Blog

Pennines Ahoy!

My first trip out to a 'new' prehistoric area of the country in over a year, only my second trip out in about 4 months & my first visit to my new prehistoric stomping ground.

Certainly a cause for excitement & celebration.

First up, Cheetham Close, the closest Stone Circle to my house, a mere 20miles (compare & contrast to 100 miles...)

Cheetham Close

[visited 22/02/04] A brisk walk above Bolton leads you to this sorry site. It looks to be a dead ringer for an abused twin of Twelve Apostles, sitting sorrowful by the side of what is surely an ancient track. Despite the top of this windswept moor

doing steady traffic, I was the only person who stopped & walked over to the stumps, a somewhat depressing fact.

This circle isn't impressive, unique or even readily recognizable, but still it struggles on & fair play to it. Go visit & make sure it is less forgotten.

comment 0 Comments

Now onto what I expect will be the mainstay of prehistory for me, the edge of the pennines and the two Severn-Cotswolds tombs bizarrely located on Anglezarke moor.

Pikestones

[visited 22/02/04] What a site for sore eyes this is, its condition reminds me of Grey Mare in Dorset, but the ground plan on the wellkept sign makes it look more like Hetty Peglars Tump. I parked on the corner & headed across open moor to the barrow. Its a bit trashed, but the location made up for it.

Didn't find the circle mentioned here, but did find a cairn with stones on the center which was approx 300m at 58 degrees from the Pikestones so maybe...

comment 0 Comments

Black Coppice Chambered Cairn

[visited 22/02/04] I came here last on my day out to watch

the sunset over the lancashire plains, but changed my mind when I realised how likely I was to hurt myself going down the escarpment in the dark...

It really is a mess up here, I'm not convinced that much is prehistoric, given the huge industrial mill? stones just off the edge of the quarry. However if most of it is prehistoric then its a big cemetary, something like Raven Tor or even one of the barrow cemetarys down south (Poor Lot springs to mind.)

Well worth a visit, the views are spectacular & who knows what else is lurking under the heathery peat.

comment 0 Comments

More from the TMA blog