Images (29)
Fieldnotes (2)

Images

Image of Yr Aran cairns (Barrow / Cairn Cemetery) by thesweetcheat

Yr Aran III, a low cairn concealed by reedy grasses, lying between the larger cairns up the hill and the main concentration by the trees.

Image credit: A. Brookes (24.3.2018)

thesweetcheat Apr 15, 2018

Yr Aran IV, up the hill near to the quartz-topped Yr Aran II. Not the best cairn, but the placement is top notch, with great views westwards towards the Arenigs.

Image credit: A. Brookes (24.3.2018)

thesweetcheat Apr 15, 2018

Yr Aran XI, looking NNE towards Moel Pearce and Cadair Bronwen.

Image credit: A. Brookes (24.3.2018)

thesweetcheat Apr 15, 2018

Yr Aran XIII, looking southeast towards the more isolated cairns to the east of this group.

Image credit: A. Brookes (24.3.2018)

thesweetcheat Apr 15, 2018

Yr Aran XIV, with what may be the remains of a kerb.

Image credit: A. Brookes (24.3.2018)

thesweetcheat Apr 15, 2018

Quartz block incorporated into Yr Aran V.

Image credit: A. Brookes (24.3.2018)

thesweetcheat Apr 15, 2018

The slabs on edge in the centre of Yr Aran VI.

Image credit: A. Brookes (24.3.2018)

thesweetcheat Apr 15, 2018

Yr Aran VI, the best in the main group, with what appears to be a stone-lined cist in the centre.

Image credit: A. Brookes (24.3.2018)

thesweetcheat Apr 15, 2018

Yr Aran VIII, damaged by excavation and erosion. The higher slopes of the Berywns are emerging from the low cloud.

Image credit: A. Brookes (24.3.2018)

thesweetcheat Apr 15, 2018

Yr Aran cairn X. The northernmost in the group, it has an unobstructed view down Cwm Pennant.

Image credit: A. Brookes (24.3.2018)

thesweetcheat Apr 15, 2018

Image of Yr Aran cairns (Barrow / Cairn Cemetery) by postman

That makes ten ten, maybe.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Mar 25, 2018

The quartz of the big Rhyd y Gethin cairn can be seen over the fence

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Mar 25, 2018

There’s two more Yr Aran cairns the other side of the fence, much the same as those by the trees.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Mar 25, 2018

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Mar 25, 2018

Stony grassy bump in need of a haircut.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Mar 25, 2018

Coflein says there’s ten cairns in all, you can see two here.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Mar 25, 2018

Have you ever seen anything about The Berwyn UFO incident on tele, chances are you saw the drivers grandad.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Mar 25, 2018

Big standing stone, not really it’s another cairn

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Mar 25, 2018

Half gone cairn is the green bump by the trees.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Mar 25, 2018

The green bump by the trees is yet another cairn,

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Mar 25, 2018

The best of the bunch this side of the fence.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Mar 25, 2018

Gather round sheep, no go that way, this way, wander round like your lost, good sheep.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Mar 25, 2018

Looking north, the better view west to Foel Cwm Sian Llwyd blocked by trees.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Mar 25, 2018

Thesweetcheat photographs another cairn

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Mar 25, 2018

This dark peaty cairn was the first cairn reached from the north. It has several stones scattered about, possible kerbing ?

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Jun 22, 2011

This cairn has the most exposed interior.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Jun 22, 2011

This cairn has the most exposed interior.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Jun 22, 2011

Three small low cairns in a row.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Jun 22, 2011

One of the southern most cairns.

Image credit: Chris Bickerton

postman Jun 22, 2011

Articles

Yr Aran cairns

Barrow / Cairn Cemetery

postman Mar 26, 2018

I last came here 7 years ago on a misty summer solstice morning, lack of knowledge made me miss half of the cairns. Coflein later told me that one or two of them have cists, and elsewhere I missed a ring cairn and a kerb cairn so I promised myself one day I would return.
For a change, Thesweatcheat and myself find a coinciding day off work with no hindrances, apart from car over heating problems, it’s on it’s way out cant be helped. So here we are.
There is no footpath up to the cairns, early on in the walk we came across a farm, saw the farmer and asked if we can get up there pointing to the hill top we wanted to climb, worryingly he asked why we wanted to go up there, we said “cairns” you know the ancient ones, he pointed out there are no public footpaths up there, I gave him my best innocent smile, we’ll be alright wont we? He pointed out the way up and off we went.
A steep farm track took us almost all the way to the cairns, it was hard work, did I say it was steep?
The cairns are all low and small, some have kerbing showing and some have been dug into revealing the cairns innards, didn’t see any cists.
Then the farmer turned up in his buggy with his two dogs. We chatted about the cairns and stuff and discovered his family had been farming here for four generations, I took a chance and asked if he knew much about the Berwyn incident. He knew a lot, his granddad had been on tele talking about the tremor, the loud bang, the lights, the army.
Not interested in the Berwyn incident? never heard of it? Long drawn out sigh.

So, not all the cairns here, there are over a dozen, are grouped under the name of Yr Aran cairns, strangely the two or three furthest south over the fence are called Rhyd-y-Gethin, which is stranger still as Rhyd-y-Gethin is the other side of Yr Aran and down in the valley. Two Yr Aran cairns are over the north south fence but north of the west east fence, there are a few fences up here. It is farmland, not open access Berwyn nature reserve.
these two cairns are much the same as the cairns by the trees. Hope that all makes sense.

Yr Aran cairns

Barrow / Cairn Cemetery

postman Jun 22, 2011

It had been a really long morning and by now I was staggering around like a drunkard, I had reached the end of my endurance long ago, from here and back to the heaven known as “my car” would be on automatic, so ruthlessly had I pushed myself.

My map only shows two cairns, and seeing as Coflein wouldn’t let me play the few days before, I couldnt learn more about these cairns. which is a great pity.
I found at least six small cairns all of which had been got to by treasure hunters, leaving them in the donut shape that can on the one hand expose internal features and on the other desacrate a grave and ancient monument.
But after returning home and finding a back door into Coflein, Ive since found out that I didnt even find the two bigger cairns that are on the map, one of which still has its cist, only the cairn cemetry 150 meters to the west.