directions for Caswell Cliff Fort.
When you reach Pwlldu Bay there are two footpaths leading north off the main coastal path. I took the more western path which goes behind a house, across a field and into the woods. The fort is on the eastern side of the woods.

When I use the word ‘path’ what I really mean is a path on the map but nothing on the ground! When you enter the very overgrown woods you are met with a steep sided ravine in which making any headway is difficult. There are lots of moss covered boulders about and trees and roots angled in all directions. It reminded me a bit of the jungle in Jungle Book. Alas there was no sign of any singing/dancing monkeys. Certainly the archaeological remains amongst these trees are not as good!

In all honest I couldn’t make out anything of this promontory fort – but there again I can’t say with 100% certainty that I was looking in the right place to start with.

Perhaps it would be easier to approach the site via the more eastern of the two paths although this would involve walking through the woods the whole of the way.

Visited 11.10.13

Directions:
See directions for Caswell Cliff Fort.
Continue west along the coastal path, past the picturesque Brandy Cove, the large pebble beach off Pwlldu Bay and up onto Pwlldu Head. It took me about 1 hour to walk from Caswell Bay to the fort.

This stretch of coastal path is wonderful with a varied landscape and obvious fantastic coastal views. You do need to take care however, as sections of the path are very close to the edge of the cliff and you are no more than a step away from a ‘half day out with the undertaker’ – as the late great Fred Dibnah used to say.

Pwlldu Head can be seen from a fair distance away as it is the highest point along this part of the coast. Although the path up to it isn’t overly demanding. On the way you pass what looks to be an old lime kiln. I startled a young fox that was enjoying the sunshine on the path between the gorse.

The centre of the fort is now a roughly oval field. Along the northern side of the field, under the hedgerow is a small earthen/stone bank.
Are these part of the remains of the northern defences?

I would recommend a visit for the walk and coastal views but not for much of the archaeology remains.

Visited 11.10.13

Directions:
I parked in the Foreshore car park (opposite Bishop’s Wood – £2.20 for 2.5 hours) on the B4593 although there is another car park directly across the road from Caswell Bay. From Caswell Bay follow the coastal footpath signs west. There is low water tide route across the beach, or if the tide is in, along the narrow road (no pavement).

It was a beautiful autumnal day and after having enjoyed my recent day out on the Gower so much I felt compelled to another visit. This time I decided to walk along the stretch of coastal path between Caswell Bay and Pwlldu Head. Only a short stretch of path but one that would allow me to take in 3 cliff/promontory forts. As an aside, the creation of the Wales Coastal Path has to be one of the best things the Welsh Government has ever done – an unquestionable success enjoyed by many people.

It has been many, many years since I last visited Caswell Bay and I had completely forgotten what a great, family-friendly, place this is. Large car park, toilets, café / shop, Lifeguard station and easy access onto sands. The Bay is quite small so fairly sheltered, the sand soft and litter free and the sea a turquoise blue. The fact the sky was also blue and the sun shining brightly obviously helped matters. I arrived at the beach at 8.30am and noticed a photo-shoot of some sort taking place at the bottom of the beach. As the tide was out I opted for the low tide coastal route which involves walking across the lovely sands around to the right and up a set of steps. This then brings you out onto the coastal path proper.

I looked up to where the Cliff Fort is but there was no chance of an approach from this direction. Near vertical sides with head height bushes of gorse. I decided to continue along the coastal path towards High Pennard Promontory Fort and try accessing the Caswell Fort on the way back via the alternative route along the road to the north of the site.

The route along the road is quite dangerous and you will need to be very careful – particularly if you have children with you. The road is steep, narrow, with a couple of bends and cars that drive too fast. Sections of the road has no pavement so walking along the yellow lines is the best you can hope for.

There is little/nothing that can be seen of the Cliff Fort, other than a roughly triangular shaped field. The boundary of the field (which may or may not have remains of ramparts) is completely overgrown with high bushes and is fenced off.

