This was my first visit that wasn’t on the winter solstice, summer can be a most agreeable season, no hats and gloves, no rain or ice, just a warm breeze, my good buddy Alken and one of thee best stone circles ever.
Apparently only five out of sixty of the porphyritic slate stones have gone away (that’s a postal term) without leaving a forwarding address might I add. But it takes nothing away from this most magnificent of ancient places, the views attained from this position are inspiring. From south through west to north are the big hills Knott, Grey stones, and Swinside fell, but on the eastern side the views stretch far and wide, to the Old man of Coniston and beyond.
But best of all is the view from half way up Swinside fell, you can see down onto Duddon sands either side of Knott hill, you can see off into Lancashire, and you can see down onto the perfect circle that is Sunkenkirk, perfect that is till you realise that someone down there is climbing on the stones.
After about an hour to ourselves amongst the stones a couple of older ladies came, we decided to let them have the stones to themselves for a while whilst we climbed the hill a bit to get some more perspective of the whole arena chosen by the ancients as the position for this big circle. Whilst we were up there a family of five arrived, and zooming down onto the stones revealed a crime so heineous that it has no name, the care free parents were letting their three kids climb on the stones and in places jump from stone to stone. When we arrived back at the circle they had scared away the two older ladies and were having their wicked way with our beloved best freind, Alken and I exchanged desperate looks, mind melded for an instant and it was time to go, the moment had most definitely gone, we left telling our selves “other stones to see and all that” Don’t look back, don’t look back.
What a place, even snotty climbing kids shall not detract (although the lack of an enforcement helicopter full of black-clad SWAT people swooping down to see them off was rather an omission).
This is a wonderful stone circle in a great location. We were there in Spring 2014 with our kids.
Our kids go to a lot of megalithic sites with us and although we're careful not to damage anything I have no problem with them going on any of the stones.
These are places of celebration and having fun among other things.
synonyms for heineous copied from google: odious, wicked, evil, atrocious, monstrous, disgraceful, abominable, detestable, contemptible, reprehensible, despicable, horrible, horrific, horrifying, terrible, awful, abhorrent, loathsome, outrageous, shocking, shameful, hateful, hideous, unspeakable, unpardonable, unforgivable, inexcusable, execrable, ghastly, iniquitous, villainous, nefarious, beneath contempt, beyond the pale...
Hardly kids having fun and doing no damage? :)
Maybe it depends on what you want to experience when you visit a site.
As for damage being caused by climbing, that'll depend on the type of stone involved (lots of monuments are pretty fragile) and how sturdy the construction is.
Completely agree with you, Chris.
In my opinion letting your kids climb all over millennia old standing stones... somebody's sacred temple, someone else's place for quiet contemplation.... is arguably much the same as going into a church and letting them dance on the altar, just for a laugh. Hey, nobody's going to mind, just kids having a bit of fun. I would suggest a degree of thought and altruism is required here.
Consider also mountain biking over a grassy barrow, or building a 'shelter' within a cairn. No harm intended, but...... adults really should know better, and, of more importance, be teaching the next generation to respect these monuments as, at the very least, lingering reminders of a bygone age. If destroying lichen that has taken centuries to grow is considered to be causing no damage, lets just say I disagree fundamentally. The thin end of the wedge.