Cova del Alarb is in the Alberes Mountains to the south of Argeles-Sur-Mer. It is quite easily reached by leaving the town and going under the motorway towards the Chateau de Valmy.
The path up from here is clearly marked as is the position of the dolmen when it is reached. It is around 10 km to the east of Balma del Moro.
The views from the path up the hill and from the dolmen itself are superb, making it well worth a visit if in the Languedoc-Rousillon area.
Balma del Moro is at around 600 metres in the Alberes Mountains on the Col- del Pomers to the south of Laroque des Albere .This is in the Languedoc-Rousillon area. It can be reached by pathways , which are clearly marked , being in France, from either Laroque des Albere or Sorede. Markings on a board nearby put it at between 4000 and 2000 B.C.
The climb up is quite strenuous but the views and the dolmen are worth it. Both of the villages have some fine bars which we found very relaxing after the walk.
Two years ago ,almost to the day I found seven unrecorded marked rocks .Today it was only five new ones with one particularly photogenic . I’ll post the older pics soon .
There are two fabulous reconstructed crannogs here at Craggaunowen. I hoped they would be a further distance into the lake but are actually only a few metres from the mainland.
This portal tomb is located in Craggaunowen Folk Park near Sixmilebridge. I believe it is signposted from Shannon / Bunratty.
This portal tomb is so neat looking that at first I thought it was a fake. Seemingly it is genuine.
It is about 1.25m high and the cap stone is triangular making for a strange shaped chamber.
This standing stone is located in Craggaunowen folk park in Co. Clare.
It is about 1.5m high. It is mentioned on the information leaflet that they give out but is not on the OS Map.
Fields should not be this muddy at this time of year (august 07) but that aside, I was well surprised to see that this has its own little fógra. I’d say this is a bowl barrow, but with very little evidence of a ditch. It’s about 10 metres in diameter and rises to about 2 and a half metres high. Most of the views surrounding here are blocked by field boundaries and trees.
I took a wander down to the stones after checking out the yew and the cupmarked stone in the churchyard.
In looks as though the field is being left for hay and all three rings are currently pretty overgrown.
It’s a crackin’ spot on the valley floor, I guess these rings would have made quite an impression on prehistoric visitors to this beautiful Glen.
Frustratingly this large hillfort south of Eggardon hill is surrounded by foot paths and open access land but very little of it can be seen without going on to private land.
What can be seen is the southern outer rampart and two barrows to the west, on the hillslope of the valley which the hillfort runs down. The bank which can be seen looks in good condition and at this point is about two and a half metres in height.
The nearby round barrows are low in height and the more southerly is smaller in size than the northern one. Their condition gives the appearance of having been ploughed or dug into at some time. One of these barrows according to L.V.Grinsell has a five foot long sarsen stone on it’s top, although I haven’t seen it personally I have seen a recent photo of it still in situ.
This site is well worth a visit for the views of the surrounding hills and the nearby coast. To the north is Eggardon and to the south Abbotsbury castle and to the west is Shipton hill.
This lovely little stone, tucked away in the corner of the gated burial ground is a bit of an unexpected delight. It’s nice that the stone is still within the shadow of the yew tree. A lovely spot.
The terrier and I recently spent a couple of days camping on the shores of Loch Tay.
I could see by the map that getting to this site was going to be a bit of a struggle but Tiompans lovely pictures and Stan Beckensall’s description of the site in his lovely book Circles of Stone had this marked down as a must-see.
I parked up in a gap on the roadside at approx NN697422 and then passed through the field gate onto the steep hillside. The contours fall pretty close together here and the ground is pretty wet. It took the terrier and I a good bit of too’ing and fro’ing to pick our way through the chest-high bracken and shin-deep bogs to climb the steepest part of the hill. Eventually we reached the final stone wall, the slope eased off a little and the walking became a little easier.
As we worked our way up the slope I could see a group of people standing roughly where I had worked out that the carvings should be, just my luck I thought, having slogged up the hill to have my peace disturbed by a bunch of folk shooting rabbits or some such nonsense.
As I moved up the hill the figures began to take shape “that fella doesn’t half look like George” I thought, “that other fella is the dead pop of Stan Beckensall, blimey there’s Richard Bradley!” I began to think that perhaps the pot of expresso that I’d drunk before setting off was having some bizarre hallucinogenic effect. As I got closer I could see the bloke who looked like George squinting and smiling at me.