Although I couldn’t recommend this site to visit from a TMA perspective I can highly recommend a visit to the lovely Caswell Bay and this stretch of the coastal path.

Easy to find down a laneway in this townland, it’s a large boulder, over a metre high with the large basin cut into the top of the stone.

The water was rancid in the .35 of a metre diameter .17 of a metre deep bowl. I was taken aback by, on arrival, my companion immersing both hands into the bowl and stirring up the stink. I asked him why he did that and he said because I can. Good enough.

Small cairn in this megalith rich townland, about 2 metres high and oval shaped, north-south on its longer axis. Some of the material is being eroded away by animal hooves, but we couldn’t make out any structural material. One for completists only.

The sea mist made visibility here on the day we visited near impossible, down to about 20 yards. There’s another cairn in an adjacent field but we couldn’t get access to it (we didn’t try that hard).

This cairn has been very much robbed of its material, in the process of which 3 cists were uncovered and excavated. The cairn has since been left alone.

The northern cist is a classic box, with six flagstones making up the structure. There’s a small hole at the top western corner and I stuck my hand in and took a few shots. It was a tad unnerving, given that the cist would make a perfect hidey-hole for various critters. Another cist is visible towards the centre of the mound, but not as accessible as the northern one. We never found the third amongst the vegetation.

Visited 11.10.13

When visiting Maen Ceti you simply have to stroll over to have a look at this impressive Cairn. Now not very high it still has a fair sized footprint which perhaps gives an idea of how high and impressive it must have been when first built. Speaking of which I wonder if Maen Ceti was robbed of its stones to help build the Cairn?

As with Maen Ceti the views are extensive and this must have made a bold statement ‘back in the day’. Well worth a visit in its own right.

Visited 11.10.13

It was the end of my day on the beautiful Gower peninsular and it was time to head on home. However, I couldn’t leave without taking the opportunity to visit the mighty Maen Ceti.

I parked in the very bumpy car park (had the place to myself) and headed towards the tomb which is just about visible from the parking area. The nearby Cairn is also visible from here. The sun was still shining in a lovely autumnal blue sky with only white fluffy clouds for company.

It is only a short walk but a cold breeze made me do my jacket up. The last time I visited the path was quite bogy with large puddles to negotiate. No such problems this time although it seems the resident cattle and horses favour the path as their chosen site for emptying their bowels.
I wouldn’t have minded but I didn’t have my bag and shovel with me in order to take advantage of their generosity!

As I approached Maen Ceti I was taken aback by just how massive the capstone is. It was larger than I had remembered – it really is huge. There are many large stones scattered both around the tomb and under the capstone. I noticed that the ground under the capstone was covered in a large puddle.

There are fine views to be had from Maen Ceti and if you ever have the good fortune to visit the Gower be sure to visit.
This is a ‘must see’ site for anyone who is even remotely interested in our prehistoric past. This is one of those sites that never fails to impress – regardless of how many times you visit.

Visited May 8, 2011

Hunebed D18 Rolde lies 200 metres south of D17, behind the cemetery adjacent to Sint-Jacobskerk in Rolde.

Much better preserved than its twin, D18 originally had seven capstones supported by 14 sidestones, as well as a pair of entrance stones—these last largely buried in the sand so that only their tops are showing. D18 is a particularly neat and tidy hunebed, almost complete, hardly surprising since it has experienced restoration on numerous occasions. Two of the capstones are actually now held in place by steel pins.

An archetypical hunebed, enhanced by the oak tree that arched gracefully over it until 1984, D18 has been illustrated in drawings and paintings many times over the years. But, because it was disturbing the hunebed and threatening its cohesion, this tree had to be removed.

Visited May 8, 2011

Hunebed D17 Rolde lies 200 metres north of its twin ( D18) in a rectangular park just east of Sint-Jacobskerk in Rolde and behind its graveyard. You can access the hunebed from the village’s main street (Hoofdstraat) by following Kerkbrink, which winds past the cemetery.

