Ackland’s Moor Standing Stone (south) – 30.3.2004
Full 8 figure grid ref (from English Heritage scheduling) = SS13284435
At last, something easy to find! This stone, despite still only being 1.45m tall, sticks out like a sore thumb, about 100m north east of the Old Light. I took a pic with a lamb close to it – aaah.
Beacon Hill Settlement – 30.3.2004
Full 8 figure grid ref (from English Heritage scheduling) = SS13224425
The Iron Age hut circles here are not that easy to spot except one which stands out as quite an obvious circle (but it’s still not exactly Chysauster!). The circles are in the area 20m or so south of the wall of the ‘Old Light’ (the old Lighthouse).
Beacon Hill Stones – 30.3.2004
Full 8 figure grid ref (from English Heritage scheduling) = SS13194409
I think I found this standing stone. It’s not obvious. In general I need to point out that the principle of ‘livestock rubbing posts’ doesn’t seem to exist on Lundy because most of the nine standing stones recognised by English Heritage on the island are not the right size to be considered as Bronze Age menhirs in Cornwall.
South West Field Stone & Cairn – 30.3.2004
Full 8 figure grid ref (from English Heritage scheduling) = SS13314381
I think I found this site. A small standing stone with a flat cairn behind it.
Rocket Pole Pond Chambered Tomb – 30.3.2004
Full 8 figure grid ref (from English Heritage scheduling) = SS13624372
I’m really annoyed that I didn’t find this because it’s the only chambered tomb on the island. Although the English Heritage directions say “165m north east of Rocket Pole Pond”, at this point I couldn’t find it (!) and was wondering if it was covered in one of the pockets of bracken that inhabit this area of the west side. When I got home I realised that the 8 digit grid ref places it actually only 20m south and 20m west of the Tent Field Fives Stones Monolith; which I had found (SS13624372 & SS13644374). Shame I didn’t realise this at the time. I suspect that either the EH directions are wrong (North north east maybe?), or the grid ref of one of the sites is wrong.
Tent Field Menhir (south west) – 30.3.2004
Due to the lack of time I just peered at this from over the wall. It is right next to the wall in the south west corner of the field (called ‘Tent Field’). This is 2.2 m long and would have been a very substantial stone when erect (if erect?).
The whole day was great, but fraught with small problems. It was great to see 100 people interested enough to want to visit this island and help keep it alive. I’d like to go again, but with more knowledge of these problems, and either on a longer day trip, or to stay for several days.
Be warned, traffic in Barnstaple can be a nightmare, especially if you need to get through Barnstaple to get to Illfracombe. Cars stretched along the A3125 back from the centre to the A39. After a while in a jam I realised the car in front had a sticker that read ‘Barnstaple – Home of the Traffic Jam’. Nice one!
Parking info for Illfracombe was poor. The letter with my ticket said info would be given when you arrive. When I phoned up I was given a vague “long term parking is on the other side of the quay”. It seems stupid to give this info out just before the ship sails when people are trying to book late tickets, collect tickets etc. And then the advice was dodgy, sending us up to a £2 car park a long way up the hill opposite the quay, whereas I learnt later that the car park at the bottom of this hill was only £2.80 a day, which if you ask me is worth the extra 80p, especially if the Barnstaple gridlock has made you later than you expected. If you come before mid May, or later in the season, there is also a chance you could park in one of the Illfracombe streets for free. Check the restrictions.
The boat trip is currently (2004) £28 for a day return (£25 concessions, including National Trust members). Or £42 for a period return. Helicopters run in the winter for £69. All these are for adult prices. Fine website (see link below) including online booking facility for day trips.
The road/path from the jetty on Lundy is long and steep. Not surprising really considering Lundy is like a huge slab of granite plonked in the ocean, but I thought I’d warn you all. The top of the island is mainly a plateau (120 to 140 metres above sea level), however, even this plateau is undulating and although the coastal paths are quite obvious, not all the paths are. Luckily you can walk just about anywhere you want as long as you abide by the common sense country code and close the few gates that are around. There is also a 4x4 track running the length of the island, which you might prefer to use to get places. It is quite rocky but still easier walking for some than the smaller paths. Lundy and the boat (MS Oldenburg) have no special disability facilities, however they say they will try to help and adapt as best they can for people with disabilities.
Weather conditions change rapidly and even on a nice day (like my day) you can still have bad sea (or land) conditions. It took us 20 minutes to dock and only later I heard there had been a strong possibility that we wouldn’t be able to get off the boat. So don’t assume anything and be prepared for possible changes / disappointments.