Basically what I’d stumbled upon was the tail-end of an excavation by Richard Bradley and his team with George, Stan with Paul Frodsham paying a visit. Here was me on my first visit to Perthshire, I pick an obscure upland site to visit and stumble across this jolly bunch.
As for the site itself, the excavations were coming to an end, Richard Bradley busied himself ensuring that the recording and back-filling was all going to plan. Stan kindly showed me around the site including some new carvings. I was fortunate enough to be able to lift the turf off some of the known carvings and basically drink the whole thing in.
From my point of view it was a real privilege to be able to sit down in the landscape and discuss archaeology and rock art with such lovely folk as George and Stan.
Beautiful rock art in a fantastic landscape shared with excellent company. Who could ask for more?
From on top of this rock you can clearly see the standing stone of Longstone.
themodernantiquarian.com/site/7744/longstone.html
The Rock itself is a massive natural landmark and this combined with its views of the surrounding hills and the fact there is a church dedicated to St. Bridget beside make me think that it may have had some importance dating back to pre-christain times.
There are 5 standing stones clearly shown on the OS map to the norht of Lough Gur.
They are two far apart to be called a stone row I thing and may be more of an avenue.
Eogan in the North Munster Project suggests they may be leading towards a ford on the river camoge or may be a territorial marker between two different areas.
The stones arent particulary dramatic all smaller than 0.5m high.
The fourth stone is missing and talking to a local guy he told me there was a deal made over its removal.
The North Munster Project shows a few more stones to the south of this that arent on the OS map and I will try and investigate these also.
I think they may be a route from the ceremonial Lough Gur to the defensive hill-fort at Knockroe.
A lovely stone row and its just in off the road so access is easy.
The tallest stone (beside the tree) is maybe 1m high while the stone at the western end is a lovely craggy rock.
I had this on my list to visit for a long time because I thought Cnoc Firinne may be visible from here.
However the row seems more to be leaning towards the mountains to the south, the Ballyhouras I think.
This site is close to Friarstown hill. However there is no sign of a stone here. There is a blackthorn thicket in the spot where the stone should be but it clearly isnt in the thicket.
This standing stone is about 1.5m high by about 1.5m wide. It may be white-washed though I wasnt sure. It it can actually be seen from the road although it is about 1km in from where I parked. There is a spot on the road where it is only about 300m in but parking is very dangerous here.
The standing stone itself is on a hill with about five ring-forts marked on the map. Two I could clearly see on the day. I read in a book by a guy called Tom O’Connor that this was the capital of Munster at one stage and called Teamhair Luachra.
I dont know how trustworthy the reference is though.
This standing stone is no longer here.
It would have stood about 2km to the south of Cnoc Greine.
I spoke to a local man who said that it was toppled because people thought it could have fallen on people or animals! It was then broken up and removed.
It seems to have happened within living memory. I should have asked some more questions of him at the time.
Three fields in from the really rather good farm park. Great selection of ride-ons for kids.
According to Frances Lynch (Prehistoric Anglesey 1970, 167):
“More is known about the burials close to the large stones at Henblas, Llangristiolus, but a good deal of confusion remains. The stones in question, which are huge glacial erratics, were long considered to be an artificial structure, some monstrous megalithic tomb, and have naturally attracted a good deal of legend and speculation. It seems clear that there were originally other stones,” (see Rhiannon below) “probably more erratics, in the vicinity, and that in removing these an urn containing burnt bones and a ring of blue glass were found. Even though the stones are a natural feature, this burial need not be doubted for they are a very remarkable phenomenon which must have attracted the attention and admiration of a people used to setting up meini hirion and other large stone monuments”
Those who venture west of the Hurlers will come across these two cairns over near the small engine house known as Silver Valley. From here it is a pleasant walk towards the Craddock Moor sites.
One of the most featurless hills on Bodmin Moor, best known for its man made tin streaming remains that encircle it. It is a large rounded lump to the east of Roughtor and Brown Willy best approached from the ford at Bowithick.
I last ventured on to its barren slopes about 20 years ago and my memory was of feeling quite disorientated by the lack of landmarks.
Today, 12 Aug 07, there is a good clear sky and plenty of daylight to let me explore the hill further.