Along the northern boundary of the park, which nowadays sports a number of mature oak trees, is a walking route which follows the former Assen-Stadskanaal railway line that closed in 1939. D17 surrounds a historic old oak tree, hollow inside after long ago being struck by lightning, but still alive though now supported by steel rods.

D17 originally consisted of 16 sidestones, two entrance stones and 8 capstones, though all but one of the latter have now collapsed into the crypt, and one of them is split in half. Although two sidestones of the entranceway remain, there is no evidence that this hunebed ever possessed a circle of kerbstones.

STANNON STONE CIRCLE...a return visit.
5th October 2013.

This was my second visit to Stannon stone circle, the first being in May 2012 when it was a dull, over-cast and windy day.
I’d come back for one main reason if truth be told, and that was to see if the negativity I felt there the first time around would still be with me, but this time it was a reasonably sunny day with a light wind so I was hoping for better things.
This circle, in common with Louden circle to the south-east and Fernacre circle directly to the east nestling beneath the southern slopes of Roughtor, has been termed a ‘ceremonial’ circle. This appears to be mainly because of their size, being the three largest circles in Cornwall (aside from the Stripple Stones which is a henge site) and not based on any actual tangible evidence that they were used for this purpose.
Stannon Circle, although not strictly circular, being a mixture of curves and a selection of short straighter segments, is officially 139’-8” x 132’-10” (PastScape) in diameter but that depends entirely on where exactly you take the measurements from, and has between 70-80 stones in its setting in various shapes and sizes and either standing or fallen, but mainly on the smaller size and gives the circle an almost unimpressive look to it for one so large. There is a flattened, well bedded stone, lying off-centre within the circle which may or may not be part of the original build. The locally sourced granite stones to the south-west sector would appear to be the tallest at about a metre high with the remaining standing stones around 0.5 metres with the exception of a large magnificent leaning triangular stone directly west. Those in the north-west quadrant seem to be the most regular in height, type and spacing, with the north and south-east quadrants being rather flattened, small and unevenly spaced. I got the impression that a lot of the stones in these last named areas have suffered the most over the years and possibly been damaged/moved by farm vehicles and replaced randomly closing up many of the more regular spacing’s.

Because of my principal interest in them, the magnificent triangular stone within the setting was the first stone I concentrated on as both Louden and Fernacre circles boast the same such singular flagship stone. I carefully, as best I could taking into consideration that the circle is not truly circular, calculated the exact centre of the monument and took a compass reading. The stone is exactly due west and not slightly NW as I had previously poorly recorded due to me not marking out the centre of the circle more accurately, another reason I felt the need to return.

What hadn’t changed however from my previous field-notes or my thoughts, was the ‘ceremonial’ label that had been bestowed upon this circle and it troubles me.
The term ceremonial to my mind indicates a circle that was built and used for special occasions and because of this on my previous visit was expecting a beautifully crafted true circle with specially selected or even dressed larger stones similar to those at the Hurlers for its setting…not a mish-mash of unregulated rough stones of all differing shapes and predominantly small literally thrown together in a poor attempt at forming a true circle! Working northwards from the triangular stone it started well, but midway along the west to east northern sectors it sort of fell apart! Why? What happened to the grandeur that one would (today) normally expect of a ceremonial monument?
It wasn’t like there was a shortage of larger stones on the moor as they lie everywhere. The transportation of heavy and bulky stones doesn’t appear to have been much of a hindrance to our Late Neolithic/Early Bronze-Age ancestors as seen elsewhere, so why the totally unimpressive array of random small stones instead of those that would have made a statement of the importance of the monument? It is this that puzzles me the most.