The boat says it takes up to 267 passengers. I’d hate to see it with that many on it! Most places to sit (inside and outside) were taken with only 120 people on board and on a nice day. The booking section on their website tells you how many tickets have been sold so far so you could use this to pick a quiet-ish trip, however I’m not sure how accurate it is.
The boat also seems to make up the rules as it goes along and doesn’t always tell you things. We were clearly told the boat would leave at 3.30pm (incidentally, slightly earlier than we expected when booking) and you can embark from 3pm. So, as I returned through the village at 3.05, knowing I’d make it by 3.10/3.15 I felt pretty happy with my timing. But no, I was told by the shopkeeper they were sailing at 3. Rush etc! I was met by a Land Rover on the coast road that took me the last 500 metres, and was given the impression by some people that I had held everyone up. In reality we had actually left 15 mins early. What they don’t tell you is that once everyone expected is aboard they will leave, so 3.30 was the latest time, not necessarily the actual time it will leave. I’m not saying they would have left without me, but I was narked for having to feel like I’d been late (I’m a pretty punctual person), and for having to worry that they might leave without me! Half of me felt grateful they had ‘waited’, half felt annoyed they made me look like a latecomer and people were asking me ‘what happened?’ Note – remember that most people just go for a quick walk on the south bit of the island and settle down in the village. Most won’t go wandering like I did (and you might).
And the shopkeeper had said “Didn’t you hear the foghorn blasts? That means they are ready to leave”. Well, fecking sorry if my father didn’t give me a seafaring lesson when I was 4 years old! How am I supposed to know things that I’m not informed about? I’m an intelligent enough person. Inform me of something and I’ll do my best to understand it and ask questions if I need to, but this assumption of knowledge / lack of info was really annoying.
A National Trust leaflet called ‘The Archaeology of Lundy’ was available on the boat for 50p. Apparently a more substantial booklet might be available at the Island shop but I never got the chance to find out more due to the above problems.
A free Lundy leaflet, advertising the island and the boat schedule, includes a slightly magnified version of the 1:25,000 OS map, so no need to buy the OS map unless you really want to.
This is a short lump of greyish limestone that points up from the ground at a jaunty angle, probably no more that 2.5-3ft high. Stumpy and solid, it is the smoothest, roundest piece of rock for miles around; everything else is stepped and fissured limestone. It does appear that a few pieces have split or broken away over time, and so it might have stood considerably taller originally. It has the characteristic hollow in the ground on one side where the sheep use it as a leaning/scratching post; and as ever, the views it commands are stupendous.
The easiest way to access this site is to take the back road from Danby to Lealholm that skirts Lealholm Moor and park somewhere close to the junction at NZ763087. If you are car-less you can walk from Lealholm station, it’s not too far. If your mobility is restricted then this could be a tricky site to get to.
If you don’t know the area I would advise that you take the footpath that continues from the metalled road and follow it onto Black Dike Moor. Temple Beeld is in the watershed of Black Dike Slack and once you are in the area shouldn’t be too hard to spot.
The site itself is impressive from a distance and is basically a large, dry stone cross aligned loosely to the cardinal points. It’s purpose is to shelter sheep but Temple Beeld is no ordinary sheep fold.
It stands in a known area of prehistoric activity with other standing stones, pit allignments, possible habitation site at NZ743096 and a Mesolithic flint scatter at NZ0758098.
The Beeld has been constructed by filing in the gaps between 5 standing stones, four at the points of the cross and one at the centre. The gaps have been filled with lovely dry stone walling much of which has been robbed but is intact at the southern end and stands at 2m in height.
There is no other structure on the North York Moors that has been constructed in this shape.
It’s dimensions are 26m N-S and 16m E-W. The alignment to the cardinal points is about 10 degrees off true.
The stones themselves are all fairly different in character the two E-W stones are about 1.4m in height and are slab-like in shape
The N-S stones are of a similar height but are more rectangular in profile and may have had some degree of shaping.
The centre stone is the smallest 1m and is closest in shape to the E-W stones.
I get the impression that the E-W and centre stones are the oldest and they don’t have a straight alignment so the wall curves in a crescent of equal proportions from the centre stone.
I would also guess that the dry stone walling is no more than a couple of hundred years old.
All in all it’s an intriguing place with good views across the moor.
If you’re visiting the Bleed I’d recommend you walk on to check out the Long Stone and the pit alignments on Easington High Moor but if you want to return to the road, I suggest you follow the line of grouse butts just south of the Bleed, this will lead you to the metalled track and back to the start of your trek via a couple of fairly non-descript barrows.
