Just off Peddars way – nicely situated Bronze Age barrow.
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August 23, 2025
August 22, 2025
Looking back to Auchamore Farm. From the Ogham Stone / St Cathans, there is a path, you’ll pass the chamber cairn on the way to the stones.
Image credit: drew/AMJ
They’re saying go to Cuddiport, there’s a cairn you can fall into over there.
Image credit: drew/AMJ
Perched on top of a wee hill beside things that won’t last as long.
Image credit: drew/AMJ
Looking towards Kintyre, they didn’t see me sneak up.
Image credit: drew/AMJ
It isn’t connected to the grass in the top half of the photo, a nasty drop, a wee valley, then a climb to get over there.
Image credit: drew/AMJ
The south east corner, the drop is higher than it looks.
Image credit: drew/AMJ
North side on top of the dun, lots of scattered stone.
Image credit: drew/AMJ
A nice close up to show off those lichens.
Image credit: DKay
A beautiful, albeit fairly small, single standing stone in a very picturesque location on the edge of the Llynnau Cregennen. Looking southwest here towards Tyrrau Mawr/Craig-las. Further single stones, multiple stone settings and cairns are located south of the lakes. The local Hafotty area seems pretty chock-a-block with them, as well as numerous medievel and post-medieval sites. Must have been quite the ‘hub’ back in the day!
Image credit: DKay
A close up of that gorgeous block of quartz with the rest of the row (and a sheep) in the background.
Image credit: DKay
Tried to get a good angle on this photo to show the ‘it’s more of a row than a circle’ alingment. Interestingly the Coflein entry makes no mention of the white quartz block, which to my mind looks quite deliberately placed at the end of the row.
The foremost stone seems to be the preferred scratching post of the resident sheep. Their activities have also exposed what might be some of the packing stones at the base of the monolith, though to be fair these might just be normal small rocks, there are a lot of them around here! There’s some very impressive field clearance cairns and ‘mounded’ drystone walls in the fields immediately southeast of the site.
Image credit: DKay
View south towards Craig-y-llyn and Craig Cwm-llwyd
Image credit: DKay
August 21, 2025
Only one word to describe the yomp up here today... SQUELCH. Despite the dry summer the main path north of Bryn Cader Faner continues to manage to be a full on bog for most of its length. A proper test for my new boots at least!
The spectacular cairn itself marked a chance for some much needed lunchtime respite on what had started as a much drier and altogether more enjoyable scramble across Moel Ysgyfarnogod, Foel Penolau and Moel y Gyrafolen from Llyn Cwm Bychan, before turning back south and the ensuing war on clear navigation and dry feet began in earnest.
The monument continues to be well worth the leg work though, what an absolute beauty! It’s siting in the landscape with the high Rhinogydd to its back and looking out over the Dwyryd Estuary to northern Eryri is properly spectacular. As is the silouhette of its very distinctive outline atop the ridgeline from the (much drier) southern approach.
Somewhat isolated as it is now, it’s all the more intriguing when you remember that these hills are likely more depopulated now than they’ve ever been, and in the Bronze Age in particular it would have been really fairly busy up here. A wonderful evocative spot to rest a moment and consider just how many stories the landscape holds.
Squint or you’ll miss it! Silhouetted on the ridgeline from the southern approach.
Image credit: DKay
And a beautiful clear view north towards the peaks of northern Eryri.
Image credit: DKay
August 20, 2025
A further stone, just to the north of this one, recorded elsewhere (see esp the Megalithic Portal) as the now overturned Stone 3 of Fonllech Stone Row.
Image credit: DKay
Spent a very enjoyable few hours walking up the road from the start of the Fonllech Stone Row, counting menhirs as we went with the hillfort ever in our sights. Had some fun spotting shapes in the rocks, particularly a dinosaur head at Stone 5 and a rather chunky rump and pair of legs at Stone 4.
The ring cairn by Stone 9 and the paired ones just below the hillfort itself were also great additions and strongly suggest this gentle ridge formed an important processional way of some kind. Despite its more modest topographic location it certainly provides views out over much of the surrounding landscape, including the Dwyryd Estuary and coastal plain to the north/west as well as the high Rhinogydd to the east.
The presumably later hillfort likewise enjoys spectacular views, including right across to the Snowdon massif in the distance. Interestingly the ramparts are bisected not just by more modern drystone walls but also several long linear outcrops of the basal rock. Definitely worth the diversion from the path below!
Slightly warped panorama view from the top centred to the north. Shows how amazing the views up here are though, especially out over the Dwyryd Estuary to the north, Bay of Ceredigion to the west, and the peaks of the Rhinogydd to the east.
Image credit: DKay