Looking around the circle I was drawn to a section to the south-west where the setting looked somewhat different to the rest with those previously mentioned taller stones seemingly purposely erected closer together and more ‘group’ like with some smaller random stones lying around the base of them. My first thought was that ‘something’ took place in this area which seemed to be at the juncture of two straighter sections...but what?
In common with most Bodmin Moor circles, although on this occasion somewhat masked due to the build-up of the china clay banking, Roughtor is in the background overseeing all before it and I won’t be alone in thinking that it was likely to have once been revered by our great ancestors who built these circles.

As for the negativity I felt here last time, well it was more of a bereft feeling this time, but there was more. I still felt that whatever the circle had once stood for was now gone along with its builders and that saddened me, but I still felt that this circle was not understood and it was erected as part of something else and not as a ‘stand alone’ circle.

It was only when I got back home and reflected on what I’d seen and thought at the time that I began to look at things differently. Prior to my initial visit to Stannon, I’d never before left a stone circle behind feeling unsatisfied with what I’d seen and never have again since. One of my reasons for returning, as I have already mentioned, was to check out the triangular stone and it was this that set me thinking again. What special significance could the triangular stones have held to be featured so prominently in the three large circles on this part of Bodmin Moor and what could their separate positions within each circle reveal? Stannon’s triangular stone is due west in its setting, Fernacre’s due east and Louden’s due south. Oddly enough, Stannon circle itself is to the west, Fernacre is to the east and Louden to the south on this section of the moor, so their triangular stones are all on their outermost perimeters of West/East/South…and linked up, the three circles form a triangle themselves! Could this be significant or pure speculation?
The similarities the three circles share could well tell a story. Similar in size, all irregular circles, all built of mainly small stones, all having an impressive singular triangular stone and all within close sight of Roughtor. This suggests to me that they were built by the same people and part of a much greater plan and all at the same time. Were they built to interact with each other and not so important as individual circles after all? In fact why would you require three ‘Ceremonial’ circles within a short distance of each other? Why was one not enough to serve such a small area or community?
Is that why I felt the negativity with Stannon circle because it really was built for a different reason and was not a ‘stand-alone’ circle with a separate function after all? That could possibly explain the three circles apparent lack of quality construction and only roughly circular shapes, but I think I ought to stop there as I’m in danger of over-speculating again…something I can get very good at, but will nevertheless no doubt try to expand on in time! Questions, questions!