As a point of interest at the junction of the metalled road and the moors road there is a medieval flagged path or ‘trod’ leading up to a single standing stone. I don’t believe this stone to be prehistoric but the flagged trod and the views across the Esk Valley are worth seeing .
On the way to Nan Tows Tump, heading in the direction of Stroud, have a look at this. You cannot miss it, there it is standing proudly in the middle of a field. Easy to access, the field is unfenced. There is some damage around the edges, due to ploughing I think.
Trehundreth Downs Stone Setting – 31.3.2004
Full 8 figure grid ref = SX12587292
I found this from the Trehundreth Downs Stone Row. There is a good picture of this in Peter Herring and Peter Rose’s ‘Bodmin Moor’s Archaeological Heritage’ (Cornwall County Council – 2001). This excellent book writes “next to a cairn on Trehundreth Downs is a setting of three uprights in an arc, as if to define a forecourt-like area where rites could be performed against hills under the great expanse of the upland sky”. Although their description is a bit strange to what is on the ground and their interpretation surprisingly flowery compared to the rest of the book, it proved very useful to help me find this.
Trehundreth Downs Stone Row – 31.3.2004
Full 8 figure grid refs = SX12477292 to 12757302
Not that much to see. I was tired by this point so didn’t count or plot what I could see. I found this difficult to find from the west. Easier to find from either Greenbarrow or the Greenbarrow Downs Cairns. From any of these walk north west and you should walk right through the row! The row is low and small. One bonus is that you can clearly spot the Trehundreth Downs Stone Setting from this row. If you want to see a totally different type of row (tall, long and chunky) pop over the A30 and try to find Colvannick Tor Stone Row.
Greenbarrow Downs Cairns – 31.3.2004
The OS map marks two cairns very close to the Greenbarrow. One is obvious to spot at SX131730. The other, marked at SX129730 didn’t seem obvious to me.
Greenbarrow – 31.3.2004
Marked on the OS map. A large, easy to spot barrow. It literally is green and sticks out amongst the brown downland. One stone is stuck in the edge of the barrow as if it might be the last remnant of a kerb. A faint ditch also seems to circle as least part of the barrow.
Another Trehundreth Downs Cairn – 31.3.2004
Marked on the OS map. I didn’t look for this.
Trehundreth Downs Cairn – 31.3.2004
Marked on the OS map. I can’t say for certain that I found this unless it is the small mound aligned just to the west of Trehundreth Downs Stone Setting / Row.
Trehundreth Downs Stone Setting / Row -31.3.2004
Full 8 figure grid ref = SX12527274
An interesting row / setting of 3 large stones, one of which is still standing. Quite easy to spot form afar and from all around the Downs, which thankfully makes it easier to find than some of the other things around
Trehundreth Downs Menhir – 31.3.2004
Full 8 figure grid ref = SX12427281
Marked on the OS map. I don’t think I found this. It was all getting a bit confusing at this point. The OS map, the text and pictures in Peter Herring and Peter Rose’s ‘Bodmin Moor’s Archaeological Heritage’ (Cornwall County Council – 2001) and the text, drawing and pictures in Cheryl Straffon’s guide ‘The Earth Mysteries Guide to Bodmin Moor and North Cornwall (including Tintagel)’ (Meyn Mamvro – 1993, amended 2000) all help, but also can confuse. I think I have helped pull this info together, but without a repeat visit with a GPS system I don’t think some of these mysteries will be solved.
Trehundreth Downs Menhir / markstone -31.3.2004
Full 8 figure grid ref = SX12537258
Cheryl Straffon’s guide ‘The Earth Mysteries Guide to Bodmin Moor and North Cornwall (including Tintagel)’ (Meyn Mamvro – 1993, amended 2000) reports a “small menhir or markstone at SX12537258. Walking towards this mark stone on the top of the rise the Colvannick Tor Stone Row comes into view across the A30”.
Easy to spot as it lies in an area of the Downs with little bracken and few stones. However it is extremely small and very reminiscent of two boundary / marker stones I saw on the Downs, and the pitiful Peverell’s Cross. It has about 60cm of stone above ground, with an extra 25cm as part of the ‘pit’ it stands in. However, from my memory this stone doesn’t have any letters carved on it, unlike the boundary markers elsewhere on the Downs. Curious.