I start up by climbing a gully to where I remember there being some mining remains, these are easily found and I continue on towards the summit, not sure exactly where it is.
I pass what could be a stone row but is more likely to be an ancient field boundry and suddenly Roughtor and Showery Tor can be seen away to the west. Brown Willy appears soon after.
On reaching a highpoint I turn left and make for the summit. Two low cairns can be seen, looking like any other robbed out cornish cairns but as I get closer I can see that the nearest has a stone standing inside it. This cairn is about 12 ft across with the central stone about 3ft high. From this cairn it is a short walk to the larger cairn that crowns the summit. Even from this close all I expect to find is a low pile of stones, all be it larger than the last cairn.
How wrong could I be! The low bank of the cairn, about 30 to 35ft across, surrounds a cist with all four walls intact and the capstone perched over it. The cist is about 6ft long and 3 ft wide with a solid granite floor. How come I have not read about it before? This is one of the best preserved cists I have found on the moor. Part of me starts to think it has been built in later times to fool people like me but....
The OS map marks five cairns on the hilltop, I can only find another two, one of which is just a platform of stones adjecent to the summit cairn. The other sits a little distance downslope to the SE.
From the summit my journey took me down to the source of the River Fowey, which once gave its name to the moor. It is a quiet place, rarely visited by man, and yet his handywork is all around in the form of tin streaming channels, something started on the moor by bronze age man. Somewhere in the area there is a stone row, but today I fail to find it. perhaps next time.....
This collection of stones, three standing and one lying across another is not noted on maps and I can find no references to it in any books. The uprights form a semi circle around the other stone which lies atop of another. Other stones may at one time have compleated the circle but are now fallen or lost. The setting lies in an area of the moor that has been heavily robbed of stone over the years and is only a short distance from a low lying quarried outcrop. Goldiggins Quarry is just to the NE, a good point to make for if trying to find this site.
This is a huge Bronze Age cairn, which, typically, for Cumbria, has been reduced down by fellwalkers, who, in their ignorance, have done what they do: mess about with summit cairns for their own shelter.
How ignorant “modern” man is. From the middle ages onwards we have helped to destroy numerous ancient monuments, and, on the Cumbrian fells, are still free to do so.
As Francis Pryor writes about in his outstanding book “Britain BC”, in the uplands of Britain the barrows change from earthen or megalithic to those made of stones: the cairns.
The cairns don’t seem to be protected very well. In fact, in reality, they don’t seem to have any protection. The archaeological records of these places in Cumbria are vague or non existant. Who cares about these remote cairns, which is what they all sem to be?
It’s a lonely summit – you won’t meet anyone up here. From the cairn the views are outstanding. On a clear day Scotland, North Wales, and the Isle of Man can be seen, and on exceptional days the mountains of Ireland have been claimed to be in view.
The Stockdale Moor (Sampson’s Bratfull) site is seen well from here, as is the modern eyesore of Sellafield (formerly Calder Hall, Windscale, etc.). Ancient and modern. Also, there is a good view of Burnmoor Tarn, and the cairn at the northern end, Maiden Castle. It makes me think of sightlines.
As well as the three stones of the alignment there is another similar shaped stone with cup marks approx 30metres to the west of the westernmost stone .
I’m not quite sure what the difference is between the hillfort and this site as they appear to be one and the same to me, but it is a large enclosure / fort with multiple banks and ditches. Although it is on a high hill it is not on the crown, it is on a slight slope into the valley.
This may well be secondary to nearby Chilcombe which is about a mile to the east of this site.
One of the last hills in the Clwydian range going north, only Prestatyn then it’s the Irish sea. It was a nice day and after an afternoon on Ffrith beach we found ourselves driving past this hillfort (coincidence ?) so I just had to go up didn’t I. It was quite a long walk, there is no direct way up, the western side is almost sheer cliffs and the path on the eastern side follows the hill south before going up. The hill fort is like the hill, long and thin 200m long by 50m wide, on the eastern edge there are maybe 3 ditches and banks, it’s hard to say because of very dense gorse and bracken , the worst thing about this hillfort are on top at one end is a mast and small building and at the other end is well actually the other end is gone eaten away by a massive quarry . On the plus side there is a cave (no time to find it though) and amazing views 360 degrees all round.