Visit date: 4th May 2012

The original plan was to drive to Middle Moor Cross by Camperdown Farm, park up and walk to Fernacre stone circle via Louden circle, a round trip of about 3 miles, as the road/track from the cross is private. Well that was the plan, but it changed when a friend suggested we take her 4x4 and drive beyond the cross and continue along the private track to both circles. We set out on the A30 and took the turning right signposted St Breward opposite the second turning for Temple on the left. It comes at the end of a section of dual carriageway after passing the Jamaica Inn on your left 4 miles prior to this.
This moorland road takes you passed the Trippet Stones on your right at the crossroad signposted Treswigga to the left and St Breward straight on. Turn right here if visiting the Trippets which can be seen from this point.
Continue on the St Breward road by following the signposts and you’ll pass over Delford Bridge then passed East Rose holiday park/fishing on the right. Straight through the next crossroad which in turn brings you to another to the northern end of St Breward at Churchtown. Church Hay Down is on your right at this crossroad and you turn right here signposted Candra. Follow this road which bears around to the right after half a mile and after another bend, over a cattle grid. You’ll then pass the road to Candra Hill on the right and part of the Treswallock Downs which is littered with huge boulders. No shortage of building materials here! The road then sweeps around to the left but as it does there is a short ‘link’ road to the right that you take and then right again on meeting the ‘main’ road which takes you directly to Middle Moor Cross.
Now it was decision time, because you hit a PRIVATE road which is clearly signed. After consideration we decided to take a chance and go for it. We continued and soon met another private road sign at Camperdown Farm, so now had been warned twice. Rightly or wrongly we again decided to continue because there wasn’t a soul about as far as the eye could see. Within five minutes I spotted on the horizon of the slightly rising ground a dark shape on the moor on the right-hand size of the track. Yep, it was the leaning triangular stone of the Louden circle our first port of call. I loved it and gave me a much nicer feel than I got at Stannon stone circle just over the way by the dreadful china clay quarry next to it! These are big circles in this area of Bodmin Moor but surprisingly the majority of the stones are really quite small in comparison to other Cornish circles and it remains a mystery to me why that should be so. Louden, Stannon and Fernacre all have a major triangular stone and this must surely signify something of significance, but what? No common point on the compass as far as I could tell, but have no knowledge of any celestial alignments that may come into play as that is not my thing!
I counted 36 stones in total at Louden but three were just under the turf. The triangular stone was due south from the centre of the circle. Most of the stones are virtually at surface level but not broken, so it surely indicates a build-up of soil over the years as the stones have sunk into the peaty soil. In the gapped areas I probed the turf with a dowsing rod which my friend carried and discovered three more stones where they should have been in the ring setting just covered with an inch or two of turf. I didn’t count those that were lying immediately to the sides of a couple of stones as they were quite small and possibly broken off the main stone. I would imagine that later in the summer (this was the 4th May) that other than the triangular stone, Louden could be difficult to find due to increased grass length, but once you have found it there is no mistaking it. One clue is that just yards to the east of the circle on the edge of the track on the southern side is a stainless steel ‘box’ nearly at ground level with the letters PO on it.
As at most circles on the moor there are always other stones lying around and it is a hopeless task even considering whether they are part of the site or not. Not shown on my OS map but just across the track from the circle and slightly to the east is what appears to be a lovely stone ring cairn. Close inspection showed it to have been constructed in three stages I thought with three separate rings of edging stones forming it away from the burial area. It was all a bit ‘interfered’ with but that’s what I gathered by close inspection and one is led to believing it may have had a connection with the circle in some way.
Link to photos here:-
picasaweb.google.com/100525707086862773355/LoudenStoneCircle?authkey=Gv1sRgCJ3b5YqlqK6vBA#5739140100505851778

It’s hard to think of the moors above Matlock as being part of the Eastern Moors. As today much of it has been improved, enclosed and afforested. Perhaps the only reminder is a part of Matlock Moor proper.
Tower, Blackbrook, Farley, Upper, Middle and Bottom Moors have all been interfered with to varying degrees.
As with the Eastern Moors to the north these southerly reaches too had Bronze Age monuments and settlement. Enclosure and the coming of the forest however consigned the monuments here to the history books; the Seven Brideron/Bretheren stone circle and the stone/cairn circle near Woodbrook Quarry both destroyed.
A couple of years ago I noticed that a stone was marked as having stood on Farley Moor on the first edition of the 1:2500 O.S map. As with other stones marked on old maps the stone could be anything of any age; marker stone, guide stone, boundary stone or even standing stone.
Working the position out on a modern map put the stones’ location in the middle of forestry. Thinking of the two destroyed circles I assumed the stone, whatever it was, to have long disappeared. How wrong I was.
Luckily, going by Google Earth a fair bit of the plantation had been cleared and the stone should stand just off the clearing in the trees.
And there it was around 6feet tall slender with a tapering top and well weathered. A post medieval marker stone didn’t seem to ring right; it seemed older for what that’s worth.
After researching the stone and area I could find nothing so in the end contacted the Peak Park Board.
In 2003 John Barnatt and Frank Robinson had visited the stone, very impressed, they surmised that with the stones position and weathering that it is quite possibly prehistoric; although excavation would only be able to say for definite.
If it is prehistoric the stone is the third largest standing stone on the Eastern Moors after the felled Old Woman’s Stone on Bamford Moor and the one on Gardom’s Edge.

Visited 5th October 2013

There’s hardly a surfeit of sacred wells in Staffordshire, so any chance to visit one should be grabbed with both hands, something I had sadly neglected to do for some time, but today’s the day, so we strolled through the woods by Knypersley pool on the hunt for the well.