Elsewhere in the Straffon booklet she writes that Trehundreth Downs Menhir is aligned to a cairn, and this stone. Add to this the Colvannick Tor Stone Row and “evidently all these stones were part of a special alignment, and perhaps a spirit path of the dead associated (sic) with the burial mounds here”. Maybe Straffon wants this to be a menhir, rather than a boundary stone, because it is conveniently aligned to the stone row?
Colvannick Tor Stone Row – 31.3.2004
Full 8 figure grid refs = SX12817189 to 12937163.
One easy-ish way to get here is to park at the picnicy area mentioned in the Trehundreth & Greenbarrow Downs section, and hop over the fence into the firled to the south. Follow the fence along to the west until a footpath starts at SX128723 (the path isn’t actually visible on the ground!). This skirts around the large pond. You will need an OS map and even then the stone row can be difficult to spot. I was confused by the field boundary the map showed on the east side of Colvannick Tor. In reality this is not a wall but maybe an ancient boundary; a sort of low bank and slight ditch. If like me you find the stone row difficult to find, head up to the Tor and the northern most stone should be clearly visible due east, about 300 metres away. From this stone you can take a compass bearing south east and walk the line of the row (sometimes through gorse!). There aren’t many obvious stones until you reach the southern stones, one of which is large and still upright and can also be seen from the Tor. Beyond this stone there are a few large but fallen stones, and then one final stone 80m or so further on; a very large stone, semi erect. By this point you’ll be able to see a few red and white poles in the distance, presumably warning poles for the ‘Danger Area’ on Cardinham Moor.
In all I counted 3 standing stones (2 of which were large), 1 semi erect (the large southern end stone), 5 fallen (all large), 2 broken stones together, and around 10 possible smaller stones, all fallen or just stumps. This is the best stone row in Cornwall. Harder to find and interpret than the more famous, and still brilliant, Nine Maidens row, but more rewarding and challenging.
From the stone row you can clearly see the small possible Trehundreth Downs Menhir / markstone that aligns with it on Trehundreth Downs across the road.
There are ponies and sheep all around, and some sampy area around the large pond. Gorse and brambles line the A30 so getting over to Trehundreth Downs is not that easy. One simple way is by retracing your steps to where the footpath starts on the south side. Opposite this there is a gate into Trehundreth Downs on the north side of this very busy dual carriageway.
Cheryl Straffon’s guide ‘The Earth Mysteries Guide to Bodmin Moor and North Cornwall (including Tintagel)’ (Meyn Mamvro – 1993, amended 2000) writes that “Colvannick Tor itself as probably named after the stones, meaning is it does in English ‘erect penis’, an indication of an ancient awareness of the phallic nature of the stones, and hinting at fertility rites performed here.” I wonder if that’s the first mention of an erect penis on this website? Probably not!
Cranbrook Castle Hill Fort – 1.4.2004
After a hard afternoon on the Moors I decided to cheat my way to the top of Cranbrook Castle. I’m sure it’s probably a nice walk from Fingle Bridge up to Cranbrook Down, but it’s also a climb of about 220metres of height in only one kilometre! So I noticed the access from the south, which involved only a short walk and climb (and one gate). A small triangle of land exists at SX748888, which I guessed might be easy to park at. Well, despite a quaint little metal bench being there (suggesting a lovely spot to stop at), it’s actually a muddy lane and was full of forested trees (ranging from enormous to small)! Instead I found somewhere to park just off the country lane. In this tiny triangle of land an old trig pillar has been set up. This was originally put on Cranbrook Castle in February 1949 but was later made redundant and moved there in 1993 by the Parish Council.
The ramparts are pretty impressive, especially on the south side, although the gorse makes it hard to explore too much. At 357 metres above sea level this is a real high point in the area. The opposite hill fort of Prestonbury Castle is visible, as are panoramic views across Dartmoor. Lovely.
Scorhill Stone Circle – 1.4.2004
Getting from the Shovel Down Complex to Scorhill is easy (although I would still always recommend an OS map on any sort of moorland). Just continue on after the northern stone rows and you will see the trees and massive stone walls of Batworthy Farm run across the edge of the moor on your right hand side. Even on a day of seriously reducing visibility it was easy to see the wall and trees ahead. As you come to the end of the wall, suddenly Scorhill is visible on the opposite bank of the river. Excellent!
You have two choices to cross the beautiful rushing Teign. Either straight ahead to a rough and small bridge made of a massive block of stone, or you can head about 80m upstream and over two bridges, one of which is a classic picturesque Clapper Bridge. The area around here though can get really muddy, so the other one could be better for some people, although it is a rockier and steeper walk.
The circle is a real stunner and today was quite well visited (which was a nice shock after many days on Moors without seeing a soul!). I saw two people with a dog arriving just after I left, and another person when I returned.
Coming back from the Buttern Hill Stone Circle I noticed that only the large pointy stone on the north side of the circle is the only stone visible from that direction until quite close to the circle.
Shovel Down Complex – 1.4.2004
The instructions on the megalithic walks website (see link below) are excellent. Just a couple of additions though. First, to be clear that the bridge mentioned (i.e. where to park) is just outside Batworthy Farm, at SX662866. The space near the bridge should take 4 to 5 cars. I also saw cars parked at various small places off the road over the common, but the bridge area is better and more sensible. Secondly, the journey through the lanes is pretty tortuous, but at least you shouldn’t get lost if you have an OS map. Once successfully on the right road (after the crucial junction at SX690870), it is pretty much follow the road and don’t take any of the turnings off the lane. To avoid some of the earlier lanes try the B3206 to Chagford from the A382. Be careful to avoid the Range Rovers though! Judging from the cars and the shops this ancient Stannary town looks like a squeaky clean Devon version of Hampstead!
As you walk up towards Batworthy Corner, the north east most row comes clearly into view. A few hundred metres on and you’ve experienced your first bit of Shovel Down! This first row leads to an intriguing circle of three concentric stone circles. Up and over the hill and the enormous long stone suddenly comes into view. This massive, enigmatic stone has lots of stones around its base. Are they modern? They somehow don’t look quite right. The southern stone row (as shown on the OS map) basically doesn’t exist; there is nothing there.
I believe I found the remaining one of the ‘Three Boys’, but it is 70% fallen. From here, if you know where you are looking you can just see the top of the Long Stone. It would be interesting to know if it could be seen from the top of the three boys when it was / they were erect.
There must be 3 rows to the north, not just two as the OS map shows. The middle row starts and continues further away from the others, and is a good way to walk onwards to Scorhill.
When I later returned to the bridge I was led down the rocky path by a dog from Batworthy Farm, like Lassie leading an injured child!
Pencarrow Rings Hill Slope Fort – 31.3.2004
Pencarrow House is a historic house and garden open to the public. The entrance and long driveway is off Old School Lane, which connects the A389 and B3266 near Washaway. Well signposted. The ‘hill fort’ is 300metres from this entrance and is literally split in two by the driveway up to the house. You’ll probably notice that it’s not on much of a hill, and it isn’t the highest local point. A hill slope fort in reality. As there were signs saying ‘No waiting’ and ‘No stopping on the driveway’ I thought fair enough, it’s your grounds, so your rules and decided to park just outside the gates and walk in.
The ramparts are very impressive. Shame the road goes right through them! Although these ramparts and ditches are impressive it does make you wonder how much space was left to live or shelter. In some places the gap between the inner and outer ring is up to 24m but still that’s not much if you think about it. On the west side an incomplete annexe can be seen (cut by the road).
CANMORE gives this prehistoric settlement as 450m WSW of the Italian Chapel (nothing else known). More usefully it is by the shore the other side of the main road and can be sighted along the side road to the chapel. There must be an easier way in than over the blocks at the end of Churchill Barrier Number One, which was the way I chose for reasons of time – having clambered atop the blocks I saw some stones had been placed on the coastal side of one for such a purpose.
I must admit my hopes were low, maybe a few slight bumps if I was lucky. Proceeding along the coastline there was a flattened area ‘paved’ by flat stones and a few sticking up slightly. At the time because I came upon them so quickly I put them down to being either purely geological or of recent agricultural origin but after what came after I am more open to a dfferent interpretatation. The very next thing was two platforms each 4-5m across, with stones at the sides and back giving them a wedge shape several inches high at the rear. Very nice. Seeing more stones going across the edge of the low cliff I went down onto the beach for a quick shufty. Oh, glory be, what a sight, the cliff hereabouts was a housewall composed of a multitude of rounded stones about the size of a housebrick at most, course after course. All told the exposed section could be made out for 14m, tapering off into indistinction either side. It may be that it does continue erratically over an even longer portion of the cliff, though the cliff-face shortly goes down to sea-level at the left. The main central portion that first took my fancy is the 4m to the right of the only orthostat in the section. Neolithic or at the least Bronze Age
Coming back up I went towards a small modern structure roadside to see if there was another way out there. There wasn’t but I did pass a couple of depressions with a few smaa stones in that might be something. And then a couple of linear humps, short but suggestive – though what of I’m no sure.