The dappled shade in the trees gave an otherworldly feel as we moved form the relative brightness of the day, passing the dark finger of the Warden’s Tower, poking through the trees on an outcrop to our left. As we moved further into the woods the occasional old moss covered dry stone wall was visible amongst the thickets, as though we were stumbling through a long abandoned hamlet now reclaimed by the forest.

Things started promisingly, with clearly marked paths through the woods, and even a sign pointing us the direction of Gawton’s Stone & Well, but although we came upon the imposing edifice of Gawton’s Stone, the well was proving more elusive. Several tracks branched off from the main path, and I try to remember the relative positioning of the sites from the brief glimpse I had of a map of the woodland back at the visitors centre at Greenway Bank. I rue the decision not to bring an O.S. map, and realise now that I should just have photographed the visitors centre map so I could view it again to refer to on the camera. Knowing the well must be close by we pick a path and strike out toward the distant sound of water. It’s not long before we reach a stream, and the source of the sound, a small waterfall over an old stone dyke, and as the path curves further around it becomes clear that it’s not the path to the well.

We soon find ourselves back on the main trail again, all sense of direction having been clouded amongst the trees. Walking through the woods makes me think of Robert Holdstock’s novels, this place could almost be Staffordshire’s own mini Mythago Wood, such is character of the place, with hidden landmarks and a sense of nature pervading and reclaiming the once landscaped old country estate.

Back at Gawton’s stone I review the brief notes I have about the place, which indicate the well is only about 100 meters to the north of the stone, so trying to gauge the direction by our brief glimpses of the sun through the trees, we spot a track off the main path we had previously passed, and head off again.

Only a short way ahead I can see another old lichen covered wall, and an entranceway into a copse of trees, and spotting clouties hanging from the boughs I know we must be in the right place. The well itself is on a gentle slope, surrounded by the protective embrace of a grove of yew trees. A small elliptical stone basin catches the bubbling water, which flows into a larger rectangular one before running off in a thin stream down the slope, before disappearing again into the earth again near the old wall. I’m instantly struck by the atmosphere of the place and can see at once why it is considered one of Staffordshire’s most spiritual sites. The oval stand of yews is reputed to be the remains of a druidic grove, and although these specimens must be considerably younger than that, perhaps they are the descendants of those long forgotten trees.

We spend some time here, and it’s nice to find a place that is well cared for, there is no sign of rubbish, the clouties are sympathetic to the site, and even the aborglyphs on the surrounding trees have a spiritual dimension, someone having gone to great effort to carve a fine yin-yang symbol near the base of a tree.

The waters of the well have supposed curative properties, being renowned as a ‘cure for the King’s evil’ fortunately I’m not afflicted with any skin complaints on which to try it out, but a splash of the cool water to my face is welcome after all our tramping through the woods.

This whole area of Knypersley wood exudes a magical ambiance, in some ways it reminds me a lot of Alderley Edge, having the same sort of feel to it. No matter how old the current well is, it has the same sublime atmosphere I’ve experienced at Cornish holy wells, and was evidently a sacred place to local people long ago, and well, it still is today.

Although ultimately failing to deliver the total isolationist vibe the Mam C and I crave when out and about in the South Walian uplands – and indeed I had erroneously anticipated – a visit to the great Garn Wen nevertheless proved to be a very worthwhile experience. Yeah, not sussing that the Beacons Way (unfortunately another of those long distance marching routes) passes right by, en-route to 2,000ft(ish) Bal Mawr and Chwarel-y-Fan, I reckoned I had a cunning alternative destination avoiding the brightly-clad hordes sure to be upon the Offa’s Dyke path today. Not quite, one frightfully upper class young ‘laydee’ exclaiming to her father .... “but, but ... there’s nowhere to go to the toilet... take me on a proper walk next time!“.... or words to that effect. Suffice to say there appears to be no evidence of excrement here, Mr Holmes. I swear I can almost hear the old stones sigh, although, to be fair, such people were never going to stay long, huddled within the ‘muppet shelter’ as they were.

Following TSC raising the profile of the site with the pioneering TMA visit, I actually deferred a pilgrimage to Garn Wen twice during March. You can’t hurry love, as they say. As long as ‘they’ doesn’t include Phil Collins, that is. However the Mam C has a ‘pass’ today, so... why not? Approaching the serene Vale of Ewyas with John Foxx’s, er, idiosyncratic take of ‘Have a Cigar’ upon the car stereo, is probably not the norm, but then neither is our intended route.... starting from the small hamlet of Lower Henllan, complete with its own chapel.... although I’d recommend parking a little beforehand (assuming you approach from the south) where the road achieves a quite inconceivable width for these parts. Ascending the farm track to, appropriately enough, Upper Henllan, we are greeted with a beaming smile from an attractive middle aged woman driving downhill, the response at odds with the ‘keep to the path etc’ notices. Class act. At the farm, however, with are met with a dismissive discourtesy for being courteous enough to ask for permission to walk through the farmyard, albeit upon a public footpath. Whatever. The track veers right across a ford and... technically... proceeds along a sunken bridleway, swinging left to ascend above one of the tumbling streams feeding the Afon Honddu. We, however – not being able to read a map after 25 years of practice – cut across a beautiful, if ‘undulating’, meadow, the retrospective view of Hatterrall Hill, site of a promontory fort, quite exquisite. How can this field archaeology-lark be so beautiful? If you take our diversion be sure to veer right at the stile to gently (luckily, since it is way, way too humid today) ascend the path toward the head of the cwm.

The flora is impressive, particularly the rowans, branches heavy with scarlet berries, Nature’s bounty for the local birds. We had to cut down our rowan at home in Essex since it grew way, way too large. The tree found it too easy. No need here, however. Not in its proper habitat.... an example of natural selection achieving the optimum. A dung beetle of the most glossy black hue I can imagine – and, hey, I can imagine black – labours with its load beneath my boot, the latter held aloft just in the nick of time. Sensing its imminent death, it freezes.... and then moves on. Instances of everyday life.

At the head of the cwm we encounter several ‘bubbling brooks’, marked as ‘springs’ upon the map. Pure water issuing forth from the hillside. Looking back (to the left) I recollect that Graig-ddu possesses the remnant of a cist within a cairn... but what of Garn Wen? The path leads us astray, so I’m obliged to take a compass bearing to lead us through deep fern to the crest of the ridge above. Here the modern beehive cairn acts as a homing beacon. As we approach, the circumference of the monument fills my DSLR viewfinder. Yeah, this was once – hey, is – a very substantial cairn indeed. As TSC relates, not particularly high, but the area covered is significant. We sit down upon the rim and.... well... don’t do an awful lot, to be honest... except try and take it all in. The Mam C does whatever she does, whilst my mind drifts back to past times upon distant peaks... and comes to the conclusion that, far from being placed upon some minor, outlying hill, the great cairn of Garn Wen actually possesses a complete 360 degree vista of hills. In short it is set within a natural amphitheatre, arguably the greatest stage hereabouts, perhaps? I agree, it seems unlikely, what with today’s accepted mentality of ‘biggest is best’. But nonetheless here it is. Why not come and see, and judge, for yourself?

My watch shows that some three hours have elapsed and we must leave. More’s the pity. With a great beehive cairn on.

Signposted from Trilla, this looks on the map as though you could get to it from the lake but we’d driven that way, and didn’t spot anything that looked un-gated and passable .....
It’s quite a way by track from the village – there were may points when we wondered if it was advisable to challenge the hire car – but the dolmen signs appeared every so often, and eventually after a 90 degree bend where the fields opened out, we found the dolmen tucked in a little copse.
A breezy spot, with quality graffiti and an intriguing view towards the Pic de Bugarach – en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pic_de_Bugarach